Self help book recommendation
Hello everyone!
I suffer from crippling depression of which my husband is very aware. Hes been very supportive however hes definitely feeling burnt out by my mental health and its severely imparting our marriage. Does anyone have any book recommendations for someone like me looking to improve my marriage despite having severe depression? Thanks all!
Lisa
@LilLisa1 hey there! While I don't know of any books specifically for marriage with depression, I do know these 2 books about helping depression (which my guess would then also help the relationship, if depression is a major source of friction). They're both about cognitive behavioural therapy, the first one is more about understanding your thoughts and how they impact your mood, the second one is the same but is more like a workbook. I think they could be beneficial to both of you, for you to know more about your emotions and how you can change them, and for your husband to understand more about what you're going through. Maybe even working through the workbook together could be a form of bonding :)
The first one is: "Feeling Good" by Dr. David Burns
The second one is: "Mind Over Mood" by Dennis Greenberger
@TaranWanderer thank you! I
@LilLisa1 The way you describe your situation makes it sound like you plan to stay depressed but you somehow want to improve your marriage anyway. I don't think I've ever seen any book specifically about doing that.
However, one well-known place to find various resources for improving marriage, including books, is The Gottman Institute.
If it's your depression that's impacting your marriage, I suppose finding a way to relieve your depression might allow your marriage to recover all by itself. There are plenty of self help books on depression, and here at 7 Cups we have a brief guide, Depression (although parts of it are out of date). One of the books our guide is based on is the very well known Mind Over Mood. And there are websites that provide structured help for depression, such as Living Life and MoodGym.
Charlie
@RarelyCharlie Hi there. I am absolutely not complicit in my depression and I am in fact working very hard toward improving my mental health so I dont appreciate you making assumptions based on the very little information you have on me. I simply asked for resources to help navigate my marriage and depression seing as marriage isnt something to be be put aside while one struggles with mental health. I do appreciate the resources however so thank you.
@RarelyCharlie Also, there is a plethora of books for individuals or couples trying to work on their relationship despite living with a mental illness. I simply believed 7cups to be a safe place filled with people with experience in all aspects of mental health that may have insight into which is these books would suit my particular situation. Please be mindful of this in your future posts. It is comments like yours that discourage people from seeking help.
“Codependent No More” by Melody Beattie
“Feeling Good”
These are good for depression and emotions, mood…improving self is always where to start when trying to improve a marriage because you can’t change anyone but yourself unfortunately.
