In Review: Wellbeing Book Recommendations

Top 5 Wellness Reads

“You can never get a cup of tea large enough or a book long enough to suit me.” -C.S. Lewis

As C.S Lewis, quite rightly pointed out, there’s nothing quite like a cup of tea and a good book. And when it comes to managing your own wellbeing, there’s plenty to be found amongst the pages of books written by experts and those who’ve put pen to paper to share their wisdom and memoirs on how to live better.

Whether you want to improve your wellbeing, have a better understanding of mental health, or you’re just looking to broaden your mind, we’ve rounded up our top five reads for putting your wellbeing first.

*These books are not a substitute for medical help and professional support. If you’re experiencing difficulty with your mental health then please speak to a professional. 

1. Wintering: The Power of Rest and Retreat in Difficult Times

- Katherine May

Wintering is Katherine May’s very own journey into the “fallow periods of life”, a time of retreat, repair, and a chance to nurture oneself. It takes a look at the seasons within life, both internal and external, and focuses heavily on winter as an analogy for navigating the darker periods of life. A soothing and meditative read.

“We have seasons when we flourish and seasons when the leaves fall from us, revealing our bare bones. Given time, they grow again.”

2. First, We Make the Beast Beautiful: A New Story About Anxiety

- Sarah Wilson

Another self-help inspired memoir, Sarah Wilson (of I Quit Sugar fame) has shared her minded and humorous ramblings that unpick what it means to live with anxiety. This isn’t a book about healing and curing, it’s a book about thriving and being kinder and gentler to yourself - and if that sounds like something you’ve been searching for then indulge yourself in some serious reading therapy.

“We rush to escape what makes us anxious, which makes us anxious, and so we rush some more.”

3. Big Magic - Creative Living Beyond Fear

- Elizabeth Gilbert

Bestselling author, Elizabeth Gilbert, whose book Eat, Pray, Love became a hit movie, has created a self-help book that shares her own stories and wisdom about what it means to live a creative life. Creativity is not strictly defined within Big Magic, and is discussed in a way that leaves it inclusive. But this book provides advice on how to push past fear and the challenges that come with living your passion.

“It’s a simple and generous rule of life that whatever you practice, you will improve at.”

4. Untamed

- Glennon Doyle

Both a memoir and a self-help book, Untamed is Doyle’s internal and external struggle with personal development and growth. Packed full of metaphors, it tackles what it means to be a woman, to be human, and how to find freedom.

“Being human is not hard because you're doing it wrong, it's hard because you're doing it right.”

5. Reasons to Stay Alive

- Matt Haig

Matt Haig’s no-holds-barred account of his own journey through depression and anxiety has become a much-revered guide to managing and understanding mental health and mental illness. Written in short chapters and bite-size chunks it’s an honest, open, and raw account that will leave you either resonating, with a deeper understanding, or both!

“Just when you feel you have no time to relax, know that this is the moment you most need to make time to relax.”