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Do self-help books really help?

Dear Doctor,

My GP has given me a list of books that I can find in my local library. These are supposedly called self-help books, but I’m a bit sceptical. How can reading a book help depression?

DAS Supporter

Dear DAS supporter

I can understand your doubts. The idea that reading a book can help with an illness certainly seems strange. It is also important to acknowledge that a person affected by Depression may find it impossible to concentrate on reading a short magazine article, let alone be able to absorb the content of a self-help book.

Depression is particularly painful in that it affects not only mood and feelings, but also thoughts (and ability to think clearly) and behaviour. Typically, Depression causes negative thoughts and changes in functioning, such as loss of energy and sleep disturbance. There is also evidence that Depression is associated with changes in certain chemicals that act as messengers within the brain (antidepressant medication aims to counter these chemical changes).

So, Depression causes changes in Mood, Thoughts, Behaviour and Chemistry. Experience of helping people affected by Depression has shown that, if an improvement can be made in any one of these four areas, there are likely to be beneficial changes in the other three areas as well. Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, CBT, is probably the best researched non-drug treatment for Depression. CBT is based on the knowledge that, if a person experiencing Depression can begin to challenge their negative thoughts or make positive changes in their daily routine, then improvements in their mood are likely to follow.

From the above, it can be seen that Depression offers much scope for self help. Clearly the scope may be small when the Depression is at its worst, but Depression is often a recurring or persisting problem that will wax and wane in its severity. Self-help skills acquired in the better times may be invaluable tools to fight with when things get worse, and they may also help to reduce the risk of the Depression recurring.

Some people may have the benefit of working with a Counsellor or Psychologist to develop their self-help skills, but the availability of such therapists is sadly limited. There is, however, good evidence that reading appropriate books, or “Bibliotherapy”, can help in the acquisition of self-help skills and improve symptoms of Depression. I also believe that with any illness, particularly one that may be long term or recurrent, recovery will be aided by learning about the illness and understanding it better. Simply learning how common Depression is and how many celebrities and distinguished people have suffered from Depression can do a great deal to reduce the damaging feelings of shame and stigma that often accompany this illness.

In recent years, much work has been done to make structured self-help material available free of charge online. This is an attractive alternative to reading books for some people. Two UK web sites that are aimed at helping those who suffer from problems with Anxiety or Depression (very often the two go together) are www.livinglifetothefull.com/ and www.fearfighter.com/.

I would certainly encourage you to visit your local library and have a look at the books your GP has suggested. I doubt if it would be helpful to read them all but you will probably find one or two that seem particularly relevant to your needs.

Yours sincerely,
Gerry McPartlin

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