The Anxiety Toolkit: Strategies for Fine-Tuning Your Mind and Moving Past Your Stuck Points

163 Pages·2015·1.36 MB·English

by  Alice Boyes

Praise for
THE ANXIETY TOOLKIT
“The Anxiety Toolkit provides quick, simple and practical tips that the anxious
person can use now.”
—Robert L. Leahy, PhD, director of the American Institute for Cognitive Therapy
“In this innovative handbook, Dr. Boyes identifies common habits that underlie
different types of anxiety. She then offers clear strategies to drop the fight and
become more gentle with ourselves. If anxiety has limited your life in any way,
this book is an excellent place to start the healing process.”
—Christopher Germer, PhD, clinical instructor at Harvard Medical School, coeditor of Mindfulness and
Psychotherapy, and author of The Mindful Path to Self-Compassion
“The Anxiety Toolkit is an investment in wellness. Based on years of clinical
practice and research, Dr. Alice Boyes has written a real-world roadmap for all
of us who struggle with making decisions and feeling stuck.”
—Chris Guillebeau, New York Times bestselling author of The Happiness of Pursuit and The $100 Startup

A PERIGEE BOOK
Published by the Penguin Group
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A Penguin Random House Company Copyright © 2015 by Alice Boyes Penguin supports copyright. Copyright fuels creativity,
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Boyes, Alice.
The anxiety toolkit : strategies for fine-tuning your mind and moving past your stuck points / Alice Boyes.
pages cm
ISBN 978-0-69815475-9
1. Anxiety—Popular works. 2. Anxiety—Treatment—Popular works. I. Title.
RC531.B68 2015
616.85'22—dc23 2014040065
First edition: March 2015
Neither the publisher nor the author is engaged in rendering professional advice or services to the individual reader. The ideas,
procedures, and suggestions contained in this book are not intended as a substitute for consulting with your physician. All matters
regarding your health require medical supervision. Neither the author nor the publisher shall be liable or responsible for any loss or
damage allegedly arising from any information or suggestion in this book.
While the author has made every effort to provide accurate telephone numbers, Internet addresses, and other contact information at the
time of publication, neither the publisher nor the author assumes any responsibility for errors, or for changes that occur after
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Version_1
CONTENTS
Praise for THE ANXIETY TOOLKIT
TITLE PAGE
COPYRIGHT
A NOTE ON THE CLIENT EXAMPLES
PART 1
Understanding Yourself and Your Anxiety
CHAPTER 1
How Anxiety Works
CHAPTER 2
Understanding the Multidimensional You
CHAPTER 3
Your Goals
PART 2
Your Anxiety Toolkit: Overcoming Your Stuck Points
CHAPTER 4
Hesitancy: How to Stop Holding Back from the Things You Want to Do
CHAPTER 5
Rumination: How to Get Your Thinking Unstuck
CHAPTER 6
Paralyzing Perfectionism: How to Stop Getting Derailed by the Wrong Kinds of High
Standards
CHAPTER 7
Fear of Feedback and Criticism: How to Work with Your Sensitivity to Feedback
CHAPTER 8
Avoidance: How to Stop Putting Your Head in the Sand About Important Things
PART 3
Where to Next?
CHAPTER 9
Managing Your Anxiety vs. Living Your Life
CHAPTER 10
Areas Where People Get Tripped Up
CHAPTER 11
Liking Your Natural Self vs. Tolerating Your Natural Self
CONCLUSION
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
REFERENCES
NOTES
INDEX
A note on the client examples presented here: Client examples included in this book
are composites of multiple clients, and details have been changed to protect people’s
privacy. References to my clinical practice are based on my work in New Zealand
from 2008 to 2013.

Disclaimer:
The content of this book is intended for general information purposes only and not as
a substitute for individual therapy. Not all of the advice may be right for you.

PART 1
Understanding Yourself and Your
Anxiety