Why doesn't self-help help? Micki McGee explores the demand for self-help & what it tells us about ourselves.

Break free from the self-help cycle and join the world of successful leaders. IN THIS GAME CHANGING BOOK YOU WILL LEARN: - How self doubt, procrastination and indecision create a cycle of self-help addiction - Why people invest in self-help books, courses, events and come out still feeling unaccomplished - How you can make your fears your friend and achieve anything your heart desires - The importance of always taking responsibility for what happens in your life - How much abundance there is in this world and that there is enough money, love and happiness for everyone to have a lifetime supply - How to go from a consumer to a creator - The art of taking action, because without action nothing gets done - How to become accountable so you avoid putting things off - The power of decisiveness and how to avoid feeling overwhelmed - The secret to getting high and staying high (without drugs) - Why you have already won - How the real hero, that you have searched so long and hard for, is you.

Why doesn't self-help help? Cultural critic Micki McGee puts forward this paradoxical question as she looks at a world where the market for self-improvement products--books, audiotapes, and extreme makeovers--is exploding, and there seems to be no end in sight. Rather than seeing narcissism at the root of the self-help craze, as others have contended, McGee shows a nation relying on self-help culture for advice on how to cope in an increasingly volatile and competitive work world. Self-Help, Inc. reveals how makeover culture traps Americans in endless cycles of self-invention and overwork as they struggle to stay ahead of a rapidly restructuring economic order. A lucid and fascinating treatment of the modern obsession with work and self-improvement, this lively book will strike a chord with its acute diagnosis of the self-help trap and its sharp suggestions for how we can address the alienating conditions of modern work and family life.

She provides practical advice and direction to professionals for working with these groups while analyzing self-help/support organizations on three different levels - in terms of the groups themselves, the groups' members, and the practitioner's interaction with the groups. In addition, this comprehensive volume discusses the most prominent representative associations as examples of different types of groups, including Alcoholics Anonymous, Recovery, Inc., National Alliance for the Mentally Ill, and the Alzheimer's Association. It also examines the rise of telephone and on-line self-help, considering the advantages, and disadvantages of this style of group interaction.

"This book offers useful insights into the current state of research and conceptual models in the field of self-help. There are few books available with this specific focus. The reader may be surprised at the diversity of self-help groups and how the paradigms for self-help differ within the field. The book is suitable for academic libraries and self-help professionals." --Doody′s Health Sciences Book Review Journal "Dr. Powell′s book illuminates important theoretical, methodological, and substantive issues, thereby enriching and informing self-help research at a critical time in its development and significance." --Keith Humphreys, Ph.D., Center for Health Care Evaluation, Department of Veterans Affairs, Stanford University School of Medicine "This book marks a major advance in methodological and conceptual sophistication in self-help group research, which will ultimately benefit society as well as researchers." --Leon H. Levy, Ph.D., Professor and Chair, University of Maryland Baltimore County While the term "self-help" is sometimes used to refer to a low-cost, solitary activity, more often it refers to an organized social activity that in the United States alone involves 7.5 million people. Alcoholics Anonymous by itself enrolls huge numbers of people and has an enormous impact on the professional treatment system for alcoholics. In the mental health field, a vigorous consumer and family movement--including groups such as the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill and National Depressive and Manic-Depressive Association--involves hundreds of thousands of members and has caught the attention of the professional system. Understanding the Self-Help Organization provides detailed, comprehensive coverage of this phenomenon. This comprehensive volume focuses attention on three critical areas: public policy and self-help, participation--particularly by minorities--in self-help, and explanatory frameworks. Powell concludes this extraordinary volume with six chapters of important findings and case studies within self-help activities. Timely and provocative, Understanding the Self-Help Organization is essential reading for researchers, professionals, scholars, and students in the fields of counseling psychology, organization studies, psychology, and social work.

Ancient self-care for modern life, by the author of the forthcoming The Seven Ways of Ayurveda Feeling burned-out, unmotivated, or stuck? The Ayurvedic Self-Care Handbook is here to help. This authoritative guide to ancient healing offers more than 100 daily and seasonal Ayurvedic rituals—each taking 10 minutes or less—to reconnect you with nature’s rhythms, and to unlock better health, as you: Boost and stabilize your energy with yogic breathing Overcome transitions with grounding meditations Undo physical and emotional stress with personalized yoga postures Prevent and treat disease with nourishing tonics and teas Pause and reflect with daily and weekly journaling prompts. Get back in sync with nature—and rediscover your potential to feel good.

The Touch of Healing offers readers the means to greater health, vitality, and self-understanding through the practice of an ancient oriental healing art and practical holistic philosophy called Jin Shin Jystsu. Gentle touching similar to acupressure is used to release tension that accumulates and is at the root of dysfunction, disease, and imbalance. The authors explain the natural life force that runs through the body and demonstrate with case studies, detailed analysis, and more than 30 illustrations, how to integrate this system into one's life. The key healing points and body flows, known as "Safety Energy Locks," are presented with step-by-step instructions on how to utilize them for healing and greater self-awareness. Many self-help practices are also offered that address a wide array of common ailments, including headaches, digestive disorders, fatigue, depression, and arthritis along with prescriptive exercises for relief of emotional ailments such as loss of confidence, anxiety, and depression.