Self-Help for your Nerves by Claire Weekes

By chapter four, I could have given a review for this book. I could tell by then exactly how I would feel after I had read it from cover to cover. Consisting of 26 short chapters, Dr Weeks covers all aspects of Nervous Breakdown, or 'nerves'- to name but a few; 'How our nervous system works', 'Being yourself again' and 'What kind of Person suffers from Nervous illness'. Although this book promotes self-help, it is also a very deep and educating read for one with an interest in mental health, whether that be a professional, a healer, carer or family/friend of a sufferer. It is both informative and fascinating, to the degree of being unable to put the book down - I really could have sat and read this all at once! The back sleeve states, 'People recovering from nervous illness refer to 'Self help for your nerves' as their Bible - they have found it an invaluable resource. Many readers believe if they had found this book earlier they would have been saved years of unnecessary suffering' - having read the book I can honestly say this is not a publicity spiel, its an accurate description. Dr Weeks covers every conceivable aspect of panic/anxiety, from the pins and needles sensation in the first adrenalin rush, to the chest pain that causes fear, and from the difficulty in contact with other people, to the fear of going outdoors in case something dreadful happens to draw attention to ones self. Don't buy this book thinking you have found an instant cure, it is not. What it does do is explain why you feel as you do, and the steps you can take to help yourself, or help someone you know get back to their 'panic free' life. Once we learn how to break the vicious circle, we can then begin to recover from nerves. Don't imagine for one moment this book isn't for you, whether or not you can relate to the contents, this is a must have read.