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ISBN: Print 978-1-64876-806-4 | eBook 978-1-64876-232-1
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This Workbook Belongs to:
CONTENTS
If youre reading this workbook on a touch-screen device, you can add notes and highlight text just like you would in a physical workbook.
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Once we recognize what it is we are feeling, once we recognize we can feel deeply, love deeply, can feel joy, then we will demand that all parts of our lives produce that kind of joy.
AUDRE LORDE
WELCOME TO THE HAPPINESS WORKBOOK. This workbook is designed to help you enjoy more moments of happiness in your daily life. It will support your mental health and well-being by helping you incorporate new ways of thinking, integrate new practices, and appreciate everyday moments so that you will be better equipped to find happiness and embrace joy.
I have always strived to embrace positivity in my life; however, it wasnt until after I became a mother that I began to actively notice and seek out happiness in my everyday life. In raising and spending time with my children, I witnessed them take the world in with awe. Their innate relationship with their environment and their feelings inspired me to embrace a new philosophy, one where I welcomed all of my feelings, coped with moments of discomfort, and warmly invited happiness into my daily life. With this new approach, I experienced more joy through the little things, and my feelings of happiness grew with each new life event.
As a mother, I was particularly struck by how quickly my children were able to move through their wide range of emotions while still managing to be present in the moment. They could be in pain, sadness, or anger and then just as quickly joy, contentment, or calm. Instead of denying their feelings of discomfort, they experienced them and then moved through them, often by shifting their focus to something new or by engaging in activities they enjoyed while continuing to be present. The more I watched my children remain present in their emotions, accept their feelings, and thereby move beyond their feelings, the more I found myself inspired to do the same. I consciously anchored myself each day by embracing small moments; that shift allowed me to take on daily stressors and to focus more on my joyful moments.
In fact, my role as a mother taught me a lot that overlapped with my professional practice as a clinical psychologist. In my practice, I support many individuals who feel that they are struggling to achieve or hold on to happiness. Sometimes my clients are dealing with feelings of low self-worth, anxiety, loneliness, hopelessness, depression, lack of motivation, and negative self-thoughts. Many of my clients want to rid themselves of these feelings, so they resist the sadness and worries and struggle against them instead of feeling them. I encourage my clients to embrace all facets of life while re-centering their focus on daily joys anchored in healthy routines. As a result, they have been able to find happiness even in times of discomfort. I look forward to working with you, throughout the course of this workbook, to find healthy methods of coping with unwanted feelings in order for you to seek out and welcome more happiness into your life.
This workbook is broken down into three parts. both offer a variety of CBT-based thought-provoking prompts, exercises, and practices that you can use outside the workbook.
This workbook is a productive way to work through negative feelings and stress, but if you experience extreme sadness, depression, debilitating worries, or anxiety, or find that you are struggling to engage in the activities you once enjoyed, I encourage you to seek professional help by a licensed provider. There is no shamein fact, there is strengthin seeking help or treatment. Whether you choose to use this workbook as an independent guide or in tandem with your current therapy program, follow its headlight on your road to greater happiness.
