Freedom from Obsessive Compulsive Disorder: A Personalized Recovery Program for Living with Uncertainty– Jonathan Grayson

• There is not a better resource for using ERP for OCD. It is a great general overview of treatment for different subtypes of OCD, and provides fantastic support and information while working through ERP on your own, or with a therapist.

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The Mindfulness Workbook for OCD: A Guide to Overcoming Obsessions and Compulsions Using Mindfulness and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy – Jon Hershfield & Tom Corboy

• This workbook very nicely walks clients through how to address a range of OCD symptoms using a mindfulness approach. It is very accessibly-written and provides great activities to do to initiate, or supplement, your therapy.

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The ACT Workbook for OCD: Mindfulness, Acceptance & Exposure Skills to Live Well with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder - Marisa Mazza

• This perspective on engaging in the life that you want, even with OCD present, is a fantastic resource! It works well as a self-guided workbook, and could give great content to discuss with a therapist, as well.

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Overcoming Harm OCD: Mindfulness and CBT Tools for Coping with Unwanted Violent Thoughts – Jon Hershfield

• For clients with intrusive thoughts that center around harm to oneself or others, this book is invaluable. I think it wonderfully normalizes and validates these often-times overwhelming and scary symptoms, and provides a great path to treatment and ways to recruit support from others.

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The Family Guide to Getting over OCD: Reclaim Your Life and Help Your Loved One – Jon Abramowitz

• This book is a fantastic resource for the loved ones of someone with OCD. Dr Abramowitz provides thorough information and ample support and validation in this book, and it is immensely helpful whether your loved one is ready to seek out treatment or not.

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The Gifts of Imperfection: Let Go of Who You Think You’re Supposed to Be and Embrace Who You Are – Brene Brown

• Brene Brown is such a fantastic researcher and writer, and I appreciate how she discusses how perfectionism and rigid thinking can get in our way. It is a great general resource that I find resonates with many of my clients.

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The Worry Trick: How Your Brain Tricks You Into Expecting the Worst and What You Can Do About It – David Carbonell

• I find myself regularly talking about concepts from this book while in-session and really like Dr Carbonell’s style. (All the better that he is also here in Chicago!) Whether you worry, experience obsessions, or struggle with other types of intrusive and repetitive thoughts, I think this book is an informative and easy read.

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Overcoming Unwanted Intrusive Thoughts: A CBT-Based Guide to Getting Over Frightening, Obsessive, or Disturbing Thoughts – Sally M. Winston & Martin N. Seif

• This book is a great complement to The Worry Trick and a more recent release. The general concepts are similar, and it is always valuable to see them explained in different ways to help concepts stick. I really appreciate the approach presented in this book and use its skills a lot. (The companion books Overcoming Anticipatory Anxiety and Needing to Know for Sure are just as wonderful and valuable!)

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Overcoming Body-Focused Repetitive Behaviors: A Comprehensive Behavioral Treatment for Hair Pulling and Skin Picking – Charles S. Mansueto, Sherrie Mansfield Vavrichek & Ruth Goldfinger Golomb

• If you have struggled with stopping skin picking or hair pulling, this book is a gamechanger! It clearly illustrates why many of the strategies people use to manage these behaviors do not work long-term, and helps to craft a plan to more comprehensively address these symptoms for recovery.

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Trichotillomania: An ACT-Enhanced Behavior Therapy Approach Workbook -  Douglas Woods & Michael Twohig

• This workbook is a fantastic resource to use on your own, and especially in working with a therapist who is using the Therapist Guide. (It could be a great pairing of books to ask your therapist about if they are not a specialist!) It clearly and smoothly moves you learning to live with your BFRB, and engage in a meaningful and flexible life. 

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The Mindful Way Through Anxiety: Break Free from Chronic Worry and Reclaim Your Life – Susan M. Orsillo & Lizabeth Roemer

• The concepts in this book can apply to most people, as the authors take a more general approach to using mindfulness skills to address the everyday, and persistent and problematic, anxieties that arise for all of us. It is very accessibly written and a great resource.

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The Mindful Self-Compassion Workbook: A Proven Way to Accept Yourself, Build Inner Strength, and Thrive – Kristen Neff & Christopher Germer

• I talk to clients about self-compassion regularly, and this workbook is written by two fantastic leading voices in the field. I think that the writing itself is informative and the approach is easy to follow, making the difficult topic of practicing self-compassion seem more accessible and easier to approach.

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