Congratulations on your decision to take charge of your emotional life! I’m glad to be partnering with you. No matter what your history or challenge, you can succeed. There’s always hope.
Perhaps you’ve been trying to take charge for a long time but find yourself confused, lost, stuck, or not quite well. Or perhaps you’ve only recently become aware of your internal distress and aren’t sure what to do about it. Maybe you’ve been diagnosed with a condition such as depression, attention deficit disorder (ADD), or panic disorder and wonder what you can do to best heal.
You may be taking medication but be unsure about whether you ought to do so, or you may not have a prescription and be wondering if you need one. You might be in therapy but question whether it’s right for you, or without a therapist and feeling the need for one. You may realize that even when medication and/or therapy are necessary, they’re only part of the healing puzzle. You may be taking herbs or supplements; engaging in yoga, meditation, or prayer; or watching what you eat and trying to support your wellness in other ways. You’re probably confused about how to bring all these practices together in your life.
We live in very challenging times and are constantly bombarded with messages that raise one intervention up as the full answer. A TV commercial says: “Try medication and move from depressed to ecstatic.” A practitioner’s ad declares: “Enter therapy and transform your life.” A yoga-studio brochure reads: “Begin a regular practice and you’ll never need to do anything more.” Our radios, televisions, and magazine pages overflow with advertisements for the ultimate medications, herbs, supplements, and mind-body or spiritual interventions. Each is touted as all you’ll ever need for total well-being.
These messages often appeal to us because our health-care system is in a shambles. Most of us, even if we’re lucky enough to have medical insurance, lack a long-term relationship with a doctor who knows us. A physician like the old TV character Dr. Marcus Welby—a friend, partner, and guide in life—is an ancient myth. We’re wandering around dazed, with information overload. We have no idea where to turn for guidance; we don’t even know who to trust.
My dear reader, I have good news for you: There’s someone you can believe in, and there’s a solution to this dilemma. There’s a path through this maze, and you’re ideally suited to find it. You can trust yourself—you are the answer! You can take charge of your emotional life, and I intend to teach you how.
You see, in the field of emotional and mental health, all diagnoses are made on the basis of your story and no one else’s. We have no diagnostic tests in psychiatry. In other fields of medicine, a lung x-ray can find pneumonia, and blood analysis can find diabetes. But in the field of emotional well-being, only your report of symptoms—such as a depressed mood, sleep disturbance, hopelessness, and impaired concentration—can reveal depression.
Therefore, if you’re given adequate information about the symptoms of common conditions, you can begin to figure out if you need medical assessment. Additionally, if you’re given enough data about treatment and self-empowerment interventions, you can begin to find your own personal path to wellness, wholeness, and spiritual well-being. You can do so whether or not you have a known medical condition—you can find your way.
There’s a right answer about what steps to take to promote healing and wellness, but it’s always a personal solution. What makes sense for you may not be the best idea for your neighbor, spouse, sibling, or friend. Given enough information, guidance, and support, however, you’ll find the keys to your own health. You can learn to tap into your inner healer and put together a “Take-Charge” program that fits your unique and wondrous being. You’re the captain of your own ship, and I intend to teach you how to sail it.
10 Steps to Take Charge of Your Emotional Life is just what it sounds like. Each chapter walks you through one of the 10 steps. You’ll find examples, stories, self-assessment questions, and guidance on what actions to take, based on your own unique situation and responses to the exercises. I’ve written a series of steps for you to visit and work on over time. Don’t expect yourself to read each chapter once, implement all its lessons immediately, and totally transform your life by the time you finish reading the book. Taking charge is a process, and it takes a while. Here are the 10 steps involved:
Step 1: Consider your story and its lessons: Do you have a medical condition or chemical imbalance?
Step 2: Explore your need for medication.
Step 3: Follow treatment guidelines when medication is necessary.
Step 4: Include complementary and alternative interventions.
Step 5: Make life choices that fit your nature.
Step 6: Identify the beliefs that imprison you, and reprogram the brain circuits involved.
Step 7: Learn the language of your body, and make friends with your inner healer.
Step 8: Share stories and build connections.
Step 9: Live in the power of the possible.
Step 10: Nurture your spirit.
While I don’t intend this book to be a substitute for medical care, psychotherapy, or other forms of treatment, I do mean for it to guide you through the Take-Charge process. I’ll teach you how to bring your medical care, complementary and alternative approaches, self-help, and spiritual practices together for wellness.
You and only you can take charge of your emotional life—and you can succeed! In all my years of clinical practice, I’ve never met a single person who truly wanted to heal who couldn’t. Where there’s a will, there’s always a way. In this book, I intend to show you how.
