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Amazon Restaurants Food delivery from local restaurants. ComiXology Thousands of Digital Comics. East Dane Designer Men's Fashion. Shopbop Designer Fashion Brands. Withoutabox Submit to Film Festivals. Amazon Renewed Refurbished products with a warranty. Experiment with a new recipe, write a poem, paint or try a Pinterest project. Creative expression and overall well-being are linked. Show some love to someone in your life. Close, quality relationships are key for a happy, healthy life. Boost brainpower by treating yourself to a couple pieces of dark chocolate every few days.
The flavanoids, caffeine, and theobromine in chocolate are thought to work together to improve alertness and mental skills. Check out what other people are saying at www. Sometimes, we don't need to add new activities to get more pleasure. We just need to soak up the joy in the ones we've already got.
Trying to be optimistic doesn't mean ignoring the uglier sides of life. It just means focusing on the positive as much as possible. Take a trip down memory lane and do some coloring for about 20 minutes to help you clear your mind. Pick a design that's geometric and a little complicated for the best effect. Check out hundreds of free printable coloring pages here. Take time to laugh. Hang out with a funny friend, watch a comedy or check out cute videos online. Laughter helps reduce anxiety. Go off the grid. Leave your smart phone at home for a day and disconnect from constant emails, alerts, and other interruptions.
Spend time doing something fun with someone face-to-face. Dance around while you do your housework. Not only will you get chores done, but dancing reduces levels of cortisol the stress hormone , and increases endorphins the body's "feel-good" chemicals. Go ahead and yawn. Sometimes I needed to take a break, but it was never far from my thoughts and I was eager to finish it. I went back and forth on whether I would recommend this book to a young person who experiences mental illness. Ultimately, I think I would, because being a teenager is a fundamentally lonely experience for many, and I remember well the comfort of recognising parts of myself in the pages of a book.
I also remember what it meant at the time to be taken seriously, and John Green never fails to take young people and their hopes, dreams and worries seriously and kindly. A warning though, the self-harm is graphic and specific and unusual enough to leave an impression.
There is humour and warmth here, but it is, ultimately, a dark book. There is no shiny, happy ending tied neatly in a bow, but there is an ending — a surprising one. I really enjoyed it. Just about everybody knows a person who is on the autistic spectrum. Children living with autism often feel or act differently to other kids, but the great thing about All My Stripes is it not only stresses the unique gifts that we all have to offer, but also lets kids with autism and their parents, caregivers, teachers and siblings know that kids on the spectrum have something to contribute to the world too.
The book is fantastic for using in the classroom or kindergartens so other kids can understand what it is like to have autism and how something like the feel of paint can upset or cause issues for someone who has sensory processing issues for instance. The book has a great reading guide and note for parents and caregivers at the end.
Not only does All My Stripes break down barriers, it promotes discussion which, in a classroom of primary school aged kids is a great thing especially when trying to get kids to understand something as complex as the autistic spectrum. This book is a guide to living with intense grief and finding your way through, without letting grief take over. Is this book useful? Yes, I think it is. I live with grief myself, having lost my son and sister to suicide in recent years.
My resistance focuses mostly around thinking — yeah well, the research is all very well ha! And there is value in feeling the pain, even as we heal. Guess what, grief fucking hurts, it just does. It is what it is. No getting around it. You grieve because you loved. But I agree with Lucy — while unavoidable, grief is not something you want to leave in control of your life. Grief can cause damage and dammit, grief is sneaky.
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It permeates everything and causes havoc in subtle and not so subtle ways. Strategies for dealing with it are very useful and this is what this book offers. You can read this book chapter by chapter or dip in and out as you please. Or ask someone you trust to read it to you and help you with the exercises it suggests.
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As time goes on, the way we look back and understand our grief and the way it works can change. Likewise, scientific perspectives can shift. I think it would be a fascinating conversation. Yes, it is compassionate and offers thoughtful personal observations with well-researched perspectives. Do or believe everything it says? As Lucy notes, everyone grieves differently and no two bereavement experiences are the same. This book is part of a series that introduces cognitive behavioural therapy CBT skills to kids to help them deal with stress, anxiety and anger.
The author, Kate Collins-Donnelly has worked as a therapist, psychologist, criminologist and anger management consultant based in the UK for many years. She aims to provide the information in a 'simple, activity-filled, easily readable and interesting way'. I think she achieves this especially with the workbook format.
The worksheets are set in a wider context by including an introduction for parents and professionals about evidence- based CBT.
It also includes safety guidelines noting when people start to explore their anger it may raise some difficult issues and she encourages the reader to seek support. In this version for young people, which she states is suitable for children aged 10 and over, it has some examples from her real clients aged between 13—18 years. They refer to complex life issues such as a year-old boyfriend cheating, a year-old being picked up from the police station and a teen abusing a family member who has come out as gay.
I am not so sure my son, who is almost 10, would relate to these scenarios, though I guess it would give him a sense that uncontrolled anger can cause problems and get you in trouble! This book would be most suitable for young people who have more serious anger issues. I hurt her really bad once. Collins-Donnelly has also penned a similar workbook for younger children called Starving the Anger Gremlin for children aged 5 —9. This has more of a focus on emotions and develops skills through a range of puzzles and drawing activities. I think both books impart valuable CBT skills that help young people identify unhelpful thought patterns and behaviours and give them tools to move towards more healthy ones.
This therapy modality is accepted as effective and the author has clinical training. The choice of which book to read may not depend so much on physical age, but the emotional age of the child and what issues they may be experiencing. These are a series of illustrated children's picture books, aimed at year-olds, designed to help children deal with confidence issues, change, loss and grief, managing anxiety and fears, bullying and worries.
So my daughters and I dived straight in. But the story became dark, as did the pictures. I then sought to read, by myself, The Grand Wolf … who dies. I mean, I get it, this stuff is real for some kids. But the plot or focus, eg, death, or in the previous book, fear, is developed quickly in these stories.
It comes as a bit of a shock. I am very impressed. I feel this should be included with the actual book! And I would know everything to do and say when my daughter begins to worry about the Shadow Monsters actual existence! I think overall most of these books have some good ideas but some of the stories and images could scare children.
I liked that the shadow book tried to teach kids that you can use your imagination to feel better magic and less scared, to make your fears go away. The book on bullying is a great story with a great meaning. It teaches kids that if you are bullied to stay strong and that you can beat the bad feelings and still have fun. In the one about worries, that baby dragon has so many worries bottled up inside him and it makes him feel heavy.
This book teaches kids to share their worries with people, overall a good story. Feelings are a big topic in our household. Our household consists of myself and my two tamariki, a year-old with an awesome Asperger's brain and a delightfully demonstrative 6-year-old. Feel a Little contains 14 poems, each one about a different feeling with illustrations to match.
The day I brought the book home I suggested to my year-old he may like to read some of the poems to his sister. Much grumbling ensued, but he was persuaded to read just one of his choice. So he started with Happy: It may have been the bright, bold illustrations, or the easy upbeat rhythms, but many more poems were recited, one after the other with much enthusiasm.
However my 6-year-old lost interest quickly, perhaps a few too many feelings being described "at her" all at once. A few days later when I sat down with her one-on-one and focused on one poem she engaged better but still struggled with some of the more complex ideas. Feel a Little clearly has an older target audience in mind.
I found many of the poems beautifully captured the essence of an emotion, the physical sensations as well as the nuance of how people may experience a feeling. However, that was also a wonderful aspect of the book, as it enabled reflection and discussion with children about how they personally experience feelings. What words would they use to describe an emotion? My year-old really liked how some of the poems gave some advice about how to manage emotions such as Angry:.
But apart from that I think the book is a fantastic way to get children and adults to reflect more about their emotional world. Giving children a way to explore, discuss and express their feelings, in my opinion, is one of the greatest gifts you can give your children and Feel a Little provides an excellent medium to do just that. I first came across the resource on The Spinoff, in an article by Stack called How depression saved my life.
Stark frankly detailed his experience of depression simply and without embellishment and his article resonated with me and the people I shared it with. Stack has recovered and now has a job he loves, financial security and is surrounded by great people. I clicked over to the website, handed over my email address and was immediately emailed a free copy of the resource. I read it in one big gulp.
The resource is full of hope and positivity without being condescending — a tricky balance to achieve in my experience. It never lets you forget depression is manageable and recovery is possible, and reading it was a really uplifting experience. All the advice is scientifically-proven and includes some background information about why, for example, getting sunlight is important, and then includes tips to put that advice into action. I particularly appreciated the inclusion of advice for those who are in debt debt and mental distress often go hand-in-hand as being in financial difficulties can place a huge burden on mental health.
Fuck Depression is a free resource. Download it at fkdepression. To save you time reading all the way through this review, let me just sum up at the beginning by saying I really, really liked this book and recommend it for professionals, parents and kids. I do believe this book has what it takes to turn worriers into warriors and the writer deserves a big high five or fist pump! So why am I such a fan?
The writer, Dr Dan Peters, tells us about his anxiety, he is deeply empathetic and his experience helps to normalise anxiety. Peters leaves no leaf unturned in explaining absolutely everything! Peters begins at the biological goings-on moving through to the ways and reasons we worry. The idea Peters gives that the Worry Monster is a bully, is a great message to start from and work with. However, this might be the clue for older children that this book is for a younger audience, so be clear that this is an "idea", and may be useful for your older child, but all the other strategies are the same for any person child or adult wanting to overcome anxiety, and importantly, they work.
Peters extensively explains the effects of worry, especially on behaviour. I love that these plans start with something a child knows they can manage, then they move their way up to more challenging tasks or situations. I have recommended this book so many times since reading it. Conversations for Change is an amazing new resource that reTHiNK has created as part of Like Minds, Like Mine to challenge stigma and discrimination toward mental health issues and encourage social inclusion.
31 Tips to Boost Your Mental Health | Mental Health America
It's comprised of a set of five activities to use with groups of young people aged 15—24 and is written so that teachers, youth leaders or young leaders can safely and effectively facilitate it. Although I read through the physical copy, it's free and easily downloadable from their website which means accessibility is not an issue. All learning styles considered Looking through the contents, what stood out to me was the fact that all learning styles were considered when compiling and creating the information.
You'll find audio, visual, and practical activities and resources to utilise alongside the written content. The team at reTHiNK has also done a good job at ensuring that activities are written in a way that all age groups can understand and engage with, which sets it apart from similar resources. As a young person myself, I feel that this resource will help educate those in high school to be more mindful and aware of things that they say, while also informing the older generation about the real issues we're facing and to not just brush these things lightly.
One key thing that comes across is that the resource represents the New Zealand community. This comes across through the real life stories and quotes that are used throughout. I would highly recommend individuals who work with groups to tap into this resource to help educate people about mental health and wellbeing. I hope that this resource will also help those going through tough times to realise there are places and people who can help them and that asking for help is a courageous thing.
It started a great conversation about why you would stop the sun, what would happen, and if you needed help who were the people you could ask for help. The discussion then flowed to making a stand when you knew things were right and believing in yourself regardless of what people said about you and your goals. We asked the kids to give us the Bryan and Bobby world famous book rating system we use at our reading group — thumbs up or thumbs down.
One boy proudly stated to us: This autobiography was gifted to the Mental Health Foundation's library and is quite an interesting read as Colegate writes well. The book follows his immigration to New Zealand in the s and the journey of his family as they support each other through periods of mental unwellness. Colegate's mother and son both experienced schizophrenia, and Colegate himself was diagnosed with bipolar in his mid-twenties. He writes in more detail about his mother and son than his own mental health journey, but it would have been nice to know more about his experience with bipolar.
However, you do get to know about him through his storytelling and you learn what's important to him, which I assume are the same things which aided his recovery and kept him well. Threads that emerge include; humour, curiosity, being with family, connecting with people, whakapapa, travel and adventure. The book is sprinkled with family photos from the family album, eulogies and insights from his children and you get a real sense of the unity of his family despite some difficult times.
Colegate describes his wife Ann as the rock of the household through difficult times and we learn she also brought this strength to community work for which she received a Civic Award for her contribution to the Like Minds, Like Mine public awareness programme. Even though this is more a memoir than a book about bipolar, that in itself shows that mental illness does not need to define you or limit your ability to lead a rich life. My understanding is Colegate is in his eighties and still giving presentations and advocating that people talk about mental health issues and seek help. I'm sure the work Colegate and his family have done over the years to advocate and encourage others as a result of their life experiences has impacted positively on many.
These words from someone who had experienced traumatic stress piqued my interest in reading it. At over pages, it's not a book for the time poor.
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However, it's very easy to read and holds your interest. Among others, he treated first responders involved in the Lockerbie air disaster in Scotland in , the Kegworth air disaster in , returning soldiers from the Falklands, RAF pilots who had been shot down in the Gulf war, hostages freed from Lebanon, and later in his career, civilians suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder PTSD at the Ticehurst Centre in England. They, by and large, saw PTSD as a psychopathology — as an illness. This was why Lockerbie had been so life-changing for me. It was difficult — impossible, actually — for me to believe they had developed a psychopathology.
Unresolved trauma is often an underlying cause of a range of symptoms that can, if not treated, be debilitating. The book outlines numerous forms of therapy that are helpful and healing for PTSD. It can be dipped into for different aspects of understanding trauma and its effects and the modes of treatment now available. The book is available for loan from the Skylight library.
Phone to arrange for it to be sent out to you. For information about other books available in the Skylight library and all their services, visit www. The book is written to support the families of loved ones with borderline personality disorder BPD. My second thought is that the book takes a very compassionate approach.
The book focuses on two things; increasing your understanding of the disorder and giving you skills to handle the situations that arise. Knowledge is power Understanding BPD is a crucial first step to increasing the compassion you feel for what your loved one is going through. Porr explains the science behind the disorder — how brain scans show heightened emotional reactivity in the amygdala, slower recovery from these reactions, and impaired working of the executive functions of the brain that perceive, reason, and plan actions.
She paints a picture of the impact of these changes and what it must be like to live with the disorder. The rest of the book gives you tools and techniques for responding to and helping your loved one. These are grounded in two effective therapies for BPD — dialectical behaviour therapy and mentalisation therapy. Dialectical behaviour therapy is based around a set of skills which can help tolerate distress, regulate emotions, and improve communication and relationships.
While aimed at those with BPD, these skills can equally help families communicate and successfully navigate their own relationships with their BPD loved one. Learning these skills, particularly validation, together with a new appreciation and understanding of what was in front of me, was the turning point in restoring some hope to our family relationships.
Helpful, practical skills Porr is not a believer in the tough love approach for BPD. Developing and using the skills she teaches tends to reduce the levels of confrontation and conflict in and of themselves, but she does also address ways a family member can set limits if they feel abused. Mentalisation is the skill of intuiting what other people are thinking, and Porr devotes the last chapter to why misunderstandings occur so often, and what you can do about it.
This is a book I have gone back to again and again, for information, for skills, and to feel my experience is validated. Reviewer chose not to be named to protect her privacy. Edited by Slade, M. In recent years interest has been growing in how positive human traits and environments can be an intervention for creating better personal and population mental health. Despite this, relevant theory, models and evidence have been limited. This is probably largely due to wellbeing interventions in mental health being a new field, and the inertia of current research agendas focussing on deficit approaches to mental distress.
The area of wellbeing for mental health research is gaining momentum however, and Wellbeing, Recovery and Mental Health provides a good overview of areas of current inquiry. For wellbeing enthusiasts who are excited about the possibility of wellbeing and positive mental health approaches becoming part of mainstream mental health policy and services, this volume will be a useful resource providing up-to-date evidence and thinking on the benefits of approaching mental health holistically. Wide range of topics The book also gives a good sense of the diversity of research and inquiry around mental wellbeing being an agent in reducing mental illness and assisting in recovery from mental illness.
The range of topic areas covered across the 26 chapters includes:. There are many examples of Australian and New Zealand wellbeing research in the book, reflecting the location of the editors, and this should make the text more attractive to readers in this country. Wellbeing, Recovery and Mental Health shows that incorporating wellbeing and positive mental health into mental health policy and future service design will continue to provide opportunities for more engaging and strength based mental health service practice.
As a result there will be challenges for the mental health system as wellbeing broadens the scope of how we view mental health in our public health service systems. Suicide postvention is the support of those left behind after a suicide. This approach was developed by Edwin Shneidman and Norman Farberow, pioneers of suicide prevention in America in the s.
I think they would be cheering for this book which carries on their work. Contributors are researchers and clinicians, also leaders and experts in postvention. Topics covered include current demographic and clinical issues, coronial processes, mental health, support groups, support for youth, therapy, counselling, online support, indigenous healing practices, spirituality, cluster suicides, murder-suicides and development of postvention guidelines. As each chapter stands alone, these can be read in any order or as suits.
Part 1 looks at current knowledge and what this implies for support. Part 2 covers suicide bereavement support in different settings, while parts 3 and 4 look at different populations and countries. New Zealand is located in the Asia- Pacific section and is represented by Dr Jemaima Tiatia-Seath, who writes on her work to develop postvention guidelines for Pacific communities. Her approach involves keeping voices of Pasifika suicide bereaved central, allowing communities to identify their own issues and ways forward.
Informative and inspiring From a work perspective, I find this book valuable. On a personal level, as someone bereaved by suicide, I find it validating and reassuring to be able to dip into a book like this and learn that my experiences matter, while finding out more about current research and initiatives in suicide bereavement and postvention. Wealth of information This book holds a wealth of information that supports goals related to developing effective postvention supports. Andriessen also points out that bereaved are vital in supporting these goals: I really enjoyed this book.
The author takes us through a journey of the six key principles which drive things to catch on. These are Social Currency we share things that make us look good , Triggers top of mind, tip of tongue , Emotion when we care we share , Public built to show, built to grow , Practical Value news you can use and Stories information travels under the guise of idle chatter.
He uses really interesting examples to guide the reader through each of these steps, such as the telephone booth that was in fact a door to a secret restaurant and why a NASA mission boosted sales of chocolate bars, so it's a really interesting and fun read. It's described on Amazon. The worlds of these two young men collide through a chance encounter, and as a result, they begin to question their life situations. This connection sparks a shared journey of self-development; one which brings about necessary changes for both men.
I found their relationship very interesting, what was perhaps not so plausible was that Tyson was a drug dealer and yet he was also a leader and teacher, although ultimately he gave that lifestyle away. The book is great in that it clearly describes a type of mindfulness practice which we know can be very helpful for many people both with mental health problems and those without. Reviewed by Janet Peters, registered psychologist and writer.
Orion Publishing Group Ltd. When she was a teenager she was involved in a car accident that left her with a serious head injury. Doctors told her she may never fully recover and to not expect to graduate high school. This is the mantra that sets the tone for her book. Power pose your way to confidence Presence has six key elements — being confident, passionate, enthusiastic, captivating, comfortable and authentic.
Instead of approaching an opportunity with anxiety, power posing can help you feel more confident and help you be your true self. At times, the ideas are overshadowed by her own research findings and personal stories from people who have been using power poses.
31 Tips to Boost Your Mental Health
So, before my next big challenge, you might find me in a corner somewhere doing my two minutes of power posing before bringing my true presence to the situation. In this harrowing book, New Zealand academic and writer Aimee Inomata tells the story through the unfolding narrative of her own relationship with Holden — first as a neighbour and friend, now as his partner. She invites us to join her in coming to terms with his horrific crime, his long and painful journey through the forensic psychiatric system, and his rebuilt life in the community.
Holden's is a story of simmering trauma, systemic neglect, substance abuse, despair, noncompliance, ever more blurred boundaries. Is a person in forensic mental health care in fact imprisoned, or simply there to get well? The answer is fraught with conflict, and its management is a perilous dance between legal precedent, public opinion, clinical judgment and risk assessment, and human intuition. In a realm that has always been mysterious, it's a relief to hear a voice of experience. Is it really possible for mentally unwell offenders to recover?
Is the experience of psychosis inherently dangerous? Is there life after the most terrible loss? How should we treat those of our community whose lived experiences encompass such devastating violence? The Special Patient will be a thought-provoking read for clinicians, and an ultimately challenging and hopeful one for people living with the effects of mental distress and substance dependence.
For the general public willing to understand more about a frightening and mysterious corner of human experience, this dense and well-researched book will be worth careful reading. American Ruby Wax is best known as a comedienne, actress and writer, but who knew she had a Masters in mindfulness-based cognitive therapy from Oxford University? She believes mindfulness is the answer to the modern-day problem of stress and feeling frazzled.
I was just a front; and, behind the front, no one was home. Mindfulness for everyone The book covers everything from what mindfulness actually is, to mindfulness for parents, teenagers, children and even babies. How our brains work and the science behind mindfulness. In this chapter, I show off how smart I am, giving neurological evidence as to why mindfulness-based cognitive therapy is so effective when dealing with stress. There is also a six-week mindfulness programme in the book that you can try out.
Wax injects her trademark humour into the book, which at times gives it a light, readable feel. The book definitely could have done with a good edit — more practical information and less of Ruby talking about Ruby would have been better. Saw Woom Tor Charitable Trust. Self-published and supported by the Mental Health Foundation. Mental health is still a taboo subject in many Asian cultures. This booklet addresses sensitive issues with a gentle approach that has been well received by the Korean community in New Zealand.
The booklet is written in Korean and provides a lot of information about mental health. It helps members of the community learn about mental health and the professional support services available to them. Many people in the Asian community are prejudiced towards people with experience of mental illness, and their families.
The booklet can significantly help Korean people have a better understanding of mental illness and the mental health system in New Zealand. It focuses on Asian-specific mental health service providers and stakeholders, which is relevant to new migrants with limited English skills. It also addresses a diversity of views, ethnicities, acculturation levels, values and cultural beliefs.
The booklet is very interesting and inviting — it also uses plain language making the information easy to read. This is not an academic booklet. However, it contains a wide range of useful clinical information, resources and evidence-based information with references to studies and original sources in a way that readers can understand. It also contains mental health service information and contacts. The Towards My Inner Han-gu-ghin: I was drawn to read this book as I live with depression.
I have read many medical books on depression which often only give an impersonal explanation of what depression is and how to manage it. I wanted to read about the experience of others and was hopeful of finding some commonalities and perhaps some new information and ideas for treatment. She started to write down what she felt and through sharing her writing, it signalled a turning point where her family began to understand her depression and it helped them also. Tolkien quotes are featured throughout the book and I initially wondered what the relevance was. The author explains at the end of the book that when she was low with depression she watched The Lord of the Rings trilogy hundreds of times.
She likened the fights between the Middle Earth characters to the fight between light and darkness in her own life. I thought this was an excellent analogy. The book is an easy page read and features a contents page which provides good structure. It flows from what depression feels like for those who live with it, to tips and advice for managing depression, how to help your loved ones when you have depression, how to support a loved one with depression, stories from family members, triggers and warning signs, success stories, through to a conclusion and topics for discussion resource.
I certainly felt less alone in my depression by having read this book. I found myself relating to many of the feelings expressed such as cancer of the feelings, and not being able to snap out of it. I learnt about the Zentangle Method a relaxing way to create images by drawing structured patterns , which I checked out and am keen to try.
And I thought some of the ideas around how to support a loved one with depression were particularly valuable as often family and friends are at a loss as to how to support someone with depression. One of these stories is about a year-old named Shannon. Her world was rocked by the death of her paternal grandmother, which she was not prepared for. She descended into drugs and alcohol. I read this book and had to gather my thoughts around partnerships and indigenous wellbeing. Yes, there is room for us to practice our cultural practices within mainstream but my thoughts will be always, how will our Treaty partners accept this?
There is a quote from my uncle Sir James Henare: I highly recommend this book. It is a feeling of being warm, safe, comforted and sheltered. It can be anything from cuddling your hot water bottle in bed, relaxing in your favourite chair with a good book or enjoying a drink with friends.
Denmark is well known for its high standard of living and often outranks other countries in education, healthcare, gender equality and equitable distribution of wealth. At the heart of Danish life, and at the core of hygge, is the deeper stability of contentment. I particularly liked the Wellbeing chapter. There are also several quotes referring to hygge directly, for example, this quote by Carsten Levisen: Hygge stresses, among other things, the importance of being in the moment and giving things your full attention, which is similar to the idea of mindfulness. Appreciating tastes, textures, sounds and moments in time are all central to feeling contentment.
I would highly recommend this book. I found it easy to ready. I like the idea of taking pleasure and comfort in small, ordinary things.
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A lovely book to read in winter snuggled up under a blanket with a glass of wine, or in any spot you can find hygge. Hall begins his self-published memoir by throwing you in the deep end, seeing if you will sink or swim through his story. If you choose to be a pro-sailor, turn the page. Author takes you on voyage Hall takes you on a voyage with him, starting at Brown University in the United States in his twenties when everything changed in his life. Within a year he was diagnosed with testicular cancer and bipolar affective disorder, but those are just the hard facts. Hall makes you feel the fear, hypersensitivity, confusion and lack of control.
You travel with him through the ever-changing split second decisions, ill health, family drama, and the overwhelming challenges he faces. He writes with raw honesty and humour about his personal story. He wrestles with the concept of being a parent, what health is, understanding self-stigma and trying to find acceptance.
And from that, everything else follows. Johnson is asking city dwellers to try a simple exercise — zero in on a bit of your surroundings. Notice, observe, and look for nature. He is out to prove a point: