April Book Club: A Manual For Being Human
If you know me, you know how much I love books (reading them, buying them, talking about them, wandering amongst them at any used book store I can find.) Book Club is a monthly post about a book I’ve read–and recommend–because books can be one of our greatest therapeutic tools.
Dr. Sophie Mort is one of my favorite therapists on social media (Instagram: @_drsoph), and so when I saw she was coming out with a book, I knew it needed to be top of my list. Dr. Soph is a psychologist in the UK with a goal of making psychology accessible outside of the therapy room. Her posts are colorful, intelligent, and so so human—and this book is the same!
A Manual For Being Human is a guide for folks hoping to walk themselves through a deeper understanding of who they are and what they need. The book itself is divided into three parts: How did I get here? What’s keeping me here? And how do I move forward? It’s a perfect blend of information, reflection questions, tips, and gentle check-ins. Dr. Sophie covers seemingly everything–from childhood to the influence of media to facing prejudice to emotion regulation to romantic love and expectations of therapy.
Who’s this book for? Dr. Soph answers that question herself on the first page: “for the human-curious, psychology-curious, and therapy-curious”. She wrote the book to make therapy concepts accessible to those unable or waiting to access mental health treatment.
Who’s this book not for? While I’d say you’d be hard-pressed not to find something to glean from this book, if you’ve done extensive work in therapy or have a system of coping skills that work for you, this book may feel repetitive.
Favorite part: I love the language this book uses to explain attachment (the bond we develop with our primary caregivers that has lasting impacts on our future relationships):
In the first few years of life, children cannot hold the idea of good and bad in mind at the same time.
Children believe their caregiver is a “goodie”. If a caregiver misses their needs, children often interpret it as being their fault, that they are the “baddie”. They don’t have the nuanced reasoning to understand that sometimes caregivers miss their needs because they’re stressed or have to make ends meet, or because they have an avoidant or anxious attachment style.
Dr. Sophie Mort, A Manual for Being Human
Find A Manual For Being Human here!
