The Anxiety & Phobia Workbook

Celebrating 30 years as a classic in its field and recommended by therapists worldwide, The Anxiety and Phobia Workbook is an unparalleled, essential resource for people struggling with anxiety and phobias.

Living with anxiety, panic disorders, or phobias can make you feel like you aren’t in control of your life. Tackle the fears that hold you back with this go-to guide. Packed with the most effective skills for assessing and treating anxiety, this evidence-based workbook contains the latest clinical research. You’ll find an arsenal of tools for quieting worry, ending negative self-talk, and taking charge of your anxious thoughts, including:

• Relaxation and breathing techniques
• New research on exposure therapy for phobias
• Lifestyle, exercise, mindfulness and nutrition tips

Written by a leading expert in cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), this fully revised and updated seventh edition offers powerful, step-by-step treatment strategies for panic disorders, agoraphobia, generalised anxiety disorder (GAD), obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), worry, and fear. You will also find new information on relapse prevention after successful treatment, and updates on medication, cannabis derivatives, ketamine, exposure, nutrition, spirituality, the latest research in neurobiology, and more.

Whether you suffer from anxiety and phobias yourself, or are a professional working with this population, this book provides the latest treatment solutions for overcoming the fears that stand in the way of living a meaningful and happy life. This workbook can be used on its own or in conjunction with therapy.

Table of Contents

Front Matter

• Grateful Acknowledgment v
• Preface to the Seventh Edition vii
• Introduction 1

Chapters

1. Anxiety Disorders 5
2. Major Causes of Anxiety Disorders 37
3. Recovery: A Comprehensive Approach 65
4. Relaxation 88
5. Physical Exercise 112
6. Coping with Panic Attacks 125
7. Exposure for Phobias 155
8. Self-Talk 186
9. Mistaken Beliefs 215
10. Overcoming Worry 233
11. Personality Styles That Perpetuate Anxiety 247
12. Ten Common Specific Phobias 262
13. Dealing with Feelings 283
14. Being Assertive 299
15. Self-Esteem 319
16. Nutrition 343
17. Health Conditions That May Contribute to Anxiety 371
18. Medication for Anxiety 395
19. Meditation 426
20. Relapse Prevention 443
21. Personal Meaning 454

Postscript: A Future of Increasing Anxiety 481

Appendices

• Appendix 1 Helpful Organizations 487
• Appendix 2 Resources for Relaxation 489
• Appendix 3 How to Stop Obsessive Thoughts 490
• Appendix 4 Affirmations for Overcoming Anxiety 492

"Here is the valuable and comprehensive update to a classic in our self-help field. This fast-paced guide unravels the mysteries of anxieties, phobias, and worry, then delivers action-focused ‘how-to’ techniques. With these powerful tools in your hands, you can more than survive, you can thrive."
- Reid Wilson, PhD, author of Stopping the Noise in Your Head

"Ed Bourne has again produced a thoroughly updated revision of his classic book. Incredibly helpful to clients and clinicians, he describes symptoms and updated treatment techniques in detail, and provides plenty of exercises. He covers health conditions that may contribute to anxiety, safety behaviors that perpetuate it, and nutrition, medication, and meditations that reduce it—as well as relapse prevention. He updates descriptions of exposures according to new research. He describes genotypic testing that helps determine the best antidepressant medications for particular individuals. Finally, he has material on identifying values and setting goals, including those based on one’s spiritual life."
- Lynne Henderson, founder of the Social Fitness Center and founder and codirector, with Philip Zimbardo, of the Shyness Institute

"The best gets better! Bourne refuses to be complacent, and brings his classic book up to date with new topics such as overcoming worry and preventing relapse. This is part informational, part workbook, part repository of practical steps, and part resource directory for all things to do with anxiety, phobias, and even obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). An astonishing resource in one volume! Those with anxiety will find much help in these pages."
- Timothy A. Sisemore, professor of psychology at California Baptist University, and author of The Clinician’s Guide to Exposure Therapies for Anxiety Spectrum Disorders

"Edmund J. Bourne has refined and expanded on his thoughtful holistic message to those who struggle with anxiety. There are many things you can do to relieve your suffering in order to live a fuller and more meaningful life. I highly recommend this classic resource to anyone suffering with anxiety or a phobia."
- Michael A. Tompkins, PhD, author of Anxiety and Avoidance, and codirector of the San Francisco Bay Area Center for Cognitive Therapy

"This book is a timely and comprehensive update to a classic resource in the field of anxiety and its treatment. The latest edition is very readable, easily understandable, filled with updated information, and should be quite helpful and informative to anyone interested in treating or recovering from an anxiety disorder or a condition marked by anxiety. Many thanks to Ed Bourne for this excellent work!"
- Jeffrey Brantley, MD, psychiatrist; founding faculty member of Duke Integrative Medicine, and founding director of its mindfulness based stress reduction program; author of Calming Your Anxious Mind, and several other books

"Edmund Bourne’s anxiety and phobia workbook is a must-read for anyone battling these painful afflictions. He goes beyond his six earlier editions to expand your knowledge on the causes for anxiety and phobias, and to evolve clear, step-by-step prescriptions that you can follow as written or shape into your own personalized program. In this organized, practical, reader-friendly self-help book, Bourne draws from science and his practice to map paths to positive change. Put this information to use to liberate yourself from what is among the worst of all possible feelings."
- William Knaus, EdD, author of The Cognitive Behavioral Workbook for Anxiety and The Cognitive Behavioral Workbook for Depression, and coauthor of The Cognitive Behavioral Workbook for Anger

"Several generations of counselors and physicians have had the benefit of Edmund Bourne’s intensely researched and extremely handy The Anxiety and Phobia Workbook. I know few colleagues who do not have a copy on their bookshelves that they consult regularly when treating patients suffering with anxiety-related disorders. This book is especially important today as climate change continues to inflame the anxieties of our already-stressed social fabric. The WHO and NIH are all reporting sweeping increases in ‘ecoanxiety.’ The recent APA special report, Mental Health and Our Changing Climate, found that US-based hurricanes more than doubled rates of suicide and suicidal ideation, with nearly 50 percent of the catchment group studied developing a longer-term anxiety or mood disorder such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). If you don’t already have this updated edition of the ‘gold standard’ in anxiety treatment, now is the time to add it to your clinical armamentarium."
- Christian R. Komor, PsyD, author of Climate Deadline 2035