I actually found this really helpful for my own mental health, some great idea’s, however it is a short read.

Thank you NetGalley for my complimentary copy in return for my honest review.

Overall, this did not meet my expectations. There are some pearls that I will take away, so I will credit where credit is due, but this read leaves much to be desired, in my opinion.

The author begins by sharing her story, her vulnerabilities, and her interest in focusing on self-help, which I appreciate. After this, though, a large portion of the writing feels like she is sharing her entire CV down and how she motivated herself to accomplish these tasks. To me this seemed counterproductive to the whole writing, sharing her successes, rather than working to empower others. Again, she does empower readers throughout the book some, but I feel like the balance shifts towards her egocentric stories, and the entire writing could be more reader-centric.

Another significant criticism I have throughout the read is how the author often references her own writings, often revamping these concepts. It feels like she is trying to fill space by rewriting concepts from her previous books. My perception is this makes the writing feel "forced", like she doesn't have enough new ideas, she has to recycle older ideas, in order to sell books (she even has this reference in the book).

I have decided on 3 stars because there are some pearls and I don't think the entire read is counterproductive. However, to any potential readers reading my review, I suspect another book within this genre would be a better investment of time.

These comments are mine without influence.

The book is mainly what the title suggests. I liked the approach of the author. The structure by chapters is very easy and she uses some common terms to explain the basics of self-development and how to reach a better version of oneself. For sure each of the topics she discusses can be richly studied and researched. However, the book was a nice read for me and I can recommend it to some of my patients.
It is a nice start if you want to change the way you act and the bad habits or bad thoughts you have about yourself or about life and those surrounding you.

This short and quick read packs a punch in understanding the concept of self-help in terms of self care. While most self-help books and videos tell you to live a certain way, Wilson’s approach focuses on the individual, without comparisons on what should or must be done. Her toolkit is personal, causing the reader to introspect on what matters to us, where we are, and where we can go from here with what we have. The book includes a series of checklists on various topics, as Wilson guides the reader along. She addresses core values, mental, physical and emotional health. The exercises are engaging and ensure the reader doesn’t merely finish reading the book, but apply the mentioned concepts to life. Because that’s what self-help is about – taking action with the information in hand. Self care is a continual effort, and one book or one session with a life coach won’t solve all your problems. The lessons in Self-help for the Helpless can be applied differently at different stages of life.

The book works well as a toolkit or journal – answering questions about different aspects of life at regular intervals. The advice isn’t new or revolutionary. It’s the things we know but don’t think about until someone points them out. Worth a read for an introduction into the concept of self care, and for the guides that can be referred to for future use.

This is a very short book on how to stop feeling worthless and get back on the track that we want for ourselves. This is a great book with short decisive ways to make your life the one that you want.

Nothing to see here.
A short , very short booklet on self help.
Reads like a synopsis of every self help book out there.
I suppose if you are twenty , there might be some use to the LISTS, but if you are already over thirty…we’ll, you have most of this pap figured out

An introductory book for taking care our mental health especially during these challenging times. This is a small book with specific exercises to strengthen our health. I especially enjoyed the deep questions/ prompts to think about your life! I also printed out the 31- day Self-help Toolkit to challenge and inspire myself for the next month!

This is a very short little self help book. It's optimistic and the author speaks to you as if you are a friend, but I'm not sure how helpful it will be for everyone. Wilson is in the UK and makes some assumptions about her readers being similar to her. I think it will be most helpful to young adult women with adequate means, some help and support, who live in the UK or similar places. She ran a spa for several years and offered services like aromatherapy, reiki and reflexology, and she recommends these practices and many others. I am not opposed to those and would enjoy most of the ones she mentions, but very little of it is offered within hours of where I live. Most of the services are also fairly costly, which will be a barrier for many.

Wilson talks the reader through ideas about finding what's most important to you and discusses motivation. She also provides a list of 31 self help practices to pamper yourself or give yourself pleasure. I didn't get any great ideas from these but she says you can also swap them out. She says that we should view depression as a habit more than an illness, which many will vehemently disagree with.

I think this is a sort of "lite" book that will be helpful for those who are new to self help and have manageable sadness and lethargy. It is very short, which may be helpful for people who don't want a long trudge of a book but may make others feel ripped off. There are bits that I enjoyed -- lists of words you use to pick your most important things in life, questions to help brainstorm about what you should start doing with your life, things like that. I'd recommend skimming it to see if it will be a good fit for you.

I read a digital ARC of this book via Net Galley.

Self help is a continuous effort where you are clear and determined on what exactly you want in life and make efforts towards achieving them. I think the self help world is for the people who are determined to make the changes happen, for one who can implement the expert’s suggestions. If a person is already going through a tough time he is already learning from life, He probably doesn’t need any help from the self help world unless he is lost and confused about his life and purpose.

In this book the author talks about , first identifying what is important to you and your life, and second what are your core values and how to build your life around that to make it worthy.

She lays out a 31 day self help toolkit to discover your authentic self and make your moves accordingly in your life.

I liked this book. In this book the author is aware of why self help doesn't work for many people and her toolkit just makes sures that you do not fall into that category.

Self-Help for the Helpless is relevant to everyone. We may all experience this feeling during stressful life events such as bereavement, break-ups, redundancy etc. The book is full of great tips, advice and techniques.
The author shares an honest account of her own story, which led her to write this book. Throughout the book it's clear that she's is talking from experience and encourages the reader to not just read her book but to actually take action.
I enjoyed reading the definitions for self-help, self-awareness and self-care early on in the book. This helped me massively to understand the differences and what approach to use when. As the author points out ‘It’s not all about bubble baths and duvet days!’.
Well worth a read. This would also make a thoughtful gift to buy for a loved one if they are going through challenges.
Thanks to Random Things Tours, the author and BHC Press for my digital copy of this book for my honest review.

A good introduction to self-help books.

This is a short read, but if you know you need to make changes in your life but don't know where to start, and are overwhelmed by the sheer amount of books on the shelf promising you your wildest dreams, then this might be a good start for you - to ground you in the reality of how many self-help books just rehash the same old stuff, and what to look out for so that you can pick a useful book, with ideas that can be applied.

For example: there are many self help books that suggest you get up earlier, have a couple of hours to yourself early in the morning - if you live alone, and have no other commitments, this might be a good suggestion: but living with a partner who may be disturbed by you getting up, or having kids who'll get up when you do, or a baby that is already waking you 3 times a night....or working shifts so you don't have quiet house time.....so many reasons why this advice doesn't work for most.

There's not much in here that hasn't appeared in any other self-help book, just suggestions of what to do/what not to do, nothing groundbreaking.

There are some excellent self-help books out there, this book might help you pick out the ones that are best fit for you.

A sincere lovely read… “SELF HELP” is essential for ALL. The author writes like a friend; In my reading, someone wishes a better life for the future. Testimony of author’s strength and sharing it with her audience. There is something for everyone who wishes to go forward with life. Self Help is essential for one’s health. Thank you!

I can definitely see how this book will be helpful to those who feel helpless. Shelley Wilson does a thorough job at providing resources, tried and true tricks for improving attitude and self-worth, and offering advice for those interested in self-help. There are many great books out there to help the downtrodden, and Self-Help for the Helpless will hopefully rise to the top of the list. Thank you NetGalley for this advanced eCopy.

This book takes an empathetic approach and gives bite size approaches and allows you to have kindness and patience with yourself when dealing with life. This is so necessary for everyone to read in life. Highly recommend. Especially loved the reflection to true life to humanize my feelings and relate. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

This is a very short read, so much so I'd probably be annoyed if I had paid for it. There are some reasonable points in it but there are much better, more detailed and better informed self help books available.

While I appreciate that the author notes that there's the right time for the right self help book, this book wasn't for me.

The author shares her story and what pushed her to turn her life around. She talks about how others can do the same. While I think the premise of this book is good, it really focuses on being positive and seems to say that you just choose to put time and effort into making your life better and it happens...which isn't always true. There also seems to be a cultural difference since it seems like the author is in the UK and as an American reader advice like get acupuncture or a massage isn't exactly helpful. A lot of this book assumes that people have both the time and money to take better care of themselves and just need to assert the effort, which isn't always true.

This book has some advice if you're looking for ways to change your life. For trauma, mental illness, and general burnout this kind of advice may not really be helpful.

I must admit I really enjoy self-help books. Strike that, it’s not just books. I enjoy audio courses, TED talks, and yes or course books. Over the the years I’ve read and listened to many, and while often times they’ll go over much of the same territory, I still enjoy them. Sometimes hearing the same thing said in a different way will suddenly make something click that hadn’t before. While I didn’t find anything groundbreak in Self-help for the Helpless, I can’t that I was surprised because you see Self-help for the Helpless is more or less an introduction to self-help, a beginner’s guide. And overall I suppose it’s a fairly decent place to start if you are just dipping your toe into the world of self-help. It’s fairly short, easy to understand, and when you’re finished you’ll know if it’s a subject you’re interested in pursuing further. Now it should go without saying that as with any form of self-help, what a person gets out of it all depends on what they put into it.
Thanks to BHC Press and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review an eARC of Self-help for the Helpless.

*DISCLAIMER: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review*.

2.5/5 stars

As the author of this book says, you don't think much about self-help until your life starts becoming more and more difficult. It was the same for me too. It was when I realised that my "bad days" were starting to outnumber the "good" ones that I started giving self-help books a chance.

I extremely appreciated the intro of this book, and the honesty that Shelley Wilson showed. She said that there is a right time for every self-help book, and that the "right" book to read depends on the questions you need an answer for in that exact moment. Moreover, it was comforting to hear that self-help shouldn't be as overwhelming or as complicated as it seems.

This said, I feel like this book isn't exactly what I was looking for. It was nice to have some general information about the general elements related to self-help, but considering my personality I'm afraid it was a bit too vague and not structured enough.

The exercises offered in a book were enjoyable, If you're curious about self-help and you'd like to receive some tips on how to start your self-help travel this book might help you. However, considering the situation I'm in right now I suppose I needed something specific and not so general.

A good introduction to navigating self-help and reevaluating yourself and your life goals, purpose, etc. The little illustrations are also cute!