(Updated 8/29/22) This is a recommended list of 75+ “must-read” books for therapists and other mental health professionals.
The first section includes recommendations for both professionals and consumers. The next section includes suggested workbooks for therapy and/or self-help. The “Textbooks” section is comprised of required reading that I found valuable as a counseling grad student. In the “PracticePlanners Series” section, I included the planners I’ve relied on the most. The last section includes additional reads that have been helpful to me in both my professional and personal life.
For additional books and tools for therapists, see Resources for Mental Health Professionals and Group Therapy Resource Guide.
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Must-Read Books for You & Your Clients
250 Brief, Creative & Practical Art Therapy Techniques: A Guide for Clinicians and Clients
Addictive Relationships: Why Love Goes Wrong in Recovery
Attached: The New Science of Adult Attachment and How It Can Help You Find – and Keep – Love
Betrayal Trauma: The Logic of Forgetting Childhood Abuse
Beyond Addiction: How Science and Kindness Help People Change
The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma
The Complete Family Guide to Schizophrenia: Helping Your Loved One Get the Most Out of Life
Drinking: A Love Story
Flourish: A Visionary New Understanding of Happiness and Wellbeing
The Four Agreements: A Practical Guide to Personal Freedom (A Toltec Wisdom Book)
The Gifts of Imperfection: Let Go of Who You Think You’re Supposed to Be and Embrace Who You Are
Hold Me Tight: Seven Conversations for a Lifetime of Love
How to Heal Depression
How to Survive the Loss of a Love
Lost in the Mirror: An Inside Look at Borderline Personality Disorder
The Mind-Gut Connection: How the Hidden Conversation Within Our Bodies Impacts Our Mood, Our Choices, and Our Overall Health
Refuge Recovery: A Buddhist Path to Recovering from Addiction
The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work: A Practical Guide from the Country’s Foremost Relationship Expert
Staying Sober Without God: The Practical 12 Steps to Long-Term Recovery from Alcoholism and Addictions
Surviving Schizophrenia, 7th Edition: A Family Manual
Workbooks
The Addictions Recovery Workbook: 101 Practical Exercises for Individuals and Groups
The Addiction Recovery Skills Workbook: Changing Addictive Behaviors Using CBT, Mindfulness, and Motivational Interviewing Techniques
Antisocial, Borderline, Narcissistic and Histrionic Workbook: Treatment Strategies for Cluster B Personality Disorders
The Anxiety and Phobia Workbook
The Anxiety and Worry Workbook: The Cognitive Behavioral Solution
The Attachment Theory Workbook: Powerful Tools to Promote Understanding, Increase Stability, and Build Lasting Relationships
Building Motivational Interviewing Skills, Second Edition: A Practitioner Workbook (Applications of Motivational Interviewing)
The CBT Toolbox: A Workbook for Clients and Clinicians
The Cognitive Behavioral Workbook for Anxiety: A Step-By-Step Program
The Cognitive Behavioral Workbook for Depression: A Step-by-Step Program
The Complex PTSD Workbook: A Mind-Body Approach to Regaining Emotional Control and Becoming Whole
DBT® Skills Training Handouts and Worksheets, Second Edition
DBT® Skills Training Manual, Second Edition
The Depression Workbook: A Guide for Living with Depression and Manic Depression, Second Edition
The Dialectical Behavior Therapy Skills Workbook: Practical DBT Exercises for Learning Mindfulness, Interpersonal Effectiveness, Emotion Regulation
The Dialectical Behavior Therapy Skills Workbook for Anxiety: Breaking Free from Worry, Panic, PTSD, and Other Anxiety Symptoms
The Dialectical Behavior Therapy Skills Workbook for PTSD: Practical Exercises for Overcoming Trauma and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
Healing the Trauma of Abuse: A Women’s Workbook
The PTSD Workbook: Simple, Effective Techniques for Overcoming Traumatic Stress Symptoms
Relapse Prevention Counseling Workbook: Practical Exercises for Managing High-Risk Situations
The Relationship Workbook
The Self-Esteem Workbook
The Shyness and Social Anxiety Workbook: Proven, Step-by-Step Techniques for Overcoming Your Fear
The Wellness Lifestyle Workbook – Self-Assessments, Exercises & Educational Handouts (Mental Health & Life Skills Workbook Series)
The Wellness Workbook: How to Achieve Enduring Health and Vitality
A Woman’s Addiction Workbook: Your Guide to In-Depth Healing
Textbooks
Clinical Mental Health Counseling in Community and Agency Settings
Exercises in the Art of Helping
Family Therapy: An Overview
Foundations of Addictions Counseling (The Merrill Counseling Series)
Learning the Art of Helping: Building Blocks and Techniques
Theory and Practice of Counseling and Psychotherapy
The Theory and Practice of Group Psychotherapy
PracticePlanners Series
The Addiction Treatment Planner: Includes DSM-5 Updates
Addiction Treatment Homework Planner
The Complete Adult Psychotherapy Treatment Planner
Adult Psychotherapy Homework Planner
The Complete Anxiety Treatment and Homework Planner
The Complete Depression Treatment and Homework Planner
The Couples Psychotherapy Treatment Planner with DSM-5 Updates
Couples Therapy Homework Planner
The Crisis Counseling and Traumatic Events Treatment Planner with DSM-5 Updates
The Family Therapy Treatment Planner with DSM-5 Updates
The Personality Disorders Treatment Planner: Includes DSM-5 Updates
The Severe and Persistent Mental Illness Treatment Planner
The Suicide and Homicide Risk Assessment and Prevention Treatment Planner
Additional Reading
86 TIPS (Treatment Ideas & Practical Strategies) for the Therapeutic Toolbox
127 More Amazing Tips and Tools for the Therapeutic Toolbox
103 Group Activities and Treatment Ideas & Practical Strategies
150 More Group Therapy Activities & TIPS
100 Interactive Activities for Mental Health and Substance Abuse Recovery
101 Trauma-Informed Interventions: Activities, Exercises and Assignments to Move the Client and Therapy Forward
Attachment: 60 Trauma-Informed Assessment and Treatment Interventions Across the Lifespan
Diagnosis Made Easier, Second Edition: Principles and Techniques for Mental Health Clinicians
Encyclopedia of Counseling: Master Review and Tutorial for the National Counselor Examination, State Counseling Exams, and the Counselor Preparation Comprehensive Examination
Essential Assessment Skills for Couple and Family Therapists (The Guilford Family Therapy Series)
Essentials of Clinical Supervision (Essentials of Mental Health Practice)
Group Exercises for Addiction Counseling
Motivational Interviewing: Helping People Change (Applications of Motivational Interviewing)
Motivational Interviewing and CBT: Combining Strategies for Maximum Effectiveness (Applications of Motivational Interviewing)
The Therapeutic “Aha!”: 10 Strategies for Getting Your Clients Unstuck
Trauma Treatment Toolbox: 165 Brain-Changing Tips, Tools & Handouts to Move Therapy Forward
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