Local Resources

NVC - Communication skills and conflict resolution workshops

Insight Santa Cruz - Meditation Center

AA meetings

AlAnon meetings

Hospice grief groups

Crisis/Suicide intervention

Mindfulness Meditations and Neuroscience

UCLA Mindful Awareness Research Center meditations audio - several 3 and 5 min. meditations

UC San Diego Center for Mindfulness meditations audio - start with 20 min. Body Scan

Breath awareness audio by Daniel Siegel author of Mindsight - start with Breath Discussion

Wheel of awareness audio by Daniel Siegel author of Mindsight - for Introduction start at 2:00

Meditations written by Jack Kornfield author of Meditation for Beginners - start with sitting meditation

Misc. guided meditations audio by Tara Brach author of Radical Acceptance

Misc. meditations and lectures audio by Rick Hanson author of Buddha's Brain

Misc. lectures on brain science audio by Daniel Siegel author of Mindsight

Books (most can be found at the Santa Cruz Public Library System )

Depression, Anxiety, and Grief:

You Can Beat Depression: A Guide To Prevention & Recovery by John Preston

Getting Your Life Back: The Complete Guide to Recovery from Depression by Jesse Wright

The Mindful Way Through Depression: Freeing Yourself from Chronic Unhappiness by Mark Williams and Jon Kabat-Zinn

Master Your Panic and Take Back Your Life: Conquer Panic, Anxiety and Agoraphobia by Denise Beckfield

The Anxiety and Phobia Workbook by Edmund Bourne

Coping with Anxiety: 10 Simple Ways to Relieve Anxiety, Fear & Worry by Edmond Bourne

The Courage to Grieve: Creative Living, Recovery and Growth Through Grief by Judy Tatelbaum

Self Esteem:

Recovery Of Your Self-Esteem: A Guide For Women by Carolynn Hillman

Radical Acceptance: Embracing Your Life With the Heart of a Buddha by Tara Brach

Parenting and Stepfamilies:

Parents, Teens and Boundaries: How to Draw the Line by Jane Bluestein

Get Out of My Life, but First Could You Drive Me & Cheryl to the Mall: A Guide to the New Teenager by Anthony Wolf

The Difficult Child by Stanley Turecki

Positive Discipline by Jane Nelsen

When Anger Hurts Your Kids: A Parent's Guide by Matthew McKay

Stepfamilies (based on NIH longitudinal study) James Bray

The Enlightened Stepmother: Revolutionizing the Role by Perdita Norwood

Blending Families by Elaine Shimberg

Communication and Conflict Resolution:

The Dance of Connection: How to Talk When You're Mad, Hurt, Scared, Frustrated, Insulted, Betrayed by Harriet Lerner

The Dance of Intimacy by Harriet Lerner

The Dance of Anger: A Guide to Changing the Patterns of Intimate Relationships by Harriet Lerner

When Anger Hurts: Quieting the Storm Within by Matthew McKay

Relationships:

For Better or For Worse: Divorce Reconsidered (based on a longitudinal study) by E. Mavis Hetherington

The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work by John Gottman

Getting the Love You Want: A Guide for Couples by Harville Hendrix

Hold Me Tight: Seven Conversations for a Lifetime of Love by Sue Johnson

Attached: The New Science of Adult Attachment by Amir Levine

If the Buddha Dated: A Handbook for Finding Love on a Spiritual Path by Charlotte Kasl

If the Buddha Married: Creating Enduring Relationships on a Spiritual Path by Charlotte Kasl

When Anger Hurts Your Relationship: 10 Simple Solutions for Couples Who Fight by Matthew McKay

Mindfulness, Attachment and Neuroscience:

Mindsight: The New Science of Personal Transformation by Daniel Siegel

Brainstorm: The Power and Purpose of the Teenage Brain by Daniel Siegel

Buddha's Brain: The Practical Neuroscience of Happiness, Love, and Wisdom by Rick Hanson

Full Catastrophe Living (Revised Edition): Using Your Body and Mind to Face Stress, Pain, and Illness by Jon Kabat-Zinn

Attached: The New Science of Adult Attachment by Amir Levine

Codependency, ACA, Love Addiction:

Codependent No More: How to Stop Controlling Others and Start Caring for Yourself by Melody Beattie

It Will Never Happen to Me: Growing Up with Addiction by Claudia Black

Repeat After Me (ACA workbook) by Claudia Black

How to Break Your Addiction to a Person by Howard Halpern

Facing Love Addiction: Giving Yourself the Power to Change the Way You Love by Pia Mellody

ADD:

Delivered from Distraction: Getting the Most out of Life with Attention Deficit Disorder by Edward M. Hallowell

ADD-Friendly Ways to Organize Your Life by Judith Kolberg

Women with Attention Deficit Disorder: Embrace Your Differences and Transform Your Life by Sari Solden

Eating Disorders:

It's Not about Food: End Your Obsession with Food and Weight by Carol Emery Normandi

Over It: A Teen's Guide to Getting Beyond Obsessions with Food and Weight by Carol Emery Normandi

Life Without Ed: How One Woman Declared Independence from Her Eating Disorder by Jenni Schaefer

Surviving an Eating Disorder: Strategies for Family and Friends by Michelle Siegel

The Don't Diet, Live-It! Workbook: Healing Food, Weight and Body Issues by Andrea Wachter

Sexuality:

Hot Monogamy: Essential Steps to More Passionate, Intimate Lovemaking by Patricia Love

Mating in Captivity: Unlocking Erotic Intelligence by Esther Perel

For Yourself : The Fulfillment of Female Sexuality by Lonnie Barbach

Recovery from Sexual Abuse:

The Sexual Healing Journey: A Guide for Survivors of Sexual Abuse by Wendy Maltz

The Courage to Heal : A Guide for Women Survivors of Child Sexual Abuse by Laura Davis