How can we feel good about our lives, in all its aspects: love, family, work? What can we do to feel in harmony with ourselves and with others? How can we guide our children and help them grow up happily?

This guide to everyday psychology gives information and advice on a number of issues that concern everyone: self-esteem, relating to others (personally and professionally), love, living with a partner, sexuality, child education, personal fulfilment, and the different ages of life and their passages.

The authors show how to develop ways of improving our well-being and of changing, or healing, so that we learn to influence our emotions. They teach us to work on the way we think, to become more assertive, and to relax and meditate. They also help us deal with difficulties, to become more understanding, and to take action when faced with such psychic disorders and illnesses as anorexia, drug abuse, obsessive-compulsive disorders, and depression. Advice is also provided on psychotherapy options.

This is a complete personal and family guide to fulfilment, serenity and helping others.

Each section of the book follows a common pattern: tools to further comprehension, tests for self-evaluation, concrete advice. This is a tried-and-tested practical approach: understand first, and then take action to feel better.

The contributors to this “bible” of everyday psychology are recognised specialists in their fields. Most of them are authors of self-help books in the successful series “Guides pour s'aider soi-même”, published by Editions Odile Jacob.

This is an accessible work, targeting a wide readership.

Christophe André, the editor of this volume, is the author of such highly successful books as Imparfaits, libres et heureux, L'Estime de soi and Vivre heureux. A practising psychiatrist and psychotherapist, he works at Hôpital Sainte-Anne, in Paris.

More than forty eminent psychiatrists and psychologists have contributed to this book, among them: Frédéric Fanget, Didier Pleux, Jeanne Siaud-Facchin, Dominique Servant, Stéphanie Hahusseau, Bruno Koeltz, Christine Brunet and Catherine Solano.