Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before?

Over 1 million copies sold worldwide!

International Bestseller

“Smart, insightful, and warm. Dr. Julie is both the expert and wise friend we all need.”Lori Gottlieb, New York Times bestselling author of Maybe You Should Talk to Someone and co-host of the Dear Therapists podcast

Drawing on years of experience as a clinical psychologist, online sensation Dr Julie Smith provides the skills you need to navigate common life challenges and take charge of your emotional and mental health in her debut book.

Filled with secrets from a therapist’s toolkit, Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before teaches you how to fortify and maintain your mental health, even in the most trying of times. Dr Julie Smith’s expert advice and powerful coping techniques will help you stay resilient, whether you want to manage anxiety, deal with criticism, cope with depression, build self-confidence, find motivation, or learn to forgive yourself. This guide to mental wellness tackles everyday issues and offers practical solutions in bite-sized, easy-to-digest entries which make it easy to quickly find specific information and guidance. 

Your mental well-being is just as important as your physical well-being. Packed with proven strategies, Dr. Julie’s empathetic guide offers a deeper understanding of how your mind works and gives you the insights and actionable tools you need to nurture your mental health every day. Wise and practical, Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before might just change your life. 

Inside, you’ll find the skills you’ve been searching for to navigate life’s ups and downs:

  • A Therapist’s Toolkit: Learn the powerful coping techniques and expert advice a clinical psychologist shares with her patients to help you stay resilient in trying times.
  • Navigate Your Emotions: Understand the science of low mood, anxiety, and stress, and find practical solutions for dealing with emotional pain and self-doubt.
  • Build Self-Confidence: Fortify your mental health with actionable strategies for building self-worth, finding motivation, and dealing with criticism.
  • Bite-Sized Guidance: No psychobabble—just easy-to-digest entries that make it simple to find the specific, empathetic guidance you need in the moment.

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Published Jan 11, 2022

368 pages

Average rating: 7.52

46 RATINGS

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Community Reviews

ValerieRuiz
Apr 06, 2026
9/10 stars
Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before? by Dr. Julie Smith is a practical and compassionate mental health guide filled with tools to help you navigate life’s everyday challenges. Written by a clinical psychologist, the book breaks down complex psychological concepts into accessible advice on topics like anxiety, depression, self-doubt, motivation, and resilience. With short, focused chapters and real-world examples, it offers actionable strategies to improve your mental well-being—like having a therapist in your pocket. This is one of those books you wish you’d had in your hands years ago. It’s a refreshingly practical, compassionate, and deeply insightful mental health guide that doesn’t just tell you what to do—it explains why your mind reacts the way it does and how you can take small, manageable steps to feel better. What makes this book so super good is how approachable it is. Dr. Smith writes like a wise friend—never clinical, always warm. Whether you're struggling with anxiety, low motivation, heartbreak, or simply trying to build resilience, there’s something here for you. Each chapter stands alone, making it easy to pick up whenever you need support or a perspective shift. You don’t need to read it cover to cover to feel its impact. If you’ve ever felt like your emotions are out of your control or wondered why you react the way you do—this book will feel like a life raft. It's not just self-help, it’s self-understanding.
QuiteContrary
Jan 14, 2025
4/10 stars
Repeating fears / trauma seems a v bad idea to me.
CharleyB
Jan 05, 2025
6/10 stars
Eh it was okay. I had high hopes for this book and while it had some good information, the way it was written wasn’t very engaging. 6/10
jgregg42
Mar 08, 2024
10/10 stars
The title explains it. There are many things in this book that just have not been discussed in public enough. She says it in plain English - we are led to believe that career, money, social status are the end goal not mental health and relationships. Sad really. But the author is here to tell you the dirty, little secrets that meditation, gratitude and relationships are key to anyone’s well being. Not how many followers you have on IG.

Please read this to get a a base line on mental health and relationships. You will find out that you are not alone.

And, yes I’ve been told many of these things before (not all) but the book is well researched and has many great reminders of things I might have heard before.
_orbitingemily
Jan 29, 2023
6/10 stars
A good way to ease your way into self help and mental health books. This is a good book got teenagers struggling with their mental health, it felt a bit juvenile for me as I am mid-20s but I found myself looking deeper into terms that the author used - this was a great starting point for me.

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