> Skip to content
["9780241663943_1__1200x1200.jpg","9780241663943_2__1200x1200.jpg","9780241663943_3__1200x1200.jpg","9780241663943_4__1200x1200.jpg"]
  • Published: 12 May 2026
  • ISBN: 9780241663950
  • Imprint: Michael Joseph
  • Format: Paperback
  • Pages: 384
  • RRP: $30.00

Open When…

A Companion for Life’s Twists & Turns





Million-copy bestselling psychologist Dr Julie is back with the book that will carry you through life's difficult moments

This is a book for when you feel overwhelmed – whether you’re facing grief, fear, self-doubt, relationship issues, difficult decisions, burnout, regrets or don’t know how to ask for help.

Each chapter begins with a letter from Dr Julie to the reader offering comfort and perspective. She then follows with her trademark simple and straightforward advice to help you see clearly how best to respond and act.

Showing you how to re-frame life’s complex problems, Open When . . . will help you navigate any crisis or tough moment and return to a place of calmness, strength and positivity.

  • Published: 12 May 2026
  • ISBN: 9780241663950
  • Imprint: Michael Joseph
  • Format: Paperback
  • Pages: 384
  • RRP: $30.00

About the author

Dr Julie Smith

DR JULIE SMITH is a clinical psychologist, bestselling author and content creator, and was the first psychology professional to use TikTok to give insights on therapy. After working for the NHS and a decade running her own private practice, Julie launched her TikTok channel with the mission of making top-quality mental health education accessible to all. During the COVID-19 pandemic, her audience grew astronomically as users related to the bite-sized self-help videos she was sharing and put her advice into practice. She now has over 9 million followers across her social media platforms. She was named by TikTok as one of its Top 100 creators.

Julie’s first book, Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before?, was an instant #1 Sunday Times Bestseller, has clocked up over 100 weeks in the UK Top Ten and become a fixture at the top of the audiobook charts. It has sold over 1 million copies in the English language and been translated into more than 40 other languages.

Julie is a regular expert on ITV’s This Morning and has been featured widely across the media in the UK and further afield. Julie is an ambassador for BBC’s Children in Need and has appeared as a guest on many of the most-listened-to wellbeing podcasts, including The Diary of a CEO and Fearne Cotton’s Happy Place. Julie lives in Hampshire, England, with her husband and three children.

Dr Julie Smith BSc (Hons), D. Clin. Psych., C.Psychol.
Chartered Clinical Psychologist.
Registered with the HCPC and BPS.

Also by Dr Julie Smith

See all

Praise for Open When…

Praise for the author

-

Full of sound, helpful advice with life skills, from building confidence to managing stress

Sunday Times

It's so engaging that it's even led me to switch off my phone for several hours so I can read it, and in this social media-obsessed age, I don't think I can give a bigger recommendation than that

Bryony Gordon, Telegraph

This book is a goldmine. I truly treat it like a handbook now - when I feel an unpleasant feeling brewing or come up against a tricky moment at work or in my relationships, my first thought is to wonder what Smith might suggest

Stylist

So much advice on such a wide variety of things: it's brilliant. So helpful

Katie Piper

The book's great. It's real, it's authentic . . . Very practical and very, very helpful

Lorraine Kelly