Unwinding Anxiety: New Science Shows How to Break the Cycles of Worry and Fear to Heal Your Mind

Almost never i write any kind of review, but this book deserves one and a 5 stars rating. I have anxiety disorder, and even if "anxiety" is in the title, this works for addictions and bad habits in general. In the sake of being precise, i can just describe this books as a useful guide to work with X problem involving either anxiety or a bad habit, like drinking, smoking or over eating (so yeah, it's a practical book) and also like a very compassionate, easy to read, and kind book, and it feels like talking to a friend. As somebody who reads daily, this has become one of my top 3 books of the year. Beautiful! :)

Esse livro resume o trabalho do autor sobre ansiedade durante 8 anos. É uma preciosidade pela clareza da discussão dos conceitos e pela metodologia simples e pratica que podemos aplicar nas nossas vidas. Recomendo com a certeza de que vai ajudar outros, além de mim.

Didn't finish it, It was really hard to read. I didn't like the statement that anxiety and addiction are the same thing. I mean I can understand, but It didn't sit well for me. I thought it would be an interesting, easy, and very engaging read, but no. I had high hopes, but I was very disappointed.

This book is attractive and capture my attention every time I start reading it. Since I am having anxiety attack I am interested in reading further. Although I received three books from that Author only yesterday I did not have much time to read too much. What I have read yesterday, is very interesting and useful for my anxiety. I am excited to know more about that subject and DR. Jud Brewer is a good writer. I am sure I will like what he wrote.

This is neither a self-help book, nor a heavy duty science manual. It is an eminently readable book that explains how "anxiety loops" are created by our minds and how to use a series of awareness and mindfulness tools to "break the loop" and reprogram the brain to observe and accept anxiety, then move on.The author, Dr. Jud Brewer, is an addiction psychiatrist and neuroscientist at Brown University. He also is the head of research of their world renowned "Brown University Mindfulness Center". Unwinding Anxiety follows Dr. Brewer's previous book, "The Carving Mind", in which he discusses reprograming the mind to break habits (and addictions!) such as smoking or using cell phones.In Unwinding Anxiety, Dr. Brewer writes with a similar style - personal anecdotes, stories from his lab, easily understandable descriptions of complex brain mechanisms - to explain how anyone can decrease their anxiety creating habits. Although a significant part of this is using mindfulness and awareness, there is nothing esoteric about his research and methods, no religion involved, definitely no chanting, and no major time commitment. Dr. Brewer is an expert in how to apply mindfulness to improving one's health - in this case mental health - and the techniques he offers require nothing other than your own brain, self introspection and some basic motivation.Dare I say this is a page turner? I am not not a scientist, not an expert in the brain, and yet, once I started reading this book, I couldn't put it down. I will definitely apply several of the techniques offered by Dr. Brewer, and reading his book also made me curious about his app, of the same name (Unwinding Anxiety).Anxiety seems to be one of the greatest challenges of our society, certainly here in the US. Medication is usually the standard treatment, and SSRIs certainly have helped millions of people. Nonetheless, we have tools to deal with Anxiety within us, and they don't require much other than our minds and a little effort and time. Whether this is to complement other treatments or a starting point, I believe that Unwinding Anxiety can change lives. It is a deeply humanistic book, one which will make you think about yourself, laugh from time to time, and who knows, it might have a long lasting impact on your mental health.