Choices: Taking Control of Your Life and Making It Matter

Andy J. Merolla (Author)

The Social Biome: How Everyday Communication Connects and Shapes Us

9, A deep dive into the importance of daily communication and how we can harness its power to create a better life We spend much of our waking lives communicating with others. How does each moment of interaction shape not only our relationships but also our worldviews? And how can we create moments of connection that improve our health and well-being, particularly in a world in which people are feeling increasingly isolated? Drawing from their extensive research, Andy J. Merolla and Jeffrey A. Hall establish a new way to think about our relational life: as existing within "social biomes"--complex ecosystems of moments of interaction with others. Each interaction we have, no matter how unimportant or mundane it might seem, is a building block of our identities and beliefs. Consequently, the choices we make about how we interact and who we interact with--and whether we interact at all--matter more than we might know. Merolla and Hall offer a sympathetic, practical guide to our vital yet complicated social lives and propose realistic ways to embrace and enhance connection and hope.

Ellen Vora (Author)

The Anatomy of Anxiety: Understanding and Overcoming the Body's Fear Response

5,From acclaimed psychiatrist Dr. Ellen Vora comes a groundbreaking understanding of how anxiety manifests in the body and mind--and what we can do to overcome it.Anxiety affects more than forty million Americans--a number that continues to climb in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. While conventional medicine tends to view anxiety as a "neck-up" problem--that is, one of brain chemistry and psychology--the truth is that the origins of anxiety are rooted in the body.In The Anatomy of Anxiety, holistic psychiatrist Dr. Ellen Vora offers nothing less than a paradigm shift in our understanding of anxiety and mental health, suggesting that anxiety is not simply a brain disorder but a whole-body condition. In her clinical work, Dr. Vora has found time and again that the symptoms of anxiety can often be traced to imbalances in the body. The emotional and physical discomfort we experience--sleeplessness, brain fog, stomach pain, jitters--is a result of the body's stress response. This physiological state can be triggered by challenging experiences as well as seemingly innocuous factors, such as diet and use of technology.The good news is that this body-based anxiety, or, as Dr. Vora terms ...

Mary-Frances O'Connor (Author)

The Grieving Body: How the Stress of Loss Can Be an Opportunity for Healing

5,The follow-up to celebrated grief expert, neuroscientist, and psychologist Dr. Mary-Frances O'Connor's The Grieving Brain focuses on the impact of grief--and life's other major stressors--on the human body. Coping with death and grief is one of the most painful human experiences. While we can speak to the psychological and emotional ramifications of loss and sorrow, we often overlook its impact on our physical bodies. Dr. Mary-Frances O'Connor specializes in the study of grief, and in The Grieving Body she shares vital scientific research, revealing imperative new insights on its profound physiological impact. As she did in The Grieving Brain, O'Connor combines illuminating studies and personal stories to explore the toll loss takes on our cardiovascular, endocrine, and immune systems and the larger implications for our long-term well-being.The Grieving Body addresses questions about how bereavement affects us, such as: Can we die of a broken heart?What happens in our bodies when we're grieving?How do our coping behaviors affect our physical health?What is the cognitive impact of grief?Why are we more prone to illness during times of enormous stress?and moreResearch-backed, warm, ...