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In This Moment: Five Steps to Transcending Stress Using Mindfulness and Neuroscience
Little daily hassles can add up to big, big stress. Whether you're stuck in traffic, hauling your kids out the front door in the morning, dealing with a demanding boss, or worrying about money, it's easy to become overwhelmed. Stress is a normal part of daily life; but over time, chronic stress can take its toll on both your mental and physical health, leading to everything from anxiety and depression to weight gain and disease. So how can you move past the little hassles that get in the way of fully enjoying life? In This Moment will show you how to find a sense of calm and serenity using a breakthrough, evidence-based program grounded in mindfulness and neuroscience. Imagine feeling stressed, and being able to work through it by paying attention to your thoughts and feelings, moment by moment, no matter where you are or what you're doing. It's not as difficult as it sounds! Written by cofounder of acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) Kirk Strosahl and pioneering behavioral health researcher Patricia Robinson, the mindfulness exercises in this book will help you strengthen the parts of your brain that support vitality and a sense of being fully present in the here and now. And with a little practice, you will learn to combat stress in healthy ways, stay balanced, and live a happier life, no matter what challenges arise.
216 pages, Paperback
First published January 2, 2015
59 people are currently reading
720 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
October 6, 2015
This was a potentially life-changing read for me.
I’ve been meditating daily for the last year, in direct response to severe anxiety that was destroying my life. I’m already totally convinced in the miraculous healing power of meditation, but have been curious about strategies to take the mindfulness of meditation into my day-to-day life. It was happening naturally without me even trying, but I was hungry for more.
This book really jumped off the “Mindfulness” shelf at the bookstore --- the mention of neuroscience on the front cover pushed my buttons. I am naturally skeptical, and prescribe to a very stripped down, areligious approach to meditation i.e. I’m not interested in sacred spaces, aromatherapy and crystals. I’ve been aware of the “boom” in scientific studies collecting data to support the claims of meditation, and was hoping this book would cover some of that.
It exceeded my already high expectations.
The book is split into 3 parts:
Part 1: A new perspective on dealing with stress
This is the part where the authors try to convince the reader of the benefits of mindfulness. Done. I’m on board. The science is a little light, but I’m already experiencing the benefits of meditation so needed no convincing anyway.
Part 2: Five steps to transcending stress
This is the hands-on section. And it’s really, really hands-on. It starts with a simple but insightful self-assessment in five key areas of mindfulness, which was fascinating. I realized I was already strongly skilled in observing and describing, but not so great at detaching and self-compassion. This quick self-assessment alone was incredibly enlightening, but the real meat on these bones comes in the form of practical exercises that boost these various skills. I read this book quite quickly without doing all the exercises, but some of the simpler ones I could complete by taking a short pause from reading. However, some were more complex and required some sustained focus. Since completing the book I’ve purchased a mindfulness notebook and intend to slowly work through the exercises. I’m hoping this will bring even more depth to the content.
Part 3: Developing a mindful lifestyle
Pulling it all together to make better choices day-to-day. To be honest, this section was less interesting to me than the super-practical focus from the previous section.
Postscript: It’s now been about four weeks since I finished this book (and this review is still sitting in my drafts… ughhhhh). One of the most fascinating and lingering concepts from the book is this idea that we exist as a distinctly different entity from our brain and our mind. I obviously already knew that our brain is an organ, like any other, performing a complex set of tasks, so that wasn’t a new concept for me. But to separate myself from my mind, and think of my mind as simply an advisor. And a flawed advisor at that. That was kinda groundbreaking for me because I realized I’d been keenly identifying myself with the ramblings of my overactive mind. The authors offer some advice for times when the mind is overactive, where you can speak back to your mind. I’ve got my own version along the lines: “Thanks for that advice mind. You’ve sure helped me a lot over the years. But right now, I don’t need that type of advice. It’s not helpful in this situation. So just chill out and let me handle this.” That may be the single most helpful piece of advice I’ve ever received.
I’ve been meditating daily for the last year, in direct response to severe anxiety that was destroying my life. I’m already totally convinced in the miraculous healing power of meditation, but have been curious about strategies to take the mindfulness of meditation into my day-to-day life. It was happening naturally without me even trying, but I was hungry for more.
This book really jumped off the “Mindfulness” shelf at the bookstore --- the mention of neuroscience on the front cover pushed my buttons. I am naturally skeptical, and prescribe to a very stripped down, areligious approach to meditation i.e. I’m not interested in sacred spaces, aromatherapy and crystals. I’ve been aware of the “boom” in scientific studies collecting data to support the claims of meditation, and was hoping this book would cover some of that.
It exceeded my already high expectations.
The book is split into 3 parts:
Part 1: A new perspective on dealing with stress
This is the part where the authors try to convince the reader of the benefits of mindfulness. Done. I’m on board. The science is a little light, but I’m already experiencing the benefits of meditation so needed no convincing anyway.
Part 2: Five steps to transcending stress
This is the hands-on section. And it’s really, really hands-on. It starts with a simple but insightful self-assessment in five key areas of mindfulness, which was fascinating. I realized I was already strongly skilled in observing and describing, but not so great at detaching and self-compassion. This quick self-assessment alone was incredibly enlightening, but the real meat on these bones comes in the form of practical exercises that boost these various skills. I read this book quite quickly without doing all the exercises, but some of the simpler ones I could complete by taking a short pause from reading. However, some were more complex and required some sustained focus. Since completing the book I’ve purchased a mindfulness notebook and intend to slowly work through the exercises. I’m hoping this will bring even more depth to the content.
Part 3: Developing a mindful lifestyle
Pulling it all together to make better choices day-to-day. To be honest, this section was less interesting to me than the super-practical focus from the previous section.
Postscript: It’s now been about four weeks since I finished this book (and this review is still sitting in my drafts… ughhhhh). One of the most fascinating and lingering concepts from the book is this idea that we exist as a distinctly different entity from our brain and our mind. I obviously already knew that our brain is an organ, like any other, performing a complex set of tasks, so that wasn’t a new concept for me. But to separate myself from my mind, and think of my mind as simply an advisor. And a flawed advisor at that. That was kinda groundbreaking for me because I realized I’d been keenly identifying myself with the ramblings of my overactive mind. The authors offer some advice for times when the mind is overactive, where you can speak back to your mind. I’ve got my own version along the lines: “Thanks for that advice mind. You’ve sure helped me a lot over the years. But right now, I don’t need that type of advice. It’s not helpful in this situation. So just chill out and let me handle this.” That may be the single most helpful piece of advice I’ve ever received.
January 6, 2024
Anyone unclear on what mindfulness is and how to implement it will greatly benefit from this book. I recommend it whenever I can.
July 9, 2017
Didnt finish, but a great book.
December 21, 2019
It was okay. Kind of repetitive. And I wasn't expecting some of the religious stuff. Not a huge deal, but wasn't what I envisioned the book to be.
February 17, 2021
lots of interesting ideas for using mindfulness to help with stress.
September 23, 2021
This book provides sound advice and helpful exercises.
April 21, 2024
I got insight on what are my stronger and weaker areas in my mindfulness practice.
February 28, 2015
This was a good overview of things we need to get our brains to do in order to mitigate stress. I already practiced these concepts, having learned them from other books, but I thought this would be a good starting text for anyone learning to focus on mindfulness. It does go into brain science a great deal, and that helped me clarify some of the techniques.
February 27, 2015
Didn't finish. Too clinical of an approach for me to get into.
April 20, 2015
This is a good book for readers new to the subject of mindfulness, but not so meaning-full for readers looking for something more. Easy to read with good exercises.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews