THE POWER OF STORIES So many misunderstandings, hurts, and little fault lines that may grow into bond-shattering earthquakes can be minimized or even fully eliminated if only we practice more mindful, compassionate, and open communication—first with ourselves and then with our partners. You can change your story. You can repair your relationship. You can change your brain at a neurological level by rerouting elemental neural pathways that are associated with those stories that you made up to explain and face reality when you were younger. --Dr. Linda Miles Dr. Miles’ new book "Change Your Story, Change Your Brain for Better Relationships" combines essays and mindfulness practices to strengthen your relationships and provide healing for yourself and those close to you. Reader reviews for Change Your Story Change Your Brain “Dr. Linda Miles provides great insights and strategies to deal with loss and pain through the practice of mindfulness. Anyone who is struggling in life or dealing with a major life transition will benefit from her book.” “This is no self-improvement book. Change Your Story, Change Your Brain is a book that will change your life” “If you are going through some pain and trials right now this book is for you.” “...I love the way she draws from literature, philosophy and other professional sources to drive home her points. “Change Your Story: Change Your Brain" is a fantastic read. You'll thoroughly enjoy it.” Dr. Linda Miles has a Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology and has worked as a psychotherapist and author for 35 years. Dr. Miles is personable and accessible in her books and articles and is passionate about how mindfulness and loving kindness can positively change your brain, your chemistry and your life. Her first book, The New Marriage, written with her husband, Robert Miles, M.D., won a literary prize as a finalist for Forward Non-fiction book of the year. She has published several books on relationships and mindfulness as well as articles in the Wall Street Journal, Boston Globe, Reuters and Miami Herald. She has been a guest expert on numerous national TV shows including CNN, Fox News, ABC, and NBC. For more information about Dr. Miles and mindfulness: www.DrLindaMiles.com and Facebook Mindfulness Rewrites

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • When we deny our stories, they define us. When we own our stories, we get to write the ending. Don’t miss the five-part HBO Max docuseries Brené Brown: Atlas of the Heart! Social scientist Brené Brown has ignited a global conversation on courage, vulnerability, shame, and worthiness. Her pioneering work uncovered a profound truth: Vulnerability—the willingness to show up and be seen with no guarantee of outcome—is the only path to more love, belonging, creativity, and joy. But living a brave life is not always easy: We are, inevitably, going to stumble and fall. It is the rise from falling that Brown takes as her subject in Rising Strong. As a grounded theory researcher, Brown has listened as a range of people—from leaders in Fortune 500 companies and the military to artists, couples in long-term relationships, teachers, and parents—shared their stories of being brave, falling, and getting back up. She asked herself, What do these people with strong and loving relationships, leaders nurturing creativity, artists pushing innovation, and clergy walking with people through faith and mystery have in common? The answer was clear: They recognize the power of emotion and they’re not afraid to lean in to discomfort. Walking into our stories of hurt can feel dangerous. But the process of regaining our footing in the midst of struggle is where our courage is tested and our values are forged. Our stories of struggle can be big ones, like the loss of a job or the end of a relationship, or smaller ones, like a conflict with a friend or colleague. Regardless of magnitude or circumstance, the rising strong process is the same: We reckon with our emotions and get curious about what we’re feeling; we rumble with our stories until we get to a place of truth; and we live this process, every day, until it becomes a practice and creates nothing short of a revolution in our lives. Rising strong after a fall is how we cultivate wholeheartedness. It’s the process, Brown writes, that teaches us the most about who we are. ONE OF GREATER GOOD’S FAVORITE BOOKS OF THE YEAR “[Brené Brown’s] research and work have given us a new vocabulary, a way to talk with each other about the ideas and feelings and fears we’ve all had but haven’t quite known how to articulate. . . . Brené empowers us each to be a little more courageous.”—The Huffington Post

In Rewire Your Brain for Love, neuropsychologist Marsha Lucas brings together neuroscience and mindfulness meditation in an exciting program to help readers create and sustain better, healthier, juicier romantic relationships. With a passion for neuroscience and the ability to relay it in a clear, unintimidating--and funny--manner, Lucas delves into how the human brain works in relationships, exploring the neurological connections that fuel our reactions. In an inviting and reassuring tone, she describes how we developed our current relationship wiring and how to modify it through mindfulness meditation. Focusing on nine high-voltage benefits-including everything from being able to better manage your reactions, to improved communication with yourself and others, to an enhanced ability to handle fear-Lucas shows how a short daily meditation practice can change the way you interact with everyone around you…especially those closest to you. Each chapter focuses on one benefit, including an in-depth description of exactly what that benefit is and how it will improve the reader's life. She looks at the science and research associated with mindfulness meditation in relation to each benefit, and then provides readers with a specific meditation to help bring that benefit into their relationships. Imagine, instead of blowing up at an off-hand statement your partner makes, you are able to stop, breathe, and respond in a thoughtful manner. And as the author says, "You don't have to become a monk, or a vegetarian, or spend hours contemplating your navel"; you simply need to notice your mind's busyness and not get all tangled up in it. This simple process truly can change your life.

Find freedom and healing from painful memories and relational struggles and learn how your past has uniquely prepared you to experience more joy. Tragedy and pain inevitably touch our lives in some way. We long to feel whole, but more often than not, the way we've learned to deal with our wounds pushes us away from the very restoration we need most. Renowned psychologist Dr. Dan Allender and counselor and teacher Cathy Loerzel present a life-changing process of true connection and healing with ourselves, God, and others. With a clear, biblically trustworthy method, Allender and Loerzel walk you through a journey of profound inner transformation--from the shame and hurt of old emotional wounds to true freedom and healing. Drawn from modern research and their pioneering work at The Allender Center, they will help you identify your core trauma in one of the three outcast archetypes--the widow, orphan, or stranger--and chart your path of growth into the God-given roles of priest, prophet, or leader. This book will help you learn: What to do about feeling out-of-place and directionless How your coping mechanisms create a false sense of health How to embrace your divine calling and find lasting reconciliation How your heart wounds are your unique invitation to true strength and purpose. Your past pain does not dictate your life. Answer the call to healing and discover your life's beautiful story and a future of hope and freedom.

Do you find it difficult to 'click' with colleagues, neighbours, in-laws, or romantic partners? Loneliness has become an international epidemic, but according to Dr. Amy Banks, every one of us is quite literally hardwired for close relationships. The key to achieving more satisfying relationships is to strengthen the neural pathways in our brains that encourage closeness and connection. In Four Ways to Click, Dr. Banks reveals that there are four distinct neural pathways in the brain that correspond to the four most important ingredients for healthy and satisfying relationships: CALMNESS is a result of a well-toned vagus nerve, which in turn helps temper the sympathetic nervous system. ACCEPTEDNESS, or accepting others and feeling accepted back, comes from a well-tuned dorsal anterior cingulate cortex. EMOTIONAL RESONANCE, our ability to reflect back to others that we 'get them', occurs when the mirror neuron system is properly functioning. ENERGY, the drive to be happy and close to the people we care about despite life's hardships, comes from a dopamine reward system that is connected to healthy relationships. When we are supported by good relationships, these neural pathways - and our brains as a whole - flourish. But when we are isolated or in bad relationships, other neural pathways associated with stress are activated, creating symptoms of anxiety, anger, withdrawal, and dissatisfaction. The great news? By tuning up these four neural pathways, we can feel better - and we can enhance your ability to connect with others. This groundbreaking book gives readers the tools they need to strengthen the parts of their brains that encourage connection and to heal the neural damage that disconnection can cause.

How to rewire your brain to improve virtually every aspect of your life-based on the latest research in neuroscience and psychology on neuroplasticity and evidence-based practices Not long ago, it was thought that the brain you were born with was the brain you would die with, and that the brain cells you had at birth were the most you would ever possess. Your brain was thought to be “hardwired” to function in predetermined ways. It turns out that's not true. Your brain is not hardwired, it's "softwired" by experience. This book shows you how you can rewire parts of the brain to feel more positive about your life, remain calm during stressful times, and improve your social relationships. Written by a leader in the field of Brain-Based Therapy, it teaches you how to activate the parts of your brain that have been underactivated and calm down those areas that have been hyperactivated so that you feel positive about your life and remain calm during stressful times. You will also learn to improve your memory, boost your mood, have better relationships, and get a good night sleep. Reveals how cutting-edge developments in neuroscience, and evidence-based practices can be used to improve your everyday life Other titles by Dr. Arden include: Brain-Based Therapy-Adult, Brain-Based Therapy-Child, Improving Your Memory For Dummies and Heal Your Anxiety Workbook Dr. Arden is a leader in integrating the new developments in neuroscience with psychotherapy and Director of Training in Mental Health for Kaiser Permanente for the Northern California Region Explaining exciting new developments in neuroscience and their applications to daily living, Rewire Your Brain will guide you through the process of changing your brain so you can change your life and be free of self-imposed limitations.

The things we tell ourselves affect how well or poorly our path in life goes. It’s time to flip the script on the internal stories you tell yourself and live life on your terms. Most of the “self-stories” you tell yourself—the kind of person you say you are and the things you are capable of—are invisible to you because they have become such a part of your everyday mental routine that you don’t even recognize they exist. Yet, these self-stories influence everything you do, everything you say, and everything you are. Choose Your Story, Change Your Life will help you take complete control of your self-stories and create the life you’ve always dreamed you’d have. Author Kindra Hall offers up a new window into your psychology, one that travels the distance from the frontiers of neuroscience to the deep inner workings of your thoughts and feelings. In Choose Your Story, Change Your Life, Kindra will help you: Uncover the truth of how you have created the life you have; Challenge everything you think you know about how your life has been built; Uncover the clear steps you can take to create the life you want; Take control of your self-story to become the author of who you are; and Live your life in a way you never have before. This eye-opening, but applicable journey will transform you from a passive listener of these limiting, unconscious thoughts to the definitive author of who you are and everything you want to be. Changing your life is as simple as choosing better stories to tell yourself. If you can change your story, you can change your life.