Mind, Consciousness, and Well-Being

by Daniel J. Siegel M.D., Marion F. Solomon Ph.D.

Overview

Scientists, clinicians, and mindfulness teachers discuss training the mind to bring more health and resiliency to our lives.

In this book, Daniel J. Siegel and Marion F. Solomon have gathered leading writers to discuss such topics as: attention, resilience, and mindfulness; neuroplasticity—how the brain changes its function and structure in response to experience; “loving awareness” as the foundation for mindful living; how mindfulness training can help build empathy and compassion in clinicians; self-compassion; addictions; using breath practice to cultivate well-being; tools for clients who feel disconnected; “therapeutic presence”—how we show up for our clients, how we embody being aware and receptive. The latest entry in the acclaimed Norton Series on Interpersonal Neurobiology, this book brings fresh voices to the all-important topics of meditation, mental training, and consciousness.

Mind, Consciousness, and Well-Being offers a unique window into the science and art of taking our understanding of the mind and consciousness and applying it to cultivating well-being in our personal lives and our professional work.

Contributors include Pat Ogden, Shauna Shapiro, Bonnie Goldstein, Trudy Goodman Kornfield, Jack Kornfield, Kristin Neff, Judson Brewer, Gary Small, Amishi Jha, and more.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780393713312
Publisher:	Norton, W. W. & Company, Inc.
Publication date:	09/29/2020
Series:	Norton Series on Interpersonal Neurobiology
Pages:	368
Product dimensions:	6.50(w) x 9.60(h) x 1.20(d)

About the Author

Noted neuropsychiatrist Daniel J. Siegel, MD, is clinical professor of psychiatry at the University of California Los Angeles School of Medicine, and executive director of the Mindsight Institute in LA. He is founding editor of the Norton Series on Interpersonal Neurobiology.

Marion Solomon, PhD, is a lecturer at the David Geffen School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry at UCLA. She is co-editor with Dan Siegel of several books in the IPNB Series, including Healing Trauma and How People Change.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments xi

Introduction Daniel J. Siegel xiii

1 Strengthening Attention With Mindfulness Training in Workplace Settings Ekaterina Denkova Anthony P. Zanesco Alexandra B. Morrison Joshua Rooks Scott L. Rogers Amishi P. Jha 1

2 Love and Well-Being Trudy Goodman Kornfield Jack Kornfield 23

3 The Power of Mindfulness: What You Practice Grows Stronger Shauna Shapiro 45

4 The Art and Science of Self-Compassion Kristin Neff 55

5 Learning to Be a Self: From Reward to Habit Judson Brewer 75

6 Train Your Mind to Save Your Brain Gary Small 95

7 Mind-Body Medicine: Consciousness and Health Helen Lavretsky 106

8 Toward Creating a Natural Antidepressant Brain Elisha Goldstein 121

9 Therapeutic Relational Presence: Cultivating Shared Consciousness for Positive Well-Being Shari Geller 139

10 The Science of Presence: Awareness of Embodied Social Identity as a Pathway to Interconnectedness Rhonda Magee Daniel J. Siegel 162

11 Being Present: Philosophical and Spiritual Principles to Guide Practice Pat Ogden Bonnie Goldstein 186

12 The Enlightened Brain Deepak Chopra 233

13 What Alzheimer's Can Teach Us About the Brain, Mind, and Self Rudolph Tanzi 256

14 Living the Living Presence Menas Kafatos 277

15 The Interconnection of Mind, Consciousness, and Well-Being Daniel J. Siegel 294

Further Reading 333

Index 337

Editorial Reviews

Reviewer: Charla Sue Waxman, BS, MBA, EdD (Lake Behavioral Hospital)
Description: This book is an edited framework of compiled presentations by authors, clinicians, and practitioners who are recognized leaders in the field of mindfulness, spiritual exploration, and mental wellness and the mind connections to each. This transcripted format allows readers to take a seat with conference attendees and listen, as if firsthand, to the expert presenter speak. It is divided into 15 chapters, promoting clinicians who provide a collective, but differentiated view of the mind, body, and positive health.
Purpose: This book's purpose is to bring together a collection of reflections on wellness that are aimed to inspire clinical efforts. The authors' enthusiasm for the contents and contributions of the various presenters is palpable. Their belief in the contributing presenters as cutting-edge theorists who can inform on the juxtaposition of suffering and healing is real. The worthiness of this work is in the desire of the authors to blend life improvement for the self and for one's professional work. The authors have done a nice job linking these presentations so that they create a circular flow of insight and ideas.
Audience: According to the authors, this book has been compiled for anyone interested in "the nature of mind, consciousness, and well-being." It is hoped that the information will be utilized to improve the clinical work of the readers. Interestingly, because of the book's format, readers are able to experience the response of the conference audience and, perhaps, draw conclusions about the book's value by "hearing" the reactions of others. The authors' experiences are broad and both were enlisted in the creation and planning of the conference from which the transcripts are drawn. If the reader is one who can tolerate transcript review, the book is good match.
Features: The best and worst feature of this book is that it is a series of transcripts from a series of presenters at a conference. On a positive note, readers can find themselves at a conference, experiencing the audience engaging with the speakers. Readers get to hear every story provided by the speaker as well as the data-driven facts you would hope for in a conference setting. On the negative side, the transcription layout has caused the writing to sometimes be disjointed, and verbiage that is casually conversational and speaker habits, such as saying "Yeah" or "Right?" cannot be avoided. It also means that sometimes unnecessary, spur-of-the moment stories and non sequiturs leak into the reader's world, and, at times, this was annoying. I was sometimes forced to sift through the inconsequential to find the information of consequence.
Assessment: The layout of this book in transcription format was uncomfortable. The difficulties that go along with transcriptions, such as speaker habits, punctuation issues, and grammar errors, were quite evident. Videos were listed and, of course, remained unseen while the processing of such seemed weird and disjointed. The information, once I sifted through what was not useful, seemed valuable, but for my style of learning and absorbing got lost. Perhaps an edition of this book that capsulizes the essence of each speaker could be significant for those, like me, who do not want to read from a transcript.

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