The Stress-Proof Brain: Master Your Emotional Response to Stress Using Mindfulness and Neuroplasticity

by Melanie Greenberg PhD

Overview

“For people suffering from stress, this book is a godsend.”
—Kristin Neff, PhD, author of Self-Compassion

"Highly recommended for mental health professionals and consumer health readers looking to manage stress."
—Library Journal (starred review)

Modern times are stressful—and it’s killing us. Unfortunately, we can’t avoid the things that stress us out, but we can change how we respond to them. In this breakthrough book, a clinical psychologist and neuroscience expert offers an original approach to help readers harness the power of positive emotions and overcome stress for good.

Stress is, unfortunately, a natural part of life—especially in our busy and hectic modern times. But you don’t have to let it get in the way of your health and happiness. Studies show that the key to coping with stress is simpler than you think—it’s all about how you respond to the situations and things that stress you out or threaten to overwhelm you.

The Stress-Proof Brain offers powerful, comprehensive tools based in mindfulness, neuroscience, and positive psychology to help you put a stop to unhealthy responses to stress—such as avoidance, tunnel vision, negative thinking, self-criticism, fixed mindset, and fear. Instead, you’ll discover unique exercises that provide a recipe for resilience, empowering you to master your emotional responses, overcome negative thinking, and create a more tolerant, stress-proof brain.

This book will help you develop an original and effective program for mastering your emotional brain’s response to stress by harnessing the power of neuroplasticity. By creating a more stress tolerant, resilient brain, you’ll learn to shrug off the small stuff, deal with the big stuff, and live a happier, healthier life.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781626252660
Publisher:	New Harbinger Publications
Publication date:	02/02/2017
Pages:	224
Sales rank:	194,694
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

Melanie Greenberg, PhD, is a practicing psychologist, author, speaker, and coach in San Diego and throughout California; an expert on managing stress, health, and relationships using proven techniques from neuroscience, mindfulness, and cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT); and author of The Stress-Proof Brain. With more than twenty years of experience as a professor, writer, researcher, clinician, and coach, She has delivered workshops and talks to national and international audiences.

Greenberg writes the Mindful Self-Express blog for Psychology Today, and is a popular media expert who has been quoted on CNN, Forbes, BBC Radio, ABC News, Yahoo! Shine, and Lifehacker; as well as in Self, Redbook, Men’s Health, Women’s Health, Fitness, Woman’s Day, Cosmopolitan, and HuffPost. She has also appeared on radio shows like Leading with Emotional Intelligence, The Best People We Know, Inner Healers, and Winning Life Through Pain. Greenberg was named one of the thirty most prominent psychologists to follow on Twitter.

Table of Contents

Introduction 1

Part 1 Understanding Your Stress

1 Your Brain's Stress Response 9

2 What Type of Stressor Are You Facing? 29

Part 2 Calming Your Amygdala

3 Staying Grounded in the Present Moment 57

4 Facing and Accepting Your Emotions 81

5 Gaining Control over Your Stress 101

6 Learning Self-Compassion 121

Part 3 Moving Forward with Your Prefrontal Cortex

7 Becoming Cognitively Flexible 141

8 Bringing in the Positive 163

9 Finding the Right Mind-Set 177

10 Living Healthy in the Face of Stress 189

Conclusion 209

Acknowledgments 211

Resources 213

References 215

Interviews

Greenberg resides in Marin County, CA.

Editorial Reviews

"Greenberg’s objective, science-based approach presents information in an unbiased way, avoiding the stigma that many associate with mental health and emotional well-being. Equally informative as a useful self-help guide, this title is highly recommended for mental health professionals and consumer health readers looking to manage stress."
—Library Journal (starred review)


“In these challenging times, you’d be hard-pressed to find a book as helpful as The Stress-Proof Brain. In this groundbreaking work, Melanie Greenberg combines ancient mind-calming techniques with a modern-day scientific understanding of how the brain works to teach you how to transform your response to stress. The book is informative, backed by research, and practical. It covers a range of subjects, from overcoming trauma to taming your inner critic to improving your sleep. Each chapter contains easy-to-learn practices to help you develop a stress-free brain. This manual for finding peace and well-being gets my highest recommendation.”
—Toni Bernhard, award-winning author of How to Be Sick, How to Wake Up, and How to Live Well with Chronic Pain and Illness


“You can’t eliminate stress, but you can do a lot to control it. Start by reading this book. This is one of those rare books that everyone should have on their shelf. Buy one for yourself and one for a friend.”
—Frank Sonnenberg, award-winning author of six books, consultant to Fortune 500 companies, and named one of America’s Top 100 Thought Leaders by Trust Across America


“The Stress-Proof Brain is a brilliant book written to help overcome stress’s debilitating effects that keep you from creating success in life, whether personal or professional. You will transform feeling stressed into feeling confident, resilient, in control, and energized. You will find that you can literally rewire your brain! If you feel stress has held you back in any area, then this book is written just for you.”
—Lori Shemek, PhD, CNC, author of How to Fight FATflammation!, health contributor to Fox News, and named a Top Health and Fitness Expert by The Huffington Post


“In our hyper-connected, fast-paced modern world, we are continually confronted with threats and demands that trigger a cascade of unhealthy biological responses known as stress. In The Stress-Proof Brain, Melanie Greenberg not only provides readers with practical tools to identify their past and current stressors, she teaches them about behavioral and psychological practices, such as mindfulness meditation, that can short-circuit unhealthy biological responses to stressors and increase resilience. The book is packed with wisdom from decades of research on behavioral and neurological aspects of stress, but is written in an accessible and engaging style.”
—Stephen J. Lepore, PhD, professor and founding chair in the department of social and behavioral science at Temple University


“If you are one of the many people who suffers from chronic stress, then The Stress-Proof Brain is just what the doctor ordered. Melanie Greenberg has put together an immensely readable combination of psychology and neuroscience to understand why you are stressed, and evidence-based tools to help you retrain yourself to live a happier and stress-free life.”
—Art Markman, professor of psychology and marketing, as well as director of the Human Dimensions of Organizations program at the University of Texas at Austin; author of Smart Thinking, Smart Change and coauthor of Brain Briefs; and cohost of the NPR radio show Two Guys on Your Head
 


“This book provides clear guidelines on how to change the way we look at the stress-producing events in our life. Melanie Greenberg reminds us that stress is a fact of life and that it’s not going away; instead, she shows us how to control the way our mind responds to it.”
—LaRae Quy, former undercover and counterintelligence FBI agent, founder of the Mental Toughness Center, and author of Secrets of a Strong Mind and Mental Toughness for Women Leaders


“This innovative book teaches you how to regain control of your stressors so you can live your best life and be your best. If you want to transform your stress into an opportunity for personal growth, this is the book for you.”
—Elizabeth Hamilton-Guarino, CEO of The Best Ever You Network, and author of PERCOLATE
 

From the Publisher

★ 02/01/2017
Licensed clinical psychologist and PhD Greenberg provides a comprehensive examination of stress and mindfulness, paying special attention to the brain's anatomy and its relationship with the body's physical responses to stress. This text is divided into three sections. The first, "Understanding Your Stress," lays the groundwork of neural physiology and how the brain reacts biologically to high-tension situations, commonly referred to as "fight or flight." The second section, "Calming Your Amygdala," delves deeper into specific tips and techniques for staying calm despite the body's overwhelming physical impulses. The final section, "Moving Forward with Your Prefrontal Cortex," offers suggestions on how to combat worry, guilt, and perfectionism. Embedded within the chapters are helpful practice activities, including meditation prompts, breathing exercises, checklists, and sample daily logs. VERDICT Greenberg's objective, science-based approach presents information in an unbiased way, avoiding the stigma that many associate with mental health and emotional well-being. Equally informative as a useful self-help guide, this title is highly recommended for mental health professionals and consumer health readers looking to manage stress.—Carolann Curry, Mercer Univ. Lib., Macon, GA

Library Journal