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Your mind is not built to make you happy; it’s built to help you survive. So far, it’s done a great job! But in the process, it may have developed some bad habits, like avoiding new experiences or scrounging around for problems where none exist. Is it any wonder that worry, bad moods, and self-critical thoughts so often get in the way of enjoying life?
Based in acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), The User’s Guide to the Human Mind is a road map to the puzzling inner workings of the human mind, replete with exercises for overriding the mind’s natural impulses toward worry, self-criticism, and fear, and helpful tips for acting in the service of your values and emotional well-being—even when your mind has other plans.
“You’ve been using the tool between your ears your whole life, but how often have you considered what it is and what it is good for? No user’s manual came with it, but this book helps make up for that shipping mistake. You would not use your dishwasher without cracking the manual. Come on. Time to take a look!”
—Steven C. Hayes, PhD, Foundation Professor of Psychology at the University of Nevada and author of Get Out of Your Mind and Into Your Life
Acknowledgments ix
Introduction 1
What This Book Is About
Part 1 The Worry Machine
1 Protection at a Price 9
Luke's Struggle
My Mind, My Bodyguard
The Argument Trap
The Paradox of Thought Suppression
2 A Day in the Life of a Mind 23
What Is the Mind?
Why the Mind Worries
How the Mind Speaks
Anxiety and Depression: Ancient Tools for Modern Times
The Mind Is Always Rational, from a Certain Point of View
3 Letting the Mind Do Its Job 35
From the Mind's Point of View, Survival Matters Most
Thoughts Are Not Facts
Observing Your Thoughts
Observing Your Emotions
Part 2
Happiness Is Not Your Mind's Job
4 How the Mind Uses History 51
How Penelope Lost Track of Her Values
The Past Is Not the Problem
The Mind's False Dilemmas
5 The Mind's Skewed View and Biased Memories 65
What the Mind Fears and How It Responds
The Survival Value of Biased Recall
How the Mind Makes Rules to Keep Us Safe
6 Values and Action 75
Training the Mind to Tolerate the Pursuit of Values
The Higher Mind
Finding Your Values
Control Your Life, Not Your Mind
The Trap of Waiting for Thoughts and Feelings to Change
Take Your Mind with You on the Road to Valued Living
Part 3 Four Ways Our Minds Coerce Us-and What We Can Do About Them
7 That Was Then and This Is Then 97
What Meg Doesn't Know About Andy
Why Our Minds Rely on History
8 Trump Cards and Double Standards 111
Trump Cards
Responding to Trump Cards
Double Standards
Staying Observant and Maintaining Distance
9 Pessimistic Thinking 129
It Isn't Pessimism-It's Error Management
Pessimism: The Ancient Cure for Modern Times
Living with a Pessimistic Mind
10 Quick Fixes 143
How the Mind Competes with Itself
Breaking the Quick-Fix Habit
Managing the Drive for Quick Fixes
Part 4 Mood, Lifestyle, and Psychological Flexibility
11 Welcome to Your State of Mind 159
Mallory's Mood
Don't Trust Every Mood You Meet
My Mind Might Be Wrong
Opposite Action: Moving Toward Values
To Medicate or Not to Medicate?
12 Mind the Basics 173
How Healthy Habits Insulate Us from the Mind
One Final Exercise: Increasing Psychological Flexibility for a Lifetime
References 193
AnnaBirks
Posted May 21, 2012
Dr. Shawn Smith does an amazing job of communicating the experience so many people struggle with, our relationship with our mind. Shawn takes a very complicated concept and communicates it simply, meaningfully and with humor. His approach throughout the book is engaging, thought provoking, and powerful. The book provides tangible tools and resources to assist in evaluating your current life challenges from a refreshing and alternative perspective while also providing you with a road map to create a meaningful and fulfilling life. As a clinical psychologist, I plan to encourage those I work with to utilize this valuable resource. I have already recommended this book to both friends and family. It's a MUST READ!!
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Kellsch
Posted May 8, 2012
I have been so happily impressed by this book. It is friendly, arrpoachable, and it allows people to see their "brain problems" in a whole new light, which happens to be a much more accepting and manageable light. The reader comes to understand how to work WITH rather than against his or her own troublesome thoughts, realizing that they are part of human evolution and not as hard to escape as it often seems. It is nice not to feel alone in our seemingly crazy anxiety ridden worlds. We are all human and all have the brains that work this way, but some people have learned to live more harmoniously with their brains, and we can too! My only negative comment about the book is about the title, since I do not feel it does justice to the book's unique take on the problem of troublesome brains and imprisoning thoughts. It sounds like just another book about human cognition, but it is anything but; it is a well written, warm book full of well chosen anecdotes that can help you and/or your patients learn something really new!
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.CraftyG
Posted January 5, 2012
Think of this book as a fun-to-read instruction manual for how your brain works and how you think. Dr. Smith manages to balance research and clear explanations with a playful and encouraging tone. Since reading this book I have caught myself practicing some if his techniques, allowing me to pursue what I value in life in a more direct manner. I highly recommend for all (even if you are not unhappy, anxious, or neurotic!).
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted December 27, 2011
This book is amazing! It is a clear, concise guide to why our minds work the way that they do. I was impressed with the humorous personal anecdotes, and I appreciated the exercises Dr. Smith gives to his readers to utilize our perfectly normal tendencies toward neuroses! It's difficult to find a psychology book that doesn't have a patronizing tone. The information in this book is funny and informative - I can't recommend it enough!
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted December 18, 2012
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Overview
Your mind is not built to make you happy; it’s built to help you survive. So far, it’s done a great job! But in the process, it may have developed some bad habits, like avoiding new experiences or scrounging around for problems where none exist. Is it any wonder that worry, bad moods, and self-critical thoughts so often get in the way of enjoying life?
Based in acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), The User’s Guide to the Human Mind is a road map to the puzzling inner ...