Healthy Brain, Happy Life audiobook

Refreshing book. Light writing style for such havy topic, but still very informative, applicable and inspiring.

Experiential Learning the brain-life linkWe all have a brain. Through the brain we experience all that is material in this world, but also all that is immaterial, like happiness. If you want to be happy, take good care of your brain. The lessons learn in this book are highly valuable and important to change ours into learning minds.

Arm chair brain science!

I really liked it

The Author Wendy Suzuki is a neurological scientist on memory. While she was working hard to get tenure at NYU she didn’t notice that she had no private life outside of work, was out of shape and overweight. So she started going to the gym. As she began to bring exercise into her life she noticed that her performance at work improved as well as her mood. This was when she got interested in the beneficial effects exercise brings to cognitive performance. In this book she writes about her personal experiences and links them to recent scientific studies from neuronal genesis in the hippocampus to enhanced hormone levels due to physical activity. In her lab she went from her focus on memory to the effects of exercise on cognitive functions in her research. I read it within a couple of days. The only thing I could have dealt without was how she goes on about her struggle with romantic life for a couple of sentences in every other chapter. Spoiler: There is no Mr. Right in the end! Other than that I thought it was a fantastic book.

If you expect usual "how-to" book to get your brain healthy and happy right away, you may get annoyed with Wendy Suzuki's book. Because, you'll have to go through the journey Suzuki took in order for you to get there.I already knew many of the facts Suzuki talked about in this book, and I was already a believer of exercise to enhance my happiness and creativity before I read the book. But, I really enjoyed reading her journey to discover her own health and happiness. It's Suzuki's version of "Eat, Pray, Love". Instead, it would be "Exercise, Meditate, Love".My Japanese review: http://youshofanclub.com/2015/06/30/h...

I won't say you are going to learn many new things in this book. Should we constantly learn and try new things to stay mentally healthy and happy? Obviously. Does regular physical activity help us to be more productive and focus? Yes. Does meditation help to overcome stress and find balance & harmony with ourselves? Of course. Though this book might be a good reminder that everything that we know in theory should be applied to our daily life and the sooner we start acting upon our knowledge the better.

I really liked this book. Very interesting the way Dr Suzuki mixes her anecdotes with the neurobiology topics. Also, she wrote an endless list of bibliographies she used per chapter, so if you want to go deepr you can. Definitely a must!

Easy readingWell written and easy to understand. I enjoyed the takeaways and brain hacks to help me on my own journey. A great investment.

Fantastic. Well-researched and fascinating. Truly inspirational, I definitely recommend it. It's a must read!

The key to a happy life is a healthy brain, and neuroscientist Dr. Wendy Suzuki shares evidence of this concept in her book - partly a memoir and scientific narrative about the human brain, our health, and personal happiness. She writes about lifestyle changes that involves physical exercise (intenSati), meditation, willingness to communicate, making social connections and improving personal relationships, all of which promote brain health. Without bogging down her readers with heavy-duty scientific jargon, the author does an excellent job explaining the neurobiology, the research history on memory, the science behind stress and what primes the brain's reward system. Dr. Suzuki writes enthusiastically about how the brain can make new neural connections when we take the time to exercise, take on creative activities that spurs joy, and carve the time to meditate daily. She is not perfect but her persistence has paid off. If you're a new learner wanting to explore more about the brain from a non-technical and personable perspective, this book would be a great read! At the end of each chapter, she provides "brain hacks" (brain stimulating activities) that readers can do in their daily lives to be more connected with their bodies and surroundings.I admire the author's open-heartedness to share her life journey with her readers; it took courage to be this vulnerable for someone who is world-renowned in her field. And I appreciated her candid view about her own career success and that publications, awards, and tenure did not make her whole either. She revealed uncomfortable moments expressing her emotions when dealing with her parents, colleagues, students in her lab, and past loves. She didn't run away from her difficulties, because her sincere efforts connecting with others socially are keys to brain health. I loved reading about her zeal for teaching students and her dedication to brain research. Most importantly, she is a real person who is not afraid of letting us know she is a flawed human like everyone else.