Caroline Leaf - Switch On Your Brain Workbook: The Key to Peak Happiness, Thinking, and Health

W hat would you do if you found a switch that could turn on your brain and enable you to be happier, healthier in your mind and body, more prosperous, and more intelligent? I began my book Switch On Your Brain with this simple yet profound question. Of course, we all want to be happier and healthier, but we often do not know how to go about bettering our lives. Millions of books, shows, magazines, and programs promise the key to happiness and success, yet they often fall short of producing true change. We feel great for a few days or weeks, but very soon the circumstances of life come crashing down on us and we once again feel crushed under their weight.

Yet we cannot change anything unless we change our thinking. In Switch On Your Brain , I describe how important our mind is for peak health and how our thoughts can impact every area of our lives. Regardless of what happens in our lives, we can choose how we react to our circumstances. God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind (2 Tim. 1:7). We are more than conquerors in Him (Rom. 8:37). We can renew our minds through the help of the Holy Spirit and renew our world (Rom. 12:2). When we start to change our thinking, we can truly transform our lives.

I created this workbook as a guide to help you understand and apply the principles of renewed thinking in Switch On Your Brain . Each key follows the chapters in the book, with the science, linked Scripture context, and a series of questions that will help you understand and apply the principles of renewed thinking in the second part of the book, the 21-Day Brain Detox. Be as specific as you can as you answer the questions, because research shows change will happen when we dig deep to find the root of issues. Once you have completed these questions, there is a discussion section, which will draw on Scripture to help you see the connection between science and the Bible. I would recommend working through the questions and Scripture discussions a second time, after you have completed the workbook and as you use the 21-Day Brain Detox program, which will help you better understand and apply the principles in Switch On Your Brain .

I have used multiple translations of the Bible throughout this study guide. If you wish to use a different translation, translate the Scripture yourself, or use multiple versions of the same Scripture, you are more than welcome! Shifting between translations forces us to analyze Scripture from a variety of different viewpoints, which increases mind health.

At the end of the workbook, there is a recommended reading list for those who wish to dig deeper into the key points I have written about in Switch On Your Brain and this workbook. There are two sections: science/philosophy and theology/philosophy. Many of these sources can be found in the bibliography and notes in Switch On Your Brain , but I have highlighted the most important books and articles and added a few new sources I have researched since writing Switch On Your Brain in 2013.

Of course, the crucial principle to remember as you go through this workbook, as well as the book and the twenty-one-day program, is that change only occurs when we want to change. Although this may sound redundant, I have come across many people in my practice and my travels who like the idea of changing the way they think and transforming their lives but are not desperate enough to truly change. God has given us the incredible gift of free will, and it is up to us how we use it. We can choose life or death (Deut. 30:19).

No one can change your thinkingand your lifeexcept you .