Schwartz - You Are Not Your Brain

PRAISE FOR

You Are Not Your Brain

A testament to mind over brain.... Its the truth of the matter that sheer willpower can truly make you break free.

Leonardo DiCaprio

Operating on the highly rational perspective that we are not our brains but rather substantial free agents who exercise control over our brains, Schwartz and Gladding develop a simple yet profoundly insightful approach for developing a flourishing life. The result is truly life-giving, and it will bring healing and hope to all who read it and practice its wisdom.

J. P. Moreland, author of The God Question

How can the brain, which is just a complex network of interconnected nerve cells, give rise to consciousness and to thought? Dr. Jeffrey Schwartz and Dr. Rebecca Gladding argue, persuasively, that the mind actually has massive causal effects on the functioning of the brain. In other words, you can not only change the way you think, feel, and behave through conscious effort when youre upset, but you can also change the programming and chemistry of your brain. A compelling and important message.

David D. Burns, M.D., author of Feeling Good: The New Mood Therapy

The idea that we can deliberately and systematically change our brains with our minds was once thought ridiculous. But now, largely due to Jeffrey Schwartz and his UCLA research on neuroplasticity and OCD, this once revolutionary idea is well accepted. Rebecca Gladding and Jeffrey Schwartz adapt Schwartzs extraordinarily successful program for a mainstream audience, giving simple, self-directed tools to help achieve greater happiness, emotional balance, and overall well-being.

Susan Kaiser Greenland, author of The Mindful Child

The book You Are Not Your Brain will be very helpful to those who want to improve their outlook on life and enhance their quality of life. As this book shows, and most every musician knows, You Are Not Your Brain. The Heart and the Spirit are the source of real creativity. The brain is a vehicle to express that creativity.

Kenny Burrell, jazz guitarist, National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Master Professor of Music and Ethnomusicology, UCLA

Published by the Penguin Group

Penguin Group (USA) Inc., 375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014, USA Penguin Group (Canada), 90 Eglinton Avenue East, Suite 700, Toronto, Ontario M4P 2Y3, Canada (a division of Pearson Penguin Canada Inc.) Penguin Books Ltd, 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England Penguin Ireland, 25 St Stephens Green, Dublin 2, Ireland (a division of Penguin Books Ltd) Penguin Group (Australia), 250 Camberwell Road, Camberwell, Victoria 3124, Australia (a division of Pearson Australia Group Pty Ltd) Penguin Books India Pvt Ltd, 11 Community Centre, Panchsheel Park, New Delhi110 017, India Penguin Group (NZ), 67 Apollo Drive, Rosedale, North Shore 0632, New Zealand (a division of Pearson New Zealand Ltd) Penguin Books (South Africa) (Pty) Ltd, 24 Sturdee Avenue, Rosebank, Johannesburg 2196, South Africa

Penguin Books Ltd, Registered Offices: 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England

First trade paperback edition 2012

Copyright 2011 by Jeffrey Schwartz and Rebecca Gladding

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the authors rights. Purchase only authorized editions.

Published simultaneously in Canada

Excerpts from Mindfulness in Plain English by Bhante Henepola Gunaratana (2002) are reprinted with permission from Wisdom Publications, 199 Elm Street, Somerville, MA, 02144 USA. www.wisdompubs.org.

Most Avery books are available at special quantity discounts for bulk purchase for sales promotions, premiums, fund-raising, and educational needs. Special books or book excerpts also can be created to fit specific needs. For details, write Penguin Group (USA) Inc. Special Markets, 375 Hudson Street, New York, NY 10014.

THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOG UED THE HARDCOVER ED ITION AS FOLLOWS:

Schwartz, Jeffrey, date.

You are not your brain : the 4-step solution for changing bad habits, ending unhealthy thinking, and taking control of your life / Jeffrey Schwartz and Rebecca Gladding.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 978-1-58333-426-3

1. Behavior modification. 2. Habit breaking. 3. Brain. 4. Change (Psychology). I. Gladding, Rebecca. II. Title.

BF637.B4S35 2011 2011006684

158.1dc22

ISBN 978-1-58333-483-6 (paperback edition)

ISBN 978-1-101-51611-9 (eBook edition)

Neither the publisher nor the authors are engaged in rendering professional advice or services to the individual reader. The ideas, procedures, and suggestions contained in this book are not intended as a substitute for consulting with your physician. All matters regarding your health require medical supervision. Neither the authors nor the publisher shall be liable or responsible for any loss or damage allegedly arising from any information or suggestion in this book.

The cases and quotations used in the book are based on interviews with real people; however, the details have been changed significantly and cases have been merged together to protect their privacy with one exception: Connie Smiley, the stroke survivor highlighted in , gave us express permission to use her name and story.

While the authors have made every effort to provide accurate telephone numbers and Internet addresses at the time of publication, neither the publisher nor the authors assume any responsibility for errors, or for changes that occur after publication. Further, the publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content.

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To my mom, who has been my biggest advocate and allyI couldnt have written this without you; and in memory of my grandmothers, Bertha E. Dow and Virginia Gladding

Rebecca Gladding

To the people of Pacific Crossroads Church

Jeffrey M. Schwartz

To all in need of faith, hope, love, and courage

Habit, if not resisted, soon becomes necessity.

Saint Augustine