The Upside of Stress

The Upside of Stress: Why Stress is Good for You, and How to Get Good At It by Kelly McGonigal Summary: The author of The Willpower Instinct delivers a controversial and groundbreaking new book that overturns long-held beliefs about stress.  More than forty-four percent of Americans admit to losing sleep over stress. And while most of us do everything we can to reduce it, Stanford psychologist and bestselling author Kelly McGonigal, Ph.D., delivers a startling message: Stress isn’t bad. In The Upside of Stress, McGonigal highlights new research indicating that stress can, in fact, make us stronger, smarter, and happier—if we learn how to embrace it. The Upside of Stress is the first book to bring together cutting-edge discoveries on the correlation between resilience—the human capacity for stress-related growth—and mind-set, the power of beliefs to shape reality. As she did in The Willpower Instinct, McGonigal combines science, stories, and exercises into an engaging and practical book that is both entertaining and life-changing, showing you: ·         how to cultivate a mind-set to embrace stress ·         how stress can provide focus and energy ·         how stress can help people connect and strengthen close relationships ·         why your brain is built to learn from stress, and how to increase its ability to learn from challenging experiences McGonigal’s TED talk on the subject has already received more than 7 million views. Her message resonates with people who know they can’t eliminate the stress in their lives and want to learn to take advantage of it. The Upside of Stress is not a guide to getting rid of stress, but a guide to getting better at stress, by understanding it, embracing it, and using it. Angie's Comments: So after hearing again and again that stress is bad for you, it turns out that stress can be good for you. McGonigal shows how people can use stress for good in their lives. There is a lot of science in the book, along with many ancedotes. McGonigal recommends reading the entire book for the best benefit, but if you are really pressed for time, there are final thoughts for each chapter, and there are exercises throughout the book in shaded boxes for readers to practice embracing stress. Recommended for everyone! Request this item