Recommended Reads Books (List)

Discover the best way to care for yourself - day by day and season by season.

Embrace the ancient principles of Ayurveda to become a more integrated, whole, and healthy version of yourself. This detailed guide walks you through the steps of foundational Ayurvedic practices that can be easily integrated into your existing self-care routine - from self-massage, oil pulling, and tongue scraping to breathing practices, meditation exercises, and eating with intention - to uplift your physical health and state of mind.

This is a wellness book that goes way beyond the surface, grounding you in the intrinsic beauty of plant-based foods, while elevating you with inspired skin care recipes and sacred routines that tap into your inner glow and intuition. Filled with vibrant photos that turn you on to the sensuality and real pleasure of sacred beauty, healthful cuisine, and conscious rituals, Summer Sanders, author of Raw and Radiant, dives deep beyond the food and into the heart to awaken the senses and shine light on a new way of connecting to food, health, and life.

From topics like beauty, hormones, and cleansing, to motherhood and meditation, this book contains everything you need to access and release your inner goddess - it will inspire the radiance of women while supporting us to release the old patriarchal views of beauty and embrace the real feminine powers that are living within us all. 

We could all learn a thing or two about living in balance from our friends in the plant and animal kingdom.

Take, for example, the jellyfish, one of the most energy-efficient animals in the world, moving through the ocean by contracting and relaxing, with frequent breaks in between. Or the avocado tree, which can credit its existence to a mutually beneficial relationship with the pre-historic sloth, followed by some hungry, hungry humans and the advent of agriculture. And then there is the oyster, producing a pearl as the result of an immune response when a grain of sand invades her system. What better example exists of how adversity can produce something beautiful?

We need look no further than nature - from the habits of the porcupine to the sunflower to the wombat to the dragonfly - for small and simple things we can do to slow down, recharge, and live more thoughtfully, lovingly, and harmoniously.

Many of us have used the Enneagram of Personality to understand ourselves on a profoundly intimate level. But despite what our Enneagram type reveals, it’s not always easy to know the best ways to take care of ourselves according to our unique personalities.

In Take Care of Your Type, Enneagram expert and social media sensation Christina S. Wilcox uses her knowledge of the Enneagram to illuminate how each of the nine Enneagram types can practice better self-care. Answering questions ranging from “What is the best morning routine for my type?” to “What boundaries are important to set based on my individual personality traits?” this handy guide filled with beautiful color illustrations will help you recenter and reconnect with yourself amid the stress of daily life and will leave you feeling happier and healthier in mind, body, and spirit.

Crafters will love this snarky book with its 40 witty cross-stitch patterns that focus on promoting a healthy, self-affirming relationship with yourself. Whether you want to proudly announce that "Self-Care Is Not Selfish" or remind others that "You Are More Than Your Productivity" or "It's Okay to Not Be Okay," you'll find edgy slogans and sharp one-liners that make fabulous wall art or gifts. An illustrated basics section provides beginners with information on materials, tools, techniques, and framing finished pieces.

Self-care is not only necessary, it’s magical! Your road to self-care can be a mystical journey that leaves you feeling more confident, determined, and ready to accomplish all those bucket-list items and dreams you have scribbled in your journal. So why not start that journey now?

Find both mystical and practical tools to help deal with stress, depression, and other challenges in this gorgeously illustrated and highly designed guide offering different creative ways of living a heart-centered, mindful, and magical life through concrete tools for self-care and advice from a diverse group of practitioners in areas like tarot, astrology, energy work, and much more.

Whatever your age, having a healthy brain is the key to a happy and fulfilled life. Yet, for both young and old, diseases of the brain and mental health are the biggest killers in the 21st century. We all know how to take care of our physical health, but we often feel powerless as to what we can do to protect our mental well-being too.

How to Build a Healthy Brain is here to help. Written by a passionate advocate for the importance of mental health, Chartered Psychologist Kimberley Wilson draws on the latest research to give practical, holistic advice on how you can protect your brain health by making simple lifestyle choices. With chapters on Sleep, Nutrition, Exercise and Meditation, Kimberley has written an empowering guide to help you look after both your physical and mental well-being.

Every family has a story. For some of us, our family of origin is a solid foundation that feeds our confidence and helps us navigate life’s challenges. For others, it’s a source of pain, hurt, and conflict that can feel like a lifelong burden. In this empowering guide, licensed therapist and bestselling relationship expert Nedra Glover Tawwab offers clear advice for identifying dysfunctional family patterns and choosing the best path to breaking the cycle and moving forward.

Covering topics ranging from the trauma of emotional neglect, to the legacy of addicted or absent parents, to mental health struggles in siblings and other relatives, and more, this clear and compassionate guide will help you take control of your own life—and honor the person you truly are.

We’re tired. A stranger insists you “smile more,” even as you navigate a high-stress environment or grating commute. A mother is expected to oversee every last detail of domestic life. A nurse works on the front line, worried about her own health, but has to put on a brave face for her patients. A young professional is denied promotion for being deemed abrasive instead of placating her boss. Nearly every day, we find ourselves forced to edit our emotions to accommodate and elevate the emotions of others. Too many of us are asked to perform this exhausting, draining work at no extra cost, especially if we’re women or people of color.

Emotional labor is essential to our society and economy, but it’s so often invisible. In this groundbreaking, journalistic deep dive, Rose Hackman shares the stories of hundreds of women, tracing the history of this kind of work and exposing common manifestations of the phenomenon. But Hackman doesn’t simply diagnose a problem—she empowers us to combat this insidious force and forge pathways for radical evolution, justice, and change.

Have you ever wondered "Why did I do that?" or "Why can't I just control my behavior?" Others may judge our reactions and think, "What's wrong with that person?" When questioning our emotions, it's easy to place the blame on ourselves; holding ourselves and those around us to an impossible standard. It's time we started asking a different question.

Through deeply personal conversations, Oprah Winfrey and renowned brain and trauma expert Dr. Bruce Perry offer a groundbreaking and profound shift from asking “What’s wrong with you?” to “What happened to you?”

Here, Winfrey shares stories from her own past, understanding through experience the vulnerability that comes from facing trauma and adversity at a young age. In conversation throughout the book, she and Dr. Perry focus on understanding people, behavior, and ourselves. It’s a subtle but profound shift in our approach to trauma, and it’s one that allows us to understand our pasts in order to clear a path to our future—opening the door to resilience and healing in a proven, powerful way.

Do your relationships often feel one-sided or unbalanced? Are you always giving in just so things will go smoothly? Do you wish you could learn to say no—but, like, nicely? Are you depleted, overwhelmed, and tired of putting everyone else’s needs ahead of your own? If you answered yes to any of these questions, you need to establish some boundaries.

Since launching the mega-bestselling wellness program the Whole30, Melissa Urban has taught millions of people how to establish healthy habits and successfully navigate pushback and peer pressure. She knows firsthand that boundaries—clear limits you set to protect your energy, time, and health—are the key to feelings of security, confidence, and freedom in every area of your life.

Now, in The Book of Boundaries, she shows you how boundaries are the key to better mental health, increased energy, improved productivity, and more fulfilling relationships.

Burnout. Many women in America have experienced it. What's expected of women and what it's really like to be a woman in today's world are two very different things--and women exhaust themselves trying to close the gap between them. How can you "love your body" when every magazine cover has ten diet tips for becoming "your best self"? How do you "lean in" at work when you're already operating at 110 percent and aren't recognized for it? How can you live happily and healthily in a sexist world that is constantly telling you you're too fat, too needy, too noisy, and too selfish?

Sisters Emily Nagoski, PhD, and Amelia Nagoski, DMA, are here to help end the cycle of feeling overwhelmed and exhausted. Instead of asking us to ignore the very real obstacles and societal pressures that stand between women and well-being, they explain with compassion and optimism what we're up against--and show us how to fight back. 

With the help of eye-opening science, prescriptive advice, and helpful worksheets and exercises, all women will find something transformative in these pages--and will be empowered to create positive change. Emily and Amelia aren't here to preach the broad platitudes of expensive self-care or insist that we strive for the impossible goal of "having it all." Instead, they tell us that we are enough, just as we are--and that wellness, true wellness, is within our reach.

Trauma is a fact of life. Veterans and their families deal with the painful aftermath of combat; one in five Americans has been molested; one in four grew up with alcoholics; one in three couples have engaged in physical violence. Dr. Bessel van der Kolk, one of the world’s foremost experts on trauma, has spent over three decades working with survivors. In The Body Keeps the Score, he uses recent scientific advances to show how trauma literally reshapes both body and brain, compromising sufferers’ capacities for pleasure, engagement, self-control, and trust. He explores innovative treatments—from neurofeedback and meditation to sports, drama, and yoga—that offer new paths to recovery by activating the brain’s natural neuroplasticity. Based on Dr. van der Kolk’s own research and that of other leading specialists, The Body Keeps the Score exposes the tremendous power of our relationships both to hurt and to heal—and offers new hope for reclaiming lives.

Scientific studies show that the choices we make today about what we eat help determine our mental health as we age. In The Brain Health Kitchen, Dr. Annie Fenn gives readers a guide to preserving cognitive ability through food, with 100 recipes to promote mental acuity. Fenn, a doctor turned chef, has organized the book into 10 chapters representing the most neuroprotective foods: berries, leafy greens, nuts and seeds, beans and lentils, whole grains, cruciferous vegetables, and more. Fenn walks readers through choices they can make to create a brain-friendly diet, like how to choose meats that will fuel instead of harm, how to understand the nuances between “good” and “bad” fats, and the difference between processed sugars and natural sugars. Science bites throughout the book explain the research behind the facts. Eating for brain health also means embracing cooking methods that preserve the nutrition of the food, such as braising, steaming, and smoking.

Public awareness of mental illness has been transformed in recent years, but our understanding of how to define it has yet to catch up. Too often, psychiatric disorders are confused with the inherent stresses and challenges of human experience. A narrative has taken hold that a mental health crisis has been building among young people. In this profoundly sensitive and constructive book, psychologist Lucy Foulkes argues that the crisis is one of ignorance as much as illness. Have we raised a 'snowflake' generation? Or are today's young people subjected to greater stress, exacerbated by social media, than ever before? Foulkes shows that both perspectives are useful but limited. The real question in need of answering is: how should we distinguish between 'normal' suffering and actual illness?

Drawing on her extensive knowledge of the scientific and clinical literature, Foulkes explains what is known about mental health problems—how they arise, why they so often appear during adolescence, the various tools we have to cope with them—but also what remains unclear: distinguishing between normality and disorder is essential if we are to provide the appropriate help, but no clear line between the two exists in nature. Providing necessary clarity and nuance, Losing Our Minds argues that the widespread misunderstanding of this aspect of mental illness might be contributing to its apparent prevalence.

When Worry Works responds to one of the primary sources of the nation's worsening adolescent mental health crisis - achievement pressure. Burdened by the mounting pressures on today's youth, parents seek ways to strike the balance between supporting their teens' current well-being while also setting them up for future success. Eager to take action and to manage their escalating fears, parents inadvertently and unknowingly exacerbate the problem by overlooking their own parental achievement anxiety.

Based on thirty years of clinical practice and her experiences raising her own teenagers in New York City, the work demonstrates that when parents become aware of their individual anxieties and learn to effectively manage them, they are empowered to make values aligned, rather than worry driven parenting decisions. Dr. Dorfman provides practical evidence-based parenting strategies, exercises, and reflective prompts to guide parents through a process to constructively apply to their day-to-day parenting decisions.

“During the years when I had abandoned myself, my mind felt undeniably heavy. I knew I needed to find a clear way to help me feel lighter.”

yung pueblo’s path to deep healing began only after years of drug abuse had taken a toll on his mind and body. Searching for a way forward, he found that by honestly examining and addressing the anxieties and fears that he had been running away from, he no longer felt like a stranger inside of his heart and mind. And once he dedicated himself to meditation and trusting his intuition, he started to finally feel mentally lighter, with more love emerging from within. This was not an easy journey, and it's one that he is still on, but it showed him that real healing is possible.

In Lighter, yung pueblo demonstrates how we can all move forward in our healing, from learning self-compassion to letting go to becoming emotionally mature. As the heaviness falls away, our minds will finally stop feeling overburdened with tension and we’ll be able to reconnect with the present. And the world around us will hopefully become more inviting in crisp and newly vibrant ways. But these are just the first steps. As we grow stronger and expand our self-awareness, it’s our responsibility—and also part of the healing journey—to take actions to support the health and harmony of all people. The final section of Lighter shows how we can and must contribute to building a world that is no longer structurally harmful but, instead, structurally compassionate.

Even before the pandemic brought on a crushing wave of stress, anxiety, isolation, life change, and financial struggle, there was already a growing mental health crisis. Due to a culture that encourages perfection, hustle, and fictional life/work balance, many are burning out. Behind her Instagram-projected image of “happy wellness founder,” Poppy Jamie was also struggling mightily with perfectionism and life purpose.

She began working with mental health experts and researchers to find practical tools to overcome her inner critic and rewire her mind. She discovered that it is possible to create new neural pathways in your brain to break patterns of avoidance, challenge fears of not being good enough, and turn failure around by stretching the mind with new, healthier thought habits. The old wiring (and habits) that you’ve been stuck with can be written-over. You can actually upgrade your headspace to make curiosity, vulnerability, compassion, and emotional flexibility your default settings.

Superheroes don't have babies; real and imperfect non-superhumans do. When we come to terms with this, the result is a happier and less traumatizing start to motherhood. Becky Vieira, the mom behind the popular Instagram account @wittyotter, provides actionable advice for new parents on what to expect after pregnancy and how to successfully navigate the frustrations and challenges that come with having a baby. Vieira draws on her own experiences and interviews with moms and experts to get to the bottom of the toughest and most taboo topics--from managing nosey in-laws and an anxious partner to surviving the first postpartum poop and when to seek out treatment for postpartum depression. This book is filled with hacks, tips, and tricks that only the most seasoned--and enlightened--mom knows. (Ever hear of a condsicle, an ergonomic ice pack for a battered nether region?) Vieira reminds readers that motherhood shouldn't be martyrdom, and a new mom who puts her needs first often isn't selfish at all.

Although we have bandages for cuts, chicken soup for colds, and ice packs for bruises, most of us have no idea how to treat day-to-day emotional injuries such as failure, rejection, and loss. But, as Guy Winch, Ph.D., points out, these kinds of emotional injuries often get worse when left untreated and can significantly impact our quality of life. In this fascinating and highly practical book he provides the emotional first aid treatments we have been lacking.

Explaining the long-term fallout that can result from seemingly minor emotional and psychological injuries, Dr. Winch offers concrete, easy-to-use exercises backed up by hard cutting-edge science to aid in recovery. He uses relatable anecdotes about real patients he has treated over the years and often gives us a much needed dose of humor as well.

Happiness is a brain function. With a healthier brain always comes a happier life.

After studying more than 200,000 brain scans of people from 155 countries, Dr. Amen has discovered five primary brain types and seven neuroscience secrets that influence happiness. In You, Happier, he explains them and offers practical, science-based strategies for optimizing your happiness. Dr. Amen will teach you how to

• discover your brain type based on your personality and create happiness strategies best suited to you;
• improve your overall brain health to consistently enhance your mood;
• protect your happiness by distancing yourself from the "noise" in your head; and
• make seven simple decisions and ask seven daily questions to enhance your happiness.

Creating consistent happiness is a daily journey. In You, Happier, Dr. Amen walks you through neuroscience-based habits, rituals, and choices that will boost your mood and help you live each day with clearly defined values, purpose, and goals.