Saturday, April 30, 2011

Nerve by Taylor Clark...Review!

 

There is a new book out that I think makes for a great read for everyone who gets a bit anxious every now and then...isn't that all of us??  Here is the scoop...

Nerves make us bomb job interviews, first dates, and SATs. With a presentation looming at work, fear robs us of sleep for days. It paralyzes seasoned concert musicians and freezes rookie cops in tight situations. And yet not everyone cracks. Soldiers keep their heads in combat; firemen rush into burning buildings; unflappable trauma doctors juggle patient after patient. It's not that these people feel no fear; often, in fact, they're riddled with it.

In
Nerve, Taylor Clark draws upon cutting-edge science and painstaking reporting to explore the very heart of panic and poise. Using a wide range of case studies, Clark overturns the popular myths about anxiety and fear to explain why some people thrive under pressure, while others falter-and how we can go forward with steadier nerves and increased confidence. 

My mother-in-law, The Queen Bee, buzzed at the chance to read this one so I gave her first dibs and here is her take...

Being a worrier from birth, I was very interested to read this book, Nerve by Taylor Clark. I have read many books about anxiety most written by doctors, so this would be a new angle, a book about fear written by a researcher. 
This book is filled with facts about how the brain processes fear and why we could never really live without it. We need to have fear to remain safe in this world, it is in-born. But there is a line that we cross when fear becomes our predominant emotion. Phobia, we are all familiar with that word. Heights, snakes, bees, people...you name it and someone is bound to be phobic about it. The science regarding treatment of phobias hasn't changed much over the years. Exposure is key. Keep exposing yourself to your fear until you become de-sensitized to it. This works for most people, but in the book Clark tells us, not all people respond no matter how many times they are exposed to their fear. The mind needs a certain attitude to conquer this stuff , in order to move forward. Hmm.....
As I said, there are many facts in this book and  many examples of heroes overcoming fear to save lives, that at times my eyes glazed over. All very interesting, but I guess I was looking for more of a "self-help" feel to this book. Something I could say " wow, that is really going to help" and then use it to cure my fears. I don't think I came away with an "aha" moment, but I did come away with some science behind this emotion, FEAR. I do recommend this book if you want to learn something new about something we, as human beings,  all share. There are also many stories of heroes in this book that I had never read about, and it is very interesting what they thought about after they had performed feats of super human strength and lived to tell the tale.
I think this sounds like a book we could all get something important from!  It is next on my "to-read list" and I can't wait to crack it open.  Like the Queen Bee I too am a worrier...I guess it is true that all men marry women like their mothers!!  You can pick up a copy of Nerve by Taylor Clark today on Amazon...


 A big thank you to the Queen Bee for sharing her thoughts (check out her blog at www.qbeesbuzz.blogspot.com) and to the publisher for providing the book for my review.



Disclosure: This is a sponsored post and I was provided with the above mentioned book for purpose of review. The opinions in this post are entirely my own. Your experience may differ from mine. This post has not been reviewed or edited by anyone. I was not compensated in any other way for this review. The sponsor of this giveaway is responsible for prize fulfillment and shipping the winner(s) their prize.

0 comments:

Post a Comment