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3.89 AVERAGE
3.89 AVERAGE
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
informative
I wanted to like this book. It came recommended to me by friends of mine but it just didn’t overwhelm me as those friends suggested it might.
I think the overall message is fine. The author and I differ on many theological points (the emphasis she places on spiritual warfare is pretty central, so if that’s not your jam, this will be A LOT). But I was still more than willing to see what aspects of her work would align with me and my life.
I found the central mantra “you have a choice” to be simple and clear and driven by scripture. However the overall tone and depth of study felt more like the premise of a 30 minute TedTalk rather than a full book. I thought the message picked up in the mid-later parts of the book where she discussed thought alternatives, and I found her discussion of humility and cynicism to be really coherent and compelling.
The book promised a discussion of the latest findings in neuroscience for the audience of Christian woman, which it simply did not deliver. If you’re looking for that type of insight this book is not where you will find it. The psychology/neuroscience in these pages was fairly shallow and not well cited; the most compelling bits of neuroscience were her quotes from actual researchers who, by all accounts, have just written better books (I.e. Brené Brown).
I’m sure this book will be absolutely revolutionary for some women - it may speak to exactly where they are and give them exactly what they need - but my suggestion for anyone craving either a deep exploration of the theology or psychology of our thoughts, I’d skip it.
I think the overall message is fine. The author and I differ on many theological points (the emphasis she places on spiritual warfare is pretty central, so if that’s not your jam, this will be A LOT). But I was still more than willing to see what aspects of her work would align with me and my life.
I found the central mantra “you have a choice” to be simple and clear and driven by scripture. However the overall tone and depth of study felt more like the premise of a 30 minute TedTalk rather than a full book. I thought the message picked up in the mid-later parts of the book where she discussed thought alternatives, and I found her discussion of humility and cynicism to be really coherent and compelling.
The book promised a discussion of the latest findings in neuroscience for the audience of Christian woman, which it simply did not deliver. If you’re looking for that type of insight this book is not where you will find it. The psychology/neuroscience in these pages was fairly shallow and not well cited; the most compelling bits of neuroscience were her quotes from actual researchers who, by all accounts, have just written better books (I.e. Brené Brown).
I’m sure this book will be absolutely revolutionary for some women - it may speak to exactly where they are and give them exactly what they need - but my suggestion for anyone craving either a deep exploration of the theology or psychology of our thoughts, I’d skip it.
informative
reflective
slow-paced
Important. Helpful. Biblical. With a few minor tweaks, this book wouldn't just be for women; I think men could get a lot of help from this as well, and I'm not sure why Allen directed it only toward women.
If you struggle with fear, anxiety, self-loathing, or other destructive thought-patterns, give this book a try. (I also appreciate that she points out the difference between what she's talking about and mental illnesses or issues that really do require professional help. She's not saying that people with clinical depression can just pull themselves up by their bootstraps or anything crazy like that.) I found it to be one of the most helpful books I've read in a long time.
Some favorite lines:
"When I'm mired in a certain way of thinking that clearly is not serving me well, I can escape that thought pattern and seize a new thought pattern."
"...practice the art of interruption..."
"Bondage necessitates rescue. Oppression needs to be lifted. Blindness waits for sight. Waywardness must be transformed."
"The greatest commandments? Love God and love others."
"There are so many ways we avoid silence, so many types of noise we choose to fill the gaping voids in our souls."
"It has been said--and I think it is true--that the most valuable asset we possess is our attention, which prompts the question, To what are we attending?"
"Mirror neurons help you feel what the other is feeling. In this way, empathy is hardly a contrived response but rather an automatic response our bodies have to each other."
"The part of your brain that activates when you feel rejected or uninvited by a friend is the same part of your brain that fires when you're in physical pain."
"If we want to be free of chaos, friend, we cannot stay alone in the dark with the devil."
"Beauty interrupts us, it awakens us, it undoes us, it cuts us open, and restarts our hearts."
"...feelings of awe shut down selfishness. When we are in awe of something, we become less self-centered, more others-centered, and more connected to others around us."
"...we serve a God who is both transcendent and immanent--fancy words for saying that His ways are beyond human understanding--yet He chooses to be near us, to be with us, even in the hardest times when we cannot yet see how He could possibly bring anything good from our circumstances."
"My husband always says that the definition of leadership is 'taking initiative for the good of others.'"
If you struggle with fear, anxiety, self-loathing, or other destructive thought-patterns, give this book a try. (I also appreciate that she points out the difference between what she's talking about and mental illnesses or issues that really do require professional help. She's not saying that people with clinical depression can just pull themselves up by their bootstraps or anything crazy like that.) I found it to be one of the most helpful books I've read in a long time.
Some favorite lines:
"When I'm mired in a certain way of thinking that clearly is not serving me well, I can escape that thought pattern and seize a new thought pattern."
"...practice the art of interruption..."
"Bondage necessitates rescue. Oppression needs to be lifted. Blindness waits for sight. Waywardness must be transformed."
"The greatest commandments? Love God and love others."
"There are so many ways we avoid silence, so many types of noise we choose to fill the gaping voids in our souls."
"It has been said--and I think it is true--that the most valuable asset we possess is our attention, which prompts the question, To what are we attending?"
"Mirror neurons help you feel what the other is feeling. In this way, empathy is hardly a contrived response but rather an automatic response our bodies have to each other."
"The part of your brain that activates when you feel rejected or uninvited by a friend is the same part of your brain that fires when you're in physical pain."
"If we want to be free of chaos, friend, we cannot stay alone in the dark with the devil."
"Beauty interrupts us, it awakens us, it undoes us, it cuts us open, and restarts our hearts."
"...feelings of awe shut down selfishness. When we are in awe of something, we become less self-centered, more others-centered, and more connected to others around us."
"...we serve a God who is both transcendent and immanent--fancy words for saying that His ways are beyond human understanding--yet He chooses to be near us, to be with us, even in the hardest times when we cannot yet see how He could possibly bring anything good from our circumstances."
"My husband always says that the definition of leadership is 'taking initiative for the good of others.'"
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
A solid book of good examples and advice focused on negative thinking. Enjoyed author’s transparency. Lots of good reminders.
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
relaxing
fast-paced
Although my faith is not the strongest, I will say that there were still some really insightful moments. Even if your faith is not strong there were moments in this book that reminded me how I need to re-shift the way I think or as she says it in the book “capture my thoughts”. Overall, I enjoyed this book, and it was a good reminder to that as a chronic over thinker I need to rewire the way I think.
This e-ARC was provided by NetGalley
Allen's Get Out of Your Head attempts to address the negative thoughts that Christian women encounter in their spiritual journey. She does a good job of identifying the key issues that they might face including self-doubt, fear of the unknown, cynicism as well as provides a framework for address them. I wish she had delved deeper into these issues and perhaps provided more diverse examples to beef up her arguments. Hence, this book was not entirely what I had expected.
Allen's Get Out of Your Head attempts to address the negative thoughts that Christian women encounter in their spiritual journey. She does a good job of identifying the key issues that they might face including self-doubt, fear of the unknown, cynicism as well as provides a framework for address them. I wish she had delved deeper into these issues and perhaps provided more diverse examples to beef up her arguments. Hence, this book was not entirely what I had expected.
I really wanted to like this book. Like REALLY wanted to, but I just couldn't. I did appreciate the references to the human brain and emotional wellness piece of it, but it just felt like it was a glorified reiteration of certain parts of the Bible. I just couldn't get into it.