Book Title: The Art of Taking It Easy by Dr. Brian King

Category: Adult Non-Fiction (18+)

Genre: Literary/Self-Help/Humor

Publisher: Apollo Publishers

Release date: October 2019

Synopsis

Psychologist and Comedian King explores the science behind stress in this witty, informed guide. The author uses a bevy of running jokes and punch lines to enliven technical explanations for how and why people experience stress. His metaphors of coming across a bear in the wild as well as being stuck in traffic are also used to great effect to explain a variety of stress responses, such as perceiving a threat and feelings of powerlessness. Reframing thoughts plays a large role in King’s advice: Stress is simply a reaction to a perception of threat being able to consciously redirect choices made by other areas of the brain is the key to living a less stressful existence. He also provides breathing exercises, plants for painting physical health and useful advice for setting attainable goals. King’s enjoyable guide to living with less will be of help to any anxious reader.

Excerpt

Don’t Eat The Poison Berries (pages 203 – 204)

Art of Taking It Easy: How To Cope With Bears, Traffic, And The Rest Of Life’s Stressors
By Dr. Brian King

Despite the simple and easy activities, I previously mentioned, it is very difficult to think positively all of the time. Whether they are bears or unicorns, bad things happen to all of us and negative thoughts are unavoidable. It is perfectly natural to have negative thoughts pop into our head from time to time. In fact, our brain seems to be somewhat disposed to seek out negativity and hold onto it. Psychologists refer to this phenomenon as the Negativity Bias. Basically, if we encounter two stimuli, one positive and one negative, our brain is more likely to notice and be affected by the negative stimulus.

This sucks, but it’s how our brain is wired. It makes sense too, if you think about how the brain develops and gathers information about the world it finds itself in. to illustrate this, I like to imagine the challenges that must have been faced by the first human beings, hundreds of thousands of years ago in the savannahs of northern Africa. Imagine being one of the first people to explore the area in search of food. Suppose you stumble upon a bush growing some fresh berries that look strangely appealing. You grab a handful, examine them thoroughly and decide to toss a couple into your mouth. And, they are… delicious! Sweet and juicy, but not only do they taste great, but you suddenly feel energized as the nutrients begin to circulate throughout your body. You just discovered a tasty source of food and it is important for your brain to remember these berries, in case you get hungry in the future.

Now imagine that you encounter a different kind of bush with a different kind of berry. However, this time when you cram a few in your early human mouth they taste terrible. In fact, they make you feel queasy and ill. Maybe one of your buddies, who had a bit more than you, gets sick and dies. The berries, as it turns out, are highly poisonous. Now, although it is extremely important to remember which berries were tasty and nutritious, it is absolutely crucial to your survival to remember the ones that could potentially kill you. It is a simple matter of survival. I often explain the negativity bias this way, with poison berries.

About the Author

DR. BRIAN KING trained as a neuroscientist and psychologist and for the past decade has traveled the world as a comedian and public speaker. By day he conducts seminars, attended by thousands of people each year around the US and internationally, on positive psychology, the health benefits of humor, and stress management. By night he practices what he teaches in comedy clubs, and is the founder and producer of the highly reviewed Wharf Room comedy show in San Francisco. Dr. Brian holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Texas, a master’s degree from the University of New Orleans, and a PhD in neuroscience from Bowling Green State University. Hailing from New York and living in dozens of cities throughout the US as the child of a military family, today spends his life on the road with his partner, Sarah, and their young daughter.

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