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✔️ed if Read in SSS Book ClubTitleAuthorSynopsis's/Links to Synopsis's and/or Reviews
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N/ALiving SoberAA World ServicesPracticle suggestions for avoiding drinking in daliy situations
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The Secular Sober Sister’ Book Club is currently reading four chapters of "Writing the Big Book" by WILLIAM H. SCHABERG for on May 22nd at 8:00 p.m. as follows:
* Chapter 14 - “More About Alcoholism and “We Agnostics”
* Chapter 18 - “To Wives”
* Chapter 21 - The “Q&A Chapter”
* Chapter 23 - “Writing the Twelve Steps”

If you would like to join us on FaceBook, please:
* click on the following link: https://www.facebook.com/share/g/1JzzeNS7v1/,
* or send me a message via WhatsApp or via Messenger at Shari L. Oliynyk with your email.

You can also or instead join our WhatsApp group at https://chat.whatsapp.com/BCfiYQothRJ7MSqSiGwXQ3?mode=gi_t or send me your phone number via the same avenues above.

I look forward to your joining us!
WILLIAM H. SCHABERGThe Big Book, written by William G. Wilson—aka Bill W.—and first published in 1939, laid the foundation for the 12-step movement that revolutionized addiction treatment and helped millions of people get and stay sober. With more than 37 million copies sold, the Big Book is one of the bestselling works of all time. It has been translated into 43 languages and was named by the Library of Congress in 2012 as one of the 88 “Books that Shaped America.”

First of all, he (Bill W.) diagnosed the problem as the alcoholic’s inability to refuse the first drink,” Schaberg says. “Alcoholism wasn’t a psychological problem or a failure of will power or a moral lapse of some sort. Wilson’s solution to his understanding of that problem was equally direct and simple. It was to guide the alcoholic—through a 12-step program of recovery—toward his or her own ‘vital spiritual experience.’” https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/authors/profiles/article/81440-writing-the-book-on-the-big-book-spotlight-on-william-h-schaberg.html

When Schaberg purchased the multilith copy of the Big Book at auction, his interest in AA was purely practical. He wanted to answer some basic questions about his newly acquired book: How many had been privately printed? Just how rare was it? This eventually brought him to the AA archives, which contain a veritable treasure trove of previously unreported data. “The tremendous amount of unmined information I discovered was staggering,” he says. “That led to my decision to write a book covering just 18 months of AA history: from the first time they said, ‘Hey, we should write a book!’ until the day the book was actually published. It was amazing; the more I researched, the more great details I uncovered.” https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/authors/profiles/article/81440-writing-the-book-on-the-big-book-spotlight-on-william-h-schaberg.html

Schaberg meticulously details the twists and turns of those early years and shines a light on the formerly unacknowledged importance of early AA member Hank Parkhurst. “After Bill Wilson, Parkhurst is without a doubt the most important man in the formulation of the program of Alcoholics Anonymous and then the packaging of that program into a book,” Schaberg says. https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/authors/profiles/article/81440-writing-the-book-on-the-big-book-spotlight-on-william-h-schaberg.html

Hank was an agnostic when he came to AA. He and Jim Burwell led the fight against any mention of God in the Big Book.
Parkhurst and Burwell wanted to leave God out of the book altogether, to make it a psychological book and refer only to the spiritual nature of recovery, produced by the practice of the principles of the Twelve Steps. The verbal war over the mention of God produced the compromise "---as we understood Him" which became part of the Book. https://aainthedesert.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/HANK-PARKHURST.pdf

Ultimately, Schaberg hopes readers will find his history of the Big Book inspirational, positive, and uplifting.
https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/authors/profiles/article/81440-writing-the-book-on-the-big-book-spotlight-on-william-h-schaberg.html
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https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/authors/profiles/article/81440-writing-the-book-on-the-big-book-spotlight-on-william-h-schaberg.html
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https://aainthedesert.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/HANK-PARKHURST.pdf
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Karolina Rzadkowolska.“How-to guide and a personal story in one. Karolina explains why her life is much better without the booze, and all the horrors that ethyl alcohol wreaks on our bodies in Part 1. Then Part 2 deals with alcohol and Your Mind and Soul, the psychological and spiritual damage and the benefits to stopping. Part 3 is an 8-week plan to ditch the booze and gain confidence and health.” https://seanasmith.com/books-on-sobriety/
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"Euphoric”https://www.amazon.com/Euphoric-Ditch-Alcohol-Happier-Confident-ebook/dp/B08ZMCQGFS?ref_=ast_author_dp&th=1&psc=1&author-follow=B096ZKQPQH
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Seana SmithFrom the outside, Seana Smith lived an enviable life. An Oxford graduate, a successful career with the BBC and Sydney's Channel 9, a bestselling author, happily married with four lively children. But behind this perfect life she had a secret: Seana was a drinker, and alcohol was slowly taking away her life, destroying her health, her emotional well-being, her world

With engaging style and wit, Going Under reveals the true story behind Seana's lifelong battle with drink. It lay bare a confusing childhood of Scottish sailing adventurca and also brutal violence from her bullying, alcoholic father, where punches were thrown, broken bones hidden and her family lived in fear.

Learning from the best, Scana drank her way through tutorials at Oxford University (which were held in the pub), through the sexual misadventures of her twentics and through the intensity and mundanity of motherhood. It took the death of her parents and a tree-change to Orange in regional NSW for Scana to find the courage to break free: a new life in a new world.

She had finally left the past behind. By turns hilarious and harrowing, this memoir is a powerful testament to
resilience, acceptance and ultimately love.

It is indeed a love letter to the inner-child in us all.
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https://seanasmith.com/going-under-memoir-family-secrets-addiction-escape/
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Sarah RusbatchBeyond Booze, from sober coach Sarah Rusbatch is a life-affirming how-to book, with plenty of real-life stories both from the author and from many of the women she has coached. This is unashamedly a book for women. It delves deep into the lifestyle many women find themselves in these days, with too many stressors and not enough support and self-care.

Sarah is aiming to coach the reader, as she does her clients, to find more small pleasures in their lives and to connect more deeply to themselves, so that they can more easily let go of alcohol.

I enjoyed the fact that Sarah writes very honestly about her own drinking:

Drinking, in fact, had become why one and only hobby. The only thing I did with any spare time, and the only thing I did to counter the fact I barely even had any spare time. I was rarely without a glass in hand if it was past 5 p.m. and I was at home……..On the outside, no one thought I had a problem, but inside I was in turmoil.

I am sure many readers can relate to that and to Sarah’s writing about the exhaustion of trying to moderate. She explains that there is a lot of work to be done to look hard at the reader’s life and then make a plan to improve it, in every way. But she promises:

This deep journey of self discovery is where we will go, together.

Sarah has done her research and quotes many writers and academics as she explains what alcohol does to the female body and how ubiquitous it has come, especially the mummy wine culture. She devotes a lot of time to showing many ways to deal with the inevitable stress of modern life, alcohol free. She has a chapter on romantic relationships when sober and another on socialising.

Sarah address the reader directly: “What’s your fun plan? she asks, and she ends the book with Chapter 9, titled: ‘Value your life! Creating a life that prioritises what you love.’

Sarah brings her enthusiasm and energy, and her expertise as a sober coach to this book, encouraging readers to use it as a guide to making their life much, much better. This book is especially a call to arms for mothers, exhorting them to put their own needs first, learn to manage their lives well and then take care of others.

We can’t find freedom from booze if we don’t have any other tools for managing stress in our modern world, because stress isn’t going anywhere soon.

This how-to book falls into the self-help category and is a warm hug from an expert friend who has the energy and the love to encourage readers to change their lives, ditch alcohol and find freedom.
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https://seanasmith.com/books-on-sobriety/
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Jill StarkFirst published in 2013, High Sobriety by Scottish-Australian journalist Jill Stark is one of the earliest Aussie quit lit books. The 10th anniversary edition Higher Sobriety came out in 2023, with chapters at the end updating Jill’s story.

A massive New Year’s day hangover prompts this health reporter, who has been a heavy boozer since she was a teenager, to take three months off alcohol. This turns into a year off the grog when she is commissioned to write a book.

Jill Stark had reported on Australia’s love affair with alcohol for years and she brings all her journalistic experience to this book, which chronicles Australia’s drinking history since colonisation. She also tells her own drinking story, from her early years growing up in Edinburgh, to her move to Melbourne in her 20s and on to her mid-30s.

Jill is very open about how much she misses drinking in the early months, whilst also finding she can still go out and have a great time. Backing up all her own personal stories with information from experts, this is a really comprehensive book.

I won’t tell you what happened after that first year and in the 10 years following, the new chapters are fascinating, and informative too.
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High Sobrietyhttps://seanasmith.com/books-on-sobriety/
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Lotta DannLotta Dan wrote a secret blog when she stopped drinking and much of it is in this book, as well as her thoughts and feelings about the time before and after she stopped drinking. Lotta Dan lives in New Zealand and was a classic mummy wine drinker, often making herself pretty ill even as she worked, mothered and studied.

This book is honest and searing, and shows very well all the challenges that happen in the early weeks, months and years of sobriety. It is highly relatable. Published in 2014, this book is as relevant today as it was 10 years ago. If you are a mother who drinks too much wine and need a story about someone you will relate to, here it is.

Lotta Dann has written several books since this first one, but do start here.
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Mrs. D is Going Withouthttps://seanasmith.com/books-on-sobriety/
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Jenny ValentishJenny Valentish is a journalist and author, brought up in the UK and now living in Australia. Her descriptions of drinking and throwing herself into drug culture makes me feel like a total beginner. She interviews many experts and brings a lot of factual information into her own story of addiction and recovery.
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Woman of Substanceshttps://seanasmith.com/books-on-sobriety/
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Bryony GordonThis memoir of alcohol and cocaine addiction will make your hair stand on end. Even after she became a mum, Bryony could not let go… but eventually she did, doing an outpatient rehab program which is fascinating to read about.
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Glorious Rock Bottom
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Nancy Stearns BercawDryland – One Woman’s Swim To Sobriety

If you love travel, swimming and sober stories, you’ll adore this book. The author is living in the Middle East as she wrestles with her drinking problem. She uses swimming as one of her recovery tools.
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Published in Feb 2024 by Pantera Press

Victoria Vanstone is the host of the Sober Awkward podcast and she runs the Cuppa community which I am a member of.

Throughout the book, there is the most hysterically funny storytelling and many bon mots and phrases which are just spot on. Much of the humour is bawdy, very British, and no doubt will offend many people. (Vic says her father must never read it.)

Vic really did give drinking a red hot go. Her stories made my hair stand on end. Drug taking was also a reckless pursuit, and I was so bloody grateful to read about her decision to give up that shit. She could have died many times, she could have lost everything. But she didn’t… and as a sober woman, Vic has spend years and years encouraging other people to try a sober life, whilst showing that you can have an excellent time sober and that life retains all its laughs…. even when it’s deeply imperfect.

It’s the humour in this book which sets it apart, and the rollicking no-holds-barred storytelling Well done, Vic!
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A Thousand Wasted SundaysVictoria Vanstonehttps://seanasmith.com/books-on-sobriety/
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In "Regarding Substance Abuse and Addiction (RSAA)," Craig A. Williamson offers a powerful, real-world guide through the challenging journey of addiction. Drawing from personal experience, this book provides practical insights and understanding for individuals and their loved ones navigating the complexities of substance use disorders. Craig's brilliant, straightforward writing sheds light on what we all need to know. Through real-life stories and straight talk about the world of recovery, readers will be better equipped to face the battle against addiction with renewed confidence. Whether you're personally struggling or supporting someone who is, "RSAA" brings game-changing understanding - helping to illuminate next steps knowing that you are not alone.
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Regarding Substance Abuse and Addiction: What You Need to Know. Real World Insights from Firsthand ExperienceCraig A Williamsonhttps://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D9NT95P7?tag=uuid10-20
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“Heal Your Body: The Mental Causes for Physical Illness and the Metaphysical Way to Overcome Them” presents a revolutionary outlook on health. Louise L. Hay addresses the connection between physical ailments and mental patterns. She asserts that every physical ailment has a mental cause, influenced by thoughts and emotions. This book serves as a practical guide where readers can explore common health issues and their underlying emotional links. Hay shares her personal journey, filled with turmoil, trauma, and eventual healing. Her background informs her views, making her insights relatable and profound. The book centers on the belief that positive thought can lead to healing. The text empowers readers to acknowledge their emotional struggles and redefine their mindsets. Through practical step-by-step methods, readers can replace negative thoughts with affirmations.
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Heal Your Body: The Mental Causes for Physical Illness and the Metaphysical Way to Overcome ThemLouise Hayhttps://newbookrecommendation.com/summary-of-heal-your-body-by-louise-l-hay-a-detailed-synopsis/
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Review:
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https://countyyogaloft.ca/blog/book-review-you-can-heal-your-life-louise-hay
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Regarding Substance Abuse and Addiction: What You Need to Know. Real World Insights from Firsthand Experience Paperback – July 3, 2024
by Craig A Williamson (Author)
5.0 5.0 out of 5 stars (12)
See all formats and editions
In "Regarding Substance Abuse and Addiction (RSAA)," Craig A. Williamson offers a powerful, real-world guide through the challenging journey of addiction. Drawing from personal experience, this book provides practical insights and understanding for individuals and their loved ones navigating the complexities of substance use disorders. Craig's brilliant, straightforward writing sheds light on what we all need to know. Through real-life stories and straight talk about the world of recovery, readers will be better equipped to face the battle against addiction with renewed confidence. Whether you're personally struggling or supporting someone who is, "RSAA" brings game-changing understanding - helping to illuminate next steps knowing that you are not
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A New Earth - Awakening to Your Life's PurposeElkhart Tollehttps://shop.eckharttolle.com/products/a-new-earth-awakening-to-your-lifes-purpose
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Reviews:
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https://www.oprahdaily.com/entertainment/books/a42417051/oprah-a-new-earth-eckhart-tolle/
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If we want to find the way back to ourselves and one another, we need language and the grounded confidence to both tell our stories and to be stewards of the stories that we hear. In Atlas of the Heart, we explore eighty-seven of the emotions and experiences that define what it means to be human and walk through a new framework for cultivating meaningful connection. This is for the mapmakers and travelers in all of us.
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Atlas of the HeartBrené Brownhttps://brenebrown.com/book/atlas-of-the-heart/
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Review:
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https://time.com/6122081/brene-brown-atlas-of-the-heart/
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The body is where our instincts reside and where we fight, flee, or freeze, and it endures the trauma inflicted by the ills that plague society.

In this groundbreaking work, therapist Resmaa Menakem examines the damage caused by racism in America from the perspective of body-centered psychology. He argues this destruction will continue until Americans learn to heal the generational anguish of white supremacy, which is deeply embedded in all our bodies. Our collective agony doesn't just affect African Americans. White Americans suffer their own secondary trauma as well. So do blue Americans—our police.

My Grandmother's Hands is a call to action for all of us to recognize that racism is not about the head, but about the body, and introduces an alternative view of what we can do to grow beyond our entrenched racialized divide.

This book paves the way for a new, body-centered understanding of white supremacy—how it is literally in our blood and our nervous system. It offers a step-by-step solution—a healing process—in addition to incisive social commentary. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34146782-my-grandmother-s-hands
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My Grandmother's Hands: Racialized Trauma and the Mending of Our Bodies and HeartsResmaa MenakemReview:
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https://www.hks.harvard.edu/faculty-research/library-research-services/collections/diversity-inclusion-belonging/my
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https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/07417136231199881
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Inspiring. Relatable. Life-changing.Sober Curious? Worried about that evening ‘glass of wine’ that’s recently morphed into a bottle? If you are tired of the “dead drunk in a ditch on a dark night’ salacious tales that have nothing in common with your life and are looking for some practical help from someone who is just like you…..you’ve found it! Jackie’s memoir, her practical how-to guide and handy Ten Step reference will show you that you don’t have to be an alcoholic before you quit drinking, AA is not the only help that's out there, and best of all, sobriety is not a punishment - it's a gift! You’ll laugh, cry, and then you’ll change your life. Includes Sober Ever After, How I Quit Drinking (and how you can too) and Ten Simple Steps; Get Unstuck and Kick the Booze.
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Sober Ever After: A MemoirJackie ElliottReview: https://backupsobrietyoutloud.home.blog/2018/08/11/recovery-ever-after/
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In The Four Agreements, don Miguel Ruiz reveals the source of self-limiting beliefs that rob us of joy and create needless suffering. Based on ancient Toltec wisdom, The Four Agreements offer a powerful code of conduct that can rapidly transform our lives to a new experience of freedom, true happiness, and love.
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The Four Agreementsdon Miguel Ruiz
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THE PIVOT YEAR: 365 DAYS TO BECOME THE PERSON YOU TRULY WANT TO BEBRIANNA WIEST
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present Moment Cards
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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. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18693771-the-body-keeps-the-score
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The Body Keeps ScoreDr. Bessel van der Kolk'sReviews:
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https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8418154/
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https://www.washingtonpost.com/books/2023/08/02/body-keeps-score-grieving-brain-bessel-van-der-kolk-neuroscience-self-help/
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After having a nationally televised panic attack, "Nightline" anchor, Dan Harris knew he had to make some changes. Harris realized that the source of his problems was the very thing he always thought was his greatest asset: the incessant, insatiable voice in his head, which had propelled him through the ranks of a hypercompetitive business, but had also led him to make the profoundly stupid decisions that provoked his on-air freak-out.

Finally, Harris stumbled upon an effective way to rein in that voice, something he always assumed to be either impossible or useless: meditation, a tool that research suggests can do everything from lower your blood pressure to essentially rewire your brain. 10% Happier takes readers on a ride from the outer reaches of neuroscience to the inner sanctum of network news to the bizarre fringes of America’s spiritual scene, and leaves them with a takeaway that could actually change their lives.
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10% HAPPIER: HOW I TAMED THE VOICE IN MY HEAD, REDUCED STRESS WITHOUT LOSING MY EDGE, AND FOUND SELF- HELP THAT ACTUALLY WORKS - A TRUE STORYDAN HARRIShttps://www.amazon.com/10-Happier-Self-Help-Actually-Works/dp/0062265431
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Starting from the premise that "The feeling that we call 'I' is an illusion," Harris launches first into an investigation of "spirituality," which he defines simply as "a clearer understanding of the way things are." "Deepening that understanding," he continues, "and repeatedly cutting through the illusion of the self, is what is meant by 'spirituality' in this book. Confusion and suffering may be our birthright, but wisdom and happiness are available." No Buddhist, surely, would quarrel with that premise. Still, Harris reclaims from the traditional religions the right -- no, the duty -- to understand the spiritual "in the context of neuroscience, psychology, and related fields." In other words, through the lens of human reason and established science.
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"Waking Up“Sam Harrishttps://www.huffpost.com/entry/waking-up-by-sam-harris-a_b_8079028
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✔️

If you've ever felt stuck, overwhelmed, or frustrated with where you are, the problem isn't you. The problem is the power you give to other people. Two simple words—Let Them—will set you free. Free from the opinions, drama, and judgments of others. Free from the exhausting cycle of trying to manage everything and everyone around you. The Let Them Theory puts the power to create a life you love back in your hands—and this book will show you exactly how to do it.

In her latest groundbreaking book, The Let Them Theory, Mel Robbins—New York Times bestselling author and one of the world's most respected experts on motivation, confidence, and mindset—teaches you how to stop wasting energy on what you can't control and start focusing on what truly matters: YOU. Your happiness. Your goals. Your life.
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The Let Them TheoryMel Robbinshttps://www.amazon.com/Let-Them-Theory-Life-Changing-Millions/dp/1401971369/ref=mp_s_a_1_17?crid=1YTC48W4RYRCF&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.1-Ixeaz7QESMhNOWUDxnrTdE9ASaYzZOwzMQFaoIYnZtRi2GPIRN-JXLsv0Tqh_h4PmG46CP_jN_u55PZRkViw4mDR_BGJ9jlJi_NXakrXYcyS9g2lds-4UwKTZ6oswtLIzpk6xNF94PLXbhurgeK4nPYHLasa78evUVHTWiGmoKhfBblccyjrA0dlf6ELqD82YeNKcjn_AF3jLO3xcgkA.tc30SU78z_nE551NgGKrh2J7QOOIH21jJ5DUlujjXeE&dib_tag=se&keywords=women+books&qid=1736996129&sprefix=women+books%2Caps%2C166&sr=8-17&xpid=VudLcKHQE8Arn&fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR0uhDwfRyBYllzAS4rEMeySKhBrG_ZcREU2NrmdoQN9HinGs17uYpTUJII_aem_EGxJJ7jlfM1o8slQFPpZIg
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On paper, Sarah Levy’s life was on track. She was 28, living in New York City, working a great job, and socializing every weekend. But Sarah had a secret: her relationship with alcohol was becoming toxic. And only she could save herself.

Drinking Games explores the role alcohol has in our formative years, and what it means to opt out of a culture completely enmeshed in drinking. It’s an examination of what our short-term choices about alcohol do to our long-term selves and how they challenge our ability to be vulnerable enough to discover what we really want in life.

Candid and dynamic, this book speaks to the all-consuming cycle of working hard, playing harder, and trying to look perfect while you’re at it. Sarah takes us by the hand through her personal journey with blackouts, dating, relationships, wellness culture, startups, social media, friendship, and self-discovery.
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"Drinking Games"Sarah Levyhttps://www.amazon.com/Drinking-Games-Memoir-Sarah-Levy/dp/1250280583
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While plenty of entertaining books have been written about the history of alcohol and other intoxicants, none have offered a comprehensive, convincing answer to the basic question of why humans want to get high in the first place.
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"Drunk: HOW WE SIPPED, DANCED, AND STUMBLED OUR WAY TO CIVILIZATION"Edward Slingerland
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Drunk elegantly cuts through the tangle of urban legends and anecdotal impressions that surround our notions of intoxication to provide the first rigorous, scientifically-grounded explanation for our love of alcohol. Drawing on evidence from archaeology, history, cognitive neuroscience, psychopharmacology, social psychology, literature, and genetics, Drunk shows that our taste for chemical intoxicants is not an evolutionary mistake, as we are so often told. In fact, intoxication helps solve a number of distinctively human challenges: enhancing creativity, alleviating stress, building trust, and pulling off the miracle of getting fiercely tribal primates to cooperate with strangers.
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Sean Alexander cuts through the drunken haze in the international bestseller Sober On A Drunk Planet - Giving Up Alcohol to provide hard-hitting facts, which elegantly combines laugh-out-loud moments, sobering science and powerful insights into sobriety, as a qualified therapist, strength coach and former drunk.
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”Sober On A Drunk Planet: Giving Up Alcohol. The Unexpected Shortcut to Finding Happiness, Health and Financial Freedom"Sean Alexanderhttps://www.amazon.com/Sober-Drunk-Planet-Unexpected-Happiness-ebook/dp/B09X3PKP3Z
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