The Awakened Brain: The Psychology of Spirituality and Our Search for Meaning

Description

A ground-breaking exploration of the neuroscience of spirituality and a bold new paradigm for health, healing and resilience Whether it's an uplifting walk in nature, meditation or prayer, there are many ways to experience heightened awareness and escape the relentless demands of modern life. The range of opportunities of this kind suggest that it isn't dependent on faith or religion, but that it's about a different mode of living; an innate spirituality. Lisa Miller has spent decades researching the effects of spirituality on the brain. In this book she draws on her clinical experience and award-winning research to show how an active spiritual life can transform our physical and psychological wellbeing. Bringing scientific rigour to the most intangible aspect of our lives, Miller offers insights into the neurological basis for the increased resilience that comes with nurturing spirituality and highlights its measurable positive effects- decreasing the likelihood of depression and substance abuse, and shifting the course of recovery in many other clinical settings. Woven throughout is Miller's personal story of how, while confronting her own challenges, her professional pragmatism gave way to a greater appreciation of insights that are important to so many people and yet so often dismissed as unscientific. Brimming with inspiration and compassion, this landmark book will revolutionize your understanding of spirituality, mental health and how we find meaning and purpose in life.

Lisa Miller is a professor in the clinical psychology program at Columbia University, Teachers College, and holds a joint appointment in the department of Psychiatry at Columbia Medical School. She is the New York Times bestselling author of The Spiritual Child and founder and director of the Spiritual Mind Body Institute, the first Ivy League graduate program in spirituality and psychology.

Erudite, compelling . . . Miller's iconoclasm challenges orthodoxies and common practice . . . what makes this a credible and original investigation is Miller's solid and verifiable clinical and epidemiological data -- Yasmin Alibhai-Brown * i Newspaper * Lisa Miller is the leading psychologist of her generation on the benefits of religion and spirituality. She asks, 'What makes life worth living?' and finds evidence-based answers -- Martin Seligman * author of Learned Optimism * A new revolution of health and well being. She shows through scientific research, clinical insight, and personal experience that we can always choose between two modes of conscious awareness, each with profoundly different outcomes for our health and daily experience -- Deepak Chopra * author of Super Brain * A captivating look at what happens to our brains when we're connected to something greater than ourselves - and what it does for our lives -- Adam Grant * author of Think Again * Ushers in a new science of healing. This work is urgent; a vision for human potential that is sorely needed in our time . . . I simply could not put it down -- Liz Murray * author of Breaking Night: My Journey from Homeless to Harvard * Truly transformative . . . Lisa Miller's life's work and story weave a tapestry of science, psychology and spirituality which unfolds a world of mystery and meaning . . . reveals a unity to the universe that can be accessed by both heart and mind for our mental and physical well-being -- The Rt Revd James Jones KBE * author of Why Do People Suffer? * Potent, profound, and accessible . . . a compelling examination of the correlations between spirituality and mental health * Kirkus Reviews * Unequivocally shows that spirituality heals. Her pioneering research has vast implications not only for medical science, but also for the growing field of consciousness research -- Larry Dossey * author of Healing Words * A revisionist account of mind and matter . . . Miller argues that spiritual awareness is to be found across religious differences and should be considered a birthright -- Mark Vernon * Church Times *