Unwinding Anxiety: New Science Shows How to Break the Cycles of Worry and Fear to Heal Your Mind
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- Create Date：2022-09-08 06:53:48
- Update Date：2025-09-07
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- Author：Judson Brewer
- ISBN：059342140X
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Summary
New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestseller
A step-by-step plan clinically proven to break the cycle of worry and fear that drives anxiety and addictive habits
We are living through one of the most anxious periods any of us can remember。 Whether facing issues as public as a pandemic or as personal as having kids at home and fighting the urge to reach for the wine bottle every night， we are feeling overwhelmed and out of control。 But in this timely book， Judson Brewer explains how to uproot anxiety at its source using brain-based techniques and small hacks accessible to anyone。
We think of anxiety as everything from mild unease to full-blown panic。 But it's also what drives the addictive behaviors and bad habits we use to cope （e。g。 stress eating， procrastination， doom scrolling and social media）。 Plus， anxiety lives in a part of the brain that resists rational thought。 So we get stuck in anxiety habit loops that we can't think our way out of or use willpower to overcome。 Dr。 Brewer teaches us to map our brains to discover our triggers， defuse them with the simple but powerful practice of curiosity， and to train our brains using mindfulness and other practices that his lab has proven can work。
Distilling more than 20 years of research and hands-on work with thousands of patients， including Olympic athletes and coaches， and leaders in government and business， Dr。 Brewer has created a clear， solution-oriented program that anyone can use to feel better - no matter how anxious they feel。
A step-by-step plan clinically proven to break the cycle of worry and fear that drives anxiety and addictive habits
We are living through one of the most anxious periods any of us can remember。 Whether facing issues as public as a pandemic or as personal as having kids at home and fighting the urge to reach for the wine bottle every night， we are feeling overwhelmed and out of control。 But in this timely book， Judson Brewer explains how to uproot anxiety at its source using brain-based techniques and small hacks accessible to anyone。
We think of anxiety as everything from mild unease to full-blown panic。 But it's also what drives the addictive behaviors and bad habits we use to cope （e。g。 stress eating， procrastination， doom scrolling and social media）。 Plus， anxiety lives in a part of the brain that resists rational thought。 So we get stuck in anxiety habit loops that we can't think our way out of or use willpower to overcome。 Dr。 Brewer teaches us to map our brains to discover our triggers， defuse them with the simple but powerful practice of curiosity， and to train our brains using mindfulness and other practices that his lab has proven can work。
Distilling more than 20 years of research and hands-on work with thousands of patients， including Olympic athletes and coaches， and leaders in government and business， Dr。 Brewer has created a clear， solution-oriented program that anyone can use to feel better - no matter how anxious they feel。
Reviews
Allie
，
Far more helpful than expected。 Author doesn’t just break down anxiety but gives tips for dealing with it。
Pam
，
I don’t feel like I have much anxiety but I read this book on a recommendation。 Much of what the author recommends isn’t new to me。 He is big on meditation。 However his approach is different and more medical。 I love the questions he suggests asking yourself。 Surprisingly to me I think his ideas about food will help me better control my weight。
Kira
，
DNF 65% of the way through。 For a book about anxiety it was very anxiety-provoking。 I wouldn’t recommend this one。
Deena Larsen
，
Brewer， Judson。 2021。 Unwinding Anxiety: New Science Shows Ho to Break the Cycles of Worry and Fear to Heal Your Mind。 Avery， Penguin Random House。 This book explains how addiction works （doing or using something over and over again despite the adverse consequences）。 Dr。 Judson covers the worry and habit loops （a trigger leads to behaviors， which lead to a result or a reward。 These can be life saving （a trigger: car speeding towards you at the intersection leads to your behavior: jumping back on Brewer， Judson。 2021。 Unwinding Anxiety: New Science Shows Ho to Break the Cycles of Worry and Fear to Heal Your Mind。 Avery， Penguin Random House。 This book explains how addiction works （doing or using something over and over again despite the adverse consequences）。 Dr。 Judson covers the worry and habit loops （a trigger leads to behaviors， which lead to a result or a reward。 These can be life saving （a trigger: car speeding towards you at the intersection leads to your behavior: jumping back onto the sidewalk， which rewards you by saving your life。） Following and practicing the steps laid out in this book can help you reduce anxiety in this fast paced， changing world and can help you create habits that will increase your resiliency。 You can also view his 2011 Ted Talk: A simple way to break a bad habits¸which covers these concepts。 。。。more
Liv the Jellyfish Queen
，
At the 40% mark， I have heard about habit loops about 15 times， but haven't learned anything new at all， so I'm dropping it。 At the 40% mark， I have heard about habit loops about 15 times， but haven't learned anything new at all， so I'm dropping it。 。。。more
Amanda
，
I've read quite a few books about anxiety， and so far this is the only one that helped me make significant and sustainable changes in my own life - both for general anxiety and for a specific fear of flying。Some key points that resonated with me:- Anxiety can become a habit。 Even if we try to apply logic， our brains can become anxious because it's a familiar pattern。 We have to break these "habit loops"， which means we first have to be aware of them and mindful of our thoughts to avoid falling i I've read quite a few books about anxiety， and so far this is the only one that helped me make significant and sustainable changes in my own life - both for general anxiety and for a specific fear of flying。Some key points that resonated with me:- Anxiety can become a habit。 Even if we try to apply logic， our brains can become anxious because it's a familiar pattern。 We have to break these "habit loops"， which means we first have to be aware of them and mindful of our thoughts to avoid falling into familiar but harmful habits。 I realized I started to panic about flying because it's what I always do before flying， but this doesn't need to be part of my pre-flying routine。- Anxiety is a feeling， worry is an action。 This helped me start to think in terms of "I feel anxious about getting on a plane， but I'm choosing not to worry because I know I'm safe"。 - Our brains repeat actions that give us a reward。 For people with anxiety， our brains can start to think that safety is the reward for worrying and that we need to worry to be safe。 Mindfulness can help by allowing us to recognize that being calm is a reward in itself， and that anxiety feels terrible and is not a feeling we want。 Mindfulness strategies also helped me think about anxiety more in a physical sense and separate it from my knowledge that I was safe at a given moment。- He writes about becoming afraid NOT to be anxious because it becomes a comfortable norm and even part of one's identity。 For me， the explanation about stepping out of the comfort zone of anxiety helped。 I challenged myself to get on a flight without panicking， without avoiding looking out the windows， without frantically googling the specific kind of plane - and to make myself realize that none of these actions were necessary to be safe on a flight。 I broke the "habit loop"。 - Lots of things I've studied before - mindfulness， meditation - are effective and backed up by science， but there are no shortcuts。 You just have to practice。Two things I didn't love:- Many of the examples he gives of how to apply the strategies he mentions are more relevant for addiction issues than anxiety。 It was useful for anxiety but perhaps even more useful for people whose anxiety leads to addiction （not the case for me at all）。- He mentions that some people attribute their success to their anxiety or think that anxiety helps them be productive， efficient， etc。 He tries to deny this but I wanted this broken down more， because his message wasn't getting through to me。Overall I highly recommend it for people with anxiety or a specific fear！ 。。。more
Nayeli
，
DNF
Haylee Anderson
，
Really great and practical strategies to help change your mindset and decrease your anxiety。
Jordanne
，
Some helpful aspects， some problematic aspects。
Sara Goldenberg
，
A little too simplistic to be actually useful
Daniel Ottenwalder
，
What a great time to be alive - we have access to so many great books that can help us understand our human condition。 Hmph is the new mantra as I learn more and become curious on my worries and fears that manifest into anxiety。
More Prose
，
had some real good pointsa little bit too focused the connection between food and anxiety。 Not related to what I was looking for。
Shanna Bepple
，
I found the research， science and premise to be spot on and that it aligned closely with my personal experience with anxiety/habit loops。 But I wish this book had been a bit more enjoyable to read as it felt like a chore to get through。
Lana Simmons
，
4。5 rounded up。 I don’t feel like there is new information but I really like how the information was presented。 I will be re-listening to this book again （I had the audiobook） so I can really absorb the information。
Stephanie
，
Framing anxiety as an addictive habit actually did make a lot of sense to my particular brain。 Lost a full star for essentially writing a book to advertise his （pretty damn pricey） anxiety and addiction helping apps。 But， he is probably American so…。 🤷🏻♀️ Very different perspective on healthcare， I guess
Mahrya Q
，
This book is basically Buddhist meditation instruction， without the Buddhist label。 It goes through simple and easy mindfulness techniques and even an explanation of loving kindness mediation （metta）。 The practices in this book are helpful for anxiety， habitual thought patterns and even addictions。 It encourages you to be curious about and examine your anxiety， etc without judgment。 While I'm familiar with the techniques in this book， I've never heard them described in quite the same way， or bee This book is basically Buddhist meditation instruction， without the Buddhist label。 It goes through simple and easy mindfulness techniques and even an explanation of loving kindness mediation （metta）。 The practices in this book are helpful for anxiety， habitual thought patterns and even addictions。 It encourages you to be curious about and examine your anxiety， etc without judgment。 While I'm familiar with the techniques in this book， I've never heard them described in quite the same way， or been given an actual map。 The lessons in this book have the potential to be very helpful。 Others found this book too long， one person saying it could have been an article， and I tend to agree。 The point could have been gotten across in less than 50 pages easy。 。。。more
Jazzerjay
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 I enjoyed listening to this book。 ***Spoiler*** he has anxiety too。 What an interesting perspective from someone who both treats and suffers from an illness。 （I certainly don't mean any offense by the term） Many times throughout， I thought he was speaking right to me。 I hope more people take the time to read or listen。 This certainly was eye-opening。 I enjoyed listening to this book。 ***Spoiler*** he has anxiety too。 What an interesting perspective from someone who both treats and suffers from an illness。 （I certainly don't mean any offense by the term） Many times throughout， I thought he was speaking right to me。 I hope more people take the time to read or listen。 This certainly was eye-opening。 。。。more
Letitia
，
Honestly my rating isn’t fair bc I skimmed this book， and as the author repeatedly mentions， the concepts here require focus and practice。 This might be better leveraged as a workbook （and not as an e-book that I needed to return to the library in 7 days）。
Greg Zimmerman
，
To paraphrase Yoda， stress leads to worry， worry leads to anxiety， and anxiety leads to suffering。I'm a middle aged middle class cis white male with no real problems， so why was I waking up in the middle of the night every night with a knot in my stomach and my mind racing， realizing sleep would once again be elusive？This book helped me understand the "habit loop" that led to this anxiety。 For me， just understanding what was happening was often enough to be mindful， relax， and overcome the anxie To paraphrase Yoda， stress leads to worry， worry leads to anxiety， and anxiety leads to suffering。I'm a middle aged middle class cis white male with no real problems， so why was I waking up in the middle of the night every night with a knot in my stomach and my mind racing， realizing sleep would once again be elusive？This book helped me understand the "habit loop" that led to this anxiety。 For me， just understanding what was happening was often enough to be mindful， relax， and overcome the anxiety。 But the book also gives some solutions and exercises to help， which I'm trying as well。 This is literally the first time I ever read a self-help book， and while a lot of it seemed a bit ooey-gooey， and the author often seems extremely proud of himself， it was certainly not a bad reading experience。 。。。more
Meredith
，
I was already familiar with the general concept of mind mapping， and I didn't find anything particularly new here， but it was a good refresher。 I do wish he'd spent a lot less time on weight loss/eating less type stuff and a lot more on procrastination。 I was already familiar with the general concept of mind mapping， and I didn't find anything particularly new here， but it was a good refresher。 I do wish he'd spent a lot less time on weight loss/eating less type stuff and a lot more on procrastination。 。。。more
Andrej
，
Ova knjiga me još jednom podsjetila na to zašto ne čitam knjige samopomoći。 Niti u jednom trenutku knjiga mi nije bila zanimljiva。 Nije me uopće oduševio autorov pristup kojim pojašnjava anksioznost i to isključivo iz medicinske perspektive。 Većinom se usmjerava na medicinu， a malo na socijalni i društveni aspekt。 Očekivao sam više o ove knjige， i to prije svega， zbog samo naslova。 Međutim ništa od toga nije ispunilo moja očekivanja。
Maneesha
，
This book has some interesting advice， but it really could have been an essay。 In fact I think it would have been easier to remember the author’s main points without all of the filler。 There’s more made-up caveman history and patient anecdotes than science， so that was disappointing。 The author’s writing style is kinda cringy， but maybe that’s normal for the self-help genre。 Maybe I would have liked it more if I drove stick shift and understood his incessant driving analogies。
Tiffany
，
Brain ChangingAs someone with adhd， generalized anxiety disorder， and past trauma， I’m always trying to learn about my own brain and how to work smarter and not harder。 I was in a rut for a while， feeling exhausted & stressed on the daily。 This was the missing piece that really helped me understand how much anxiety I had in the first place！ My habits and thinking were tripping me up in ways I didn’t even realize until I read this book。 This is a must read for literally anybody。 Not only does it Brain ChangingAs someone with adhd， generalized anxiety disorder， and past trauma， I’m always trying to learn about my own brain and how to work smarter and not harder。 I was in a rut for a while， feeling exhausted & stressed on the daily。 This was the missing piece that really helped me understand how much anxiety I had in the first place！ My habits and thinking were tripping me up in ways I didn’t even realize until I read this book。 This is a must read for literally anybody。 Not only does it give you immediate， applicable ways to feel better， but it also helps you truly understand how your brain works which is just such a powerful thing to understand。 My new life goal is anxiety sobriety！！！ 。。。more
Jeannette
，
Despite my 3 star review， I do find the book helpful though you do have to read through the first 2 sections to get to the helpful third。 It's very much in the mind-body information that I'm already familiar with， but it does show how anxiety really is a bad habit to break and how you can break it （through somatic tracking and curiosity）。 The author does really push his app that you can buy so that's a huge downer。 3。5 stars。 Despite my 3 star review， I do find the book helpful though you do have to read through the first 2 sections to get to the helpful third。 It's very much in the mind-body information that I'm already familiar with， but it does show how anxiety really is a bad habit to break and how you can break it （through somatic tracking and curiosity）。 The author does really push his app that you can buy so that's a huge downer。 3。5 stars。 。。。more
Drusillablackthorn
，
I knew Judson Brewer from his work on addiction， so I was surprised to see him wrote a book on anxiety。 But not to my surprise， the book doesn’t really dive deep into worry based anxiety， but more about anxiety with maladaptive coping （usually in behavior like smoking， excessive drinking， binge eating， etc）。 With that being said， the book delivers interesting insight on how the brain works。 I love Brewer’s effort on adding examples and anecdotes that made the message memorable （he’s funny ngl）。 I knew Judson Brewer from his work on addiction， so I was surprised to see him wrote a book on anxiety。 But not to my surprise， the book doesn’t really dive deep into worry based anxiety， but more about anxiety with maladaptive coping （usually in behavior like smoking， excessive drinking， binge eating， etc）。 With that being said， the book delivers interesting insight on how the brain works。 I love Brewer’s effort on adding examples and anecdotes that made the message memorable （he’s funny ngl）。 But it （sadly） kinda gets repetitive by the end。 Still， I would recommend Brewer’s podcast with 10 Percent Happier。 Its a great summary of the book and I would say its a better （use of ur time） than reading the whole book。 。。。more
Jacob O'connor
，
This is a good resource for those who have struggled with anxiety （which is all of us）。 I'll tell you a secret。 One you don't have to read a book to learn。 Anxiety is part of the process。 It shouldn't consume us， but I find it freeing to realize that it goes with being a human being。 Normal stuff。 Don't beat yourself up。 This is a good resource for those who have struggled with anxiety （which is all of us）。 I'll tell you a secret。 One you don't have to read a book to learn。 Anxiety is part of the process。 It shouldn't consume us， but I find it freeing to realize that it goes with being a human being。 Normal stuff。 Don't beat yourself up。 。。。more
AJW
，
I’m currently struggling high levels of anxiety and this book has given me hope that I can get through this unpleasant experience。 What I particularly liked about Dr Jud Brewer’s approach is how he engages with feelings。 His is not an intellectual cognitive approach。 And he talks about the importance of compassion， which always rings my bell。
Lisa Lair
，
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Johnny
，
Much of this book seems to be about addiction， but in a way， Brewer seems to pitch anxiety as an addictive cycle to be broken。 I appreciate the mindfulness approach。
Mattie
，