Poe's Heart and the Mountain Climber Audiobook By Richard Restak M.D. cover art

Poe's Heart and the Mountain Climber

Exploring the Effect of Anxiety on Our Brains and Our Culture

Preview

Try for $0.00
Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Poe's Heart and the Mountain Climber

By: Richard Restak M.D.
Narrated by: Scott Brick
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $13.50

Buy for $13.50

Confirm purchase
Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.
Cancel

About this listen

Are you bombarded by a constant media feed of global terrorism, war, and rising unemployment rates - and by a mind-numbing array of ads that urge you to “ask your doctor” about the newest anti-anxiety medications? If it sometimes feels as if this country is having a collective anxiety attack, then you won’t be surprised to learn that more than 19 million Americans suffer from some form of acute anxiety.

Poe’s Heart and the Mountain Climber tackles this situation head-on, with a fresh perspective and a straightforward approach to exploring and understanding our anxiety before it paralyzes us.

After interviewing many experts on anxiety, and reflecting on his own many years treating anxious patients (as well as experiencing more than a few anxious moments himself), Dr. Richard Restak has organized this book around one primary principal: the best way to manage anxiety in these anxious times is to learn about it and put that learning to practical use. His message is vital and empowering: anxiety is not a mental illness that must require medication, but often a normal, biological response to stress.

Anxiety is part of our genetic makeup. We wouldn’t be alive today if our ancestors had lacked the ability to anticipate dangers and threats. Anxiety is as natural a part of our existence as breathing, eating, or sleeping, and it is closely linked to our powers of reasoning. Unlike any other species, only we are able to envision future possibilities. As a result, we aren’t tethered to the here and now, but can imaginatively anticipate the good things that might happen to us. But we can also envision the bad things and, as a result, experience anxiety. We can’t have one without the other. Anxiety, therefore, isn’t something to be eliminated but, rather, something to be understood. Anxiety is only undesirable when it becomes extreme.

This groundbreaking book teaches us to view anxiety not as a burden, but as a stimulus for greater accomplishment and enhanced self-knowledge. We will function at our best when we stop working to deny our anxiety or trying to escape it and instead learn to accept its presence in our lives and transform it into the positive, creative energy from which it stems.

©2004 Richard Restak, M.D. (P)2004 Books on Tape
Education Mood Disorders Personal Development Psychology Mental Health Young Adult Genetics
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

Critic reviews

"Restak dispels worry about worry and tenders sensible strategies for quelling it." (Booklist)

What listeners say about Poe's Heart and the Mountain Climber

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    21
  • 4 Stars
    20
  • 3 Stars
    12
  • 2 Stars
    4
  • 1 Stars
    5
Performance
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    5
  • 4 Stars
    3
  • 3 Stars
    1
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    1
Story
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    5
  • 4 Stars
    3
  • 3 Stars
    2
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    2

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

Well written, easy to listen to.

I think that this is a really well written book on anxiety, if you can get over all the 9/11 references in the first few chapters. The fourth chapter and on is really good, it is not too simplified, this author actually thinks that listeners have brain cells. He describes the brain areas responsible for anxiety and associated disorders and how the wiring of these areas may result in abnormal function under some circumstances, yet be advantageous in others. The one lost star is for the overwhelming "how to deal with 9/11" introduction, which would likely be lost on most Canadians.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

18 people found this helpful