The Book of Overthinking by Gwendoline Smith and narrated by Liza Seneca is a particularly helpful book/audiobook that helps guide the reader/listener through steps to minimise overthinking and get out of those spiralling thoughts and get on with life.

The book includes a brief introduction into the concepts of anxiety, overthinking and cognitive behavioural therapy in an approachable, accessible manner, followed by more indepth discussion into topics such as "thought viruses" and reframing one's thinking.

The latter sections are laid out like mini therapy sessions, where the hypothetical "you" are discuss how to manage spiralling , catastrophising thought patterns. While these "therapy sessions" worked really well in the audio form, the theory behind these discussions often referenced previous pages or diagrams - which obviously don't work as well in audio format.

The narration was clear, conversational, and warm, and I enjoyed listening to this. I give this a 3.5/5 rating, only because I would have liked a visual reference to accompany the theories mentioned.

~ Many thanks to NetGalley for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review~

I listened to the audio version of this helpful little book. Its a quick enough listen at 2 hours and while it doesn't delve too deeply into helping with the problem of anxiety, it does provide helpful tips on how to manage anxious thoughts based on CBT. I am sensitive to the voices of narrators and that can impact my enjoyment of audio books.

I received an arc of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I have similar feedback with this one as I had with the other novel that I listened to by this author. This was nothing special, in my opinion

Many moments throughout this book resonated with me and hit home. The tone is conversational (including some colorful language) and provides some insight from the author, a clinical psychologist. It was an interesting read and would appeal not only to “overthinkers” and those living with anxiety but also to those interested generally in the field of psychology.

I really enjoyed listening to this audiobook, worrying and constantly overthinking on things is a hard habit to break but while listening to this audiobook I was so uplifted and motivated that putting in the work was something I really wanted to do and when done consistently it really does make a difference, especially at bedtime.

This was just ok. It kept harping back to a previous book and a lot of the structure of the book was in the form of an imaginary interview, which I just didn't get anything out of. The main thing that I took from the book was to try to stop saying 'what if' and to try to focus on current fact. Good advice.

*received for free from netgalley for honest review* This was a GREAT and very useful read! wow, honestly i had to read it one chapter at a time because it was so good i didn't want to miss any of the self-help stuff, one of the best self-help books i have ever read.

I am an overthinker! This book is exactly lining out what I am going through and gives really good tips! Especially the last 21 point list is so good. Very helpful to print, write it down or just have wherever you can just see it!
This book lines out many examples I find myself in and gives really good insight. At some of them I actually needed to laugh out loud since it was so me!

It is not a book about overthinking it is also a tool to reflect and realize a lot of things I wouldn't think about. Homework exercises help to do so. Cognitive therapy was mentioned a lot even though this book is not about cognitive therapy.

My favorite is to reflect on situation, thoughts and feeling. A real eye opener when you start analyzing situations.

Overall I really enjoyed this second book (first book: the book of knowing).

This is the type of book that explains things so well that lightbulbs go off constantly while you read it. There were many moments where I felt like Gwendoline Smith had spied on me and taken direct quotes from my life. I felt like I knew myself better.

That being said, there is not a lot of "actionable" help or strategies until the final quarter of the book. Most of the book focuses on helping people identify the anxious thoughts and record their thoughts and emotions. That seems like great advice for someone who may not be self aware, but it may not be as helpful for someone who KNOWS s/he is overthinking and can even acknowledge how ridiculous his/her thought cycles are. At that 75% point in the book, there were suggestions for how to identify the "thought viruses" in your mind and by naming and acknowledging them, overcome them. Reframing your vision of these thoughts as outside viruses that you can eliminate makes them less powerful than thoughts that you see as your own and as valid, true ideas.

All that to say, I think this book would be great for people with mild anxiety or those who are interested in therapy but want to know what to expect and what strategies might be presented. This is definitely a book I want to read again to better absorb.

Also note - this book has several instances of curse words (fucking, fuck-all, etc.) which means that I would be more careful recommending this to a younger reader or even my grandmother... I found it kind of random to include.

Why did I listen to The Book of Knowing and The Book of Overthinking?
I decided to listen to the advanced copy of The Book of Knowing and The Book of Overthinking because they were all about untangling your brain and calming it down. The author Gwendoline Smith is a clinical psychologist and has written these books as guides to access and understand your feelings. As I work towards self improvement these kinds of books are always on my radar.

What's the story here?
These two books are guides for the reader to understand and manage their feelings. The first, The Book of Knowing, focuses on the basics of cognitive behavioral therapy. It is presented in an easy and accessible way. The second, The Book of Overthinking, delves a little but deeper into topics of overthinking, worrying, and ruminating. Similarly to the first, it is all presented in an accessible way, and includes strategies for the reader to improve upon.

How did I like The Book of Knowing and The Book of Overthinking?
The Book of Knowing is presented for a younger audience but has information that can be used by all ages. It breaks down how the brain works and what happens when the brain gets overwhelmed. The breakdown of what happens when the brain is stressed out and filled with anxiety was very interesting. It helped me understand how my mind works when it is so overwhelmed. There were also techniques provided as to how to alleviate these symptoms.

The Book of Overthinking continues with this topic and provides more examples of techniques that can help an individual. I really liked the template presented throughout the book. It forces the individual to breakdown what is actually going on and how to process it. It is slightly problematic with some of the wording (i.e. fat shaming) and with a well intended book, there should be a way to make it more open and accessible. It could also feel a little bit repetitive especially after listening to The Book of Knowing.

How was the narration?
Both The Book of Knowing and The Book of Overthinking are narrated by Liza Seneca. The way that she narrated the material helped it flow which helped with the occasional dryness. She captured the intent of the book with her pace and intonation. Overall, this guide is not preachy and instead helps open up the conversation on mental illness and how it can affect the brain.

I was excited when I saw the release of the (audio-)book and wasn't disappointed. It's a well-done self help and also general thoughts-to-let-run-through-your-brain book. I liked that the author didn't dwell for hours on every single aspect - but seriously, I think that the book isn't a waste of time for anyone. Sometimes it's the bits of our selfs or what happens in daily life, and it does no harm to reflect on them

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for providing an audiobook!

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

As an overthinker, this book helped me with valuable realisations regarding the unneeded stresses. The therapy like tone felt fun and informal, definitely improving the experience.

For the most part, this book was able to teach me coping strategies, however often it turned into a dictionary, spitting facts and definitions at me, changing the tone from "therapy session" to a dictionary.

I struggled with the format however, since it was through audio, there were many times when it seemed the author was just saying letters to me or telling me to flip to another page, which was quite annoying, therefore I believe the experience would be much better through ebook or physical format

I'm not usually one for self-help books but I did really enjoy reading The Book of Knowing which was the earlier book from this author, and I shared that book with lots of students at school who found it useful and interesting. I was keen to read this next one. It is more focused on adults and I got a lot out of it personally. As someone who is mad keen on worrying it had some great exercises which I will continue to use, but it also clarified and put a name to what is happening in my brain when I do worry. I'm perfectly capable of overthinking the most ridiculous things and it is good to know that that isn't unusual or weird, but something I can do something about.

This was an audiobook from NetGalley and I listened to it doing that most mindful of things, an enormous jigsaw puzzle. I found it really great to listen and contemplate the way I worry, to take notes and later mull over some of the learnings.

Thanks to NetGalley for access to this audiobook. Great reader and lots of thoughtful listening

Thanks to Netgalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing for the ARC and audio ARC of this!

This was a good introduction to CBT and how to use it for anxiety and overthinking. As a chronic overthinker, I think I need to hear this a million times until it sinks in 😂 I read it following The Book of Knowing and for such short books they do have quite a bit of overlap. I recommend this if you struggle with overthinking and want some clear tools in one place. The narrator did a good job, but unless you are going to look at the supplemental material, I think a little is lost without the images.

This audiobook was a quick listen but full of helpful material for chronic overthinkers like myself. I really liked the layout of the book, a journey through multiple sessions of cognitive behavioral therapy. I do think this would be better as a physical book than audio, solely because of the “homework” exercises and charts/graphs throughout; however, the audio format translated these materials well. I think I’ll take these lessons with me long after finishing the book!

This one really hit home. I enjoyed listening! The author really goes into detail and is knowledgeable about anxiety.

Thank you Netgalley for the audiobook!

At first, I was hesitant in listening to a book about Overthinking. I know, I was Overthinking it, lol. Therefore, I decided to give it a shot. I'm glad I did!

The book covers the difference about worry and overthinking. It gives you an easy, everyday approach to not overthink. I like that the exercises are old school, just right your worries on paper and analyze them on a scale. No app, no nothing, just good old fashioned paper. I have tried the techniques and for the most part, it works.
Mind over matter!

A very simplistic way of thinking. Don't get me wrong, it's not simple. The concept is!

I liked listening to this book, but I took a while to write this review (on purpose) and I don't remember a lot from it.
Maybe it would be a better book to read so it will "stick", although I think the narrator did a good job.

Even though I didn't read the book that came before this one, it was a good listen! I often overthink everything and allow my thoughts to shape my feelings and day. This book gave me tidbits on how to work through those moments and what to do in the future when feeling those negative or anxious feelings coming on. This book would work great alongside therapy!

Narrator was good. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

A helpful guide for those with the tendency to overthink. Some parts were a little dry, but the book contained really good insights and food for thought. I listened to the audiobook which was perfectly narrated by Liza Seneca.

Thank you NetGalley and the publishers for providing this ebook/audiobook ARC. All thoughts are my own.