While this book had good, easy to understand explanations of the scientific concepts surrounding the human nervous system and why/how it gets out of whack, and some of the tips for dealing with that were interesting (dog mind vs. lion mind, for example), I found the ultimate 5-step healing plan too unrealistic. The steps are unrealistic and out of reach for many people who are living in a constant hyper-alert or trauma response state. Good in concept, but I'm not sure how often this works in the "real world."

I was unable to finish this book because of accessibility issues. It was only available on the NetGalley shelf app and the pages couldn’t transfer to dark mode, so I got headaches every time I tried to read it, since I deal with light sensitivity. But from what I read, I was enjoying the book and felt like it was going to be full of valuable information, so I will be picking it up again sometime in the future!

Thank you Fair Winds Press and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this arc.

Deepest thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC. This one is a spectacular read—really and truly. Granted the hyper-connectedness of social media, the atomized micro-trends of mental health infographics, and the sheer profitability of what I have deemed to be the Wellness Industrial Complex, "nervous system regulation" seems to be one of those nifty terms that's been folded into the "SEO Goldmine" as of late. The mind-body connection, however, as well as the social implications of regulating one's nervous system, are nothing to gawk at. Rather, the zeitgeist seems to be keenly interested in what seems to be ailing us. More specifically: that nameless, formless, and overwhelming thrum of anxiety that many of us experience in the day-to-day. One morning, we all seemed to wake up realizing we morphed into the existential dread dog. Kafkaesque, indeed.


Adding to this, emerging science, more often than not, is constantly cluing us into just how much we don't know about the nature of the human mind (frankly, it's quite a lot). Clearly, the need for quality, attainable resources for the public (read: those without at least a couple mental health degrees) is evident. Dr. Passaler's book seems to bridge this wide information gap. She presents a wealth of well-researched, categorically spectral information on the science of the nervous system. In doing so, she pays great mind to exploring a variety of perspectives and disciplines, which proves vital, as many books of this kind seem heavily predicated on "selling" you on a single vantage point through which to understand such complex, hyper-individualized issues of this kind.


This, I cannot stress enough: we have, societally, been introduced to a brand-new stream of reading material explicitly dedicated to the "worldwide ick" that seems to be permeating the air. As with cultural issues of generations past, experts and businesspeople alike seem to be converging upon a cure to that which ails us. Most of the "growth and healing" literature emerging out of this moment is yielding a dearth of true quality, however, proving more reminiscent of the snake oil self-help boom of the 2010's rather than the psychological revolution of the mid-1900's (thank you, Maslow and Rogers). The numerous pop psych books one has to wade through to snag the rare metals in the bunch (take Gabor Mate's "The Myth of Normal" as one glimmering example) signal the dire importance of the matter. After all, mental health awareness; when extricated from truth, ethics, and academic integrity; might actually be doing more harm than the stigma itself. Such is the crux of any profitable endeavor these days: it's vulnerable to profit-generating exploitation.


This is all to say that I take books about human physiology with more scrutiny than optimism. I am glad to say that this book is something of a masterclass as it regards approaching these challenging, multi-faceted discussions. This is done through the utilization of dense, well-formatted chapters alongside practically applicable information that is presented in a way that is relatively easy to understand. It is evident by Passaler's aggregated research that she has made great strides to acknowledge a wide variety of perspectives. Granted that she covers as much territory as she does here: environmental stressors, individual trauma, sensory processing disorders, etc., one would consider a multi-disciplinary approach integral.

And mind you, there truly is a great deal of information in this book. I actually committed to buying a print copy to refer back to on occasion. As a student of psychology and a 20-something who has wrestled with an intensely dysregulated nervous system, this book slams it down on both bases. Herein lies the second important consideration: Passaler does not fill her book with theory extracted from necessary praxis. The modalities she discusses throughout the chapters grant quite a few "here's what to do about this" practical approaches. This is done without neglecting the need for rigorous academic scrutiny. That scrutiny is tempered with perspectives that often compliment—and occasionally contradict— the current structure of Western psychology. Passaler even acknowledges the need for a fair measure of doubt, so long as atomized experience is taken into serious consideration. Even further, things like community care and essential basics are not shirked in lieu of complex, "bleeding edge" approaches to a dysregulated nervous system.


If you are someone who digests literature of this nature for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, you will likely be re-treading many of the same pathways. However, I also believe you will be pleasantly surprised here. The tests are a useful utility that I believe will help many feel validated and more self-aware. There might even be those who, for the first time, will be given both an acknowledgement of—and language for—the intense experience of sensory processing disorders. I'm aggressively hopeful for others to begin implementing the 5-Stage Plan presented. Thank you, deeply, Dr. Passaler.

The Demon Beast parable was the perfect example to introduce this pandemic of Nervous System Dysregulation. I have had the physical, visible and or emotional signs of this since I was a kid and like so many grown folks I just carried on. Speaking as an ACODF and presently going through some heavy dysregulation as of this review... Not enough resources, attention or services are available to prevent or treat this issue. I had to go down a rabbit hole of research to learn self regulation techniques. Her global revolutionary program is necessary but not accessible to those who sees such a thing (as her services) as a luxury. Health Care in America capitalizes on cure so not much is invested in providing access or information to prevention education and services. The book gives guidance on how to do this and her ambassador program is a great initiative to help promote this knowledge. Still these practices are a long way of becoming the norm for certain populations. As a practitioner of daily meditation, breath work, Yoga and MSC I can attest that the drugs prescribed never assisted in my sanity maintenance as much as these Holistic Practices. This is important work, I hope to share it with as many folks as possible. #HealYourNervousSystem #NetGalley

As a yoga teacher I am fascinated by the nervous system and regulation/ deregulation. This book was great as an addition for tricks and explanation behind our behaviours and reducing stress! Thank you so much for the book!

I think this is a very important book if you want to understand how your nervous system works, and the symptoms of dysregulation. The reader is gently guided through the informative stages, and I feel that without this, implementing change would be impossible. If you do not know how and why things happen the way they do, challenging a different response is like walking a never-ending hill.

The author stresses the importance of taking each of the stages slowly. You will start by identifying your symptoms, your stressors, and also the things which make you feel calm. Before even starting stage 1, I learnt some valuable sensory stimulation techniques, such as taking 30 seconds at the end of my shower to be in cold water, and using rocking motions to calm the mind. Even without progressing through the book any further, I felt these were incredibly valuable.

I have yet to reach the end of the five stage journey in this book, but I look forward to meeting each one as I am ready.

I thought this book covered the topic in a very thorough manner but it wasn't the most readable book I've come across. The pages were all just a wall of text which I found quite daunting when dealing with this sort of subject matter. - I would have preferred more bullet points, or text boxes or just something to break up the layout a bit and make it feel more accessible to someone who is coming at the topic from the perspective of a person with GAD rather than someone with a science background. I liked the "Do this" sections at the end of the chapters.

Healing: A meeting of science and practical application
This book excels in explaining the intricate working of the nervous system and what makes it „tick“. At the same time Passaler gives a lot of practical exercises to try it out for yourself: I came to love the sections „Do this“. It is very satisfying to the inquiring mind that Passaler gives solid scientific background and it is even better to get a very hands-on approach to healing.
As a longcovid patient I try to make sense of what is happening to me and had already discovered the impact of the dysfunction of my nervous system, specifically the vagus nerv. Passaler‘s book broadens the horizon even more and on my on-going healing journey I found her advice very helpful.
Let me mention another vital aspect of this book: It is compassionate - it gave me as a reader space to discover on my own without relentlessly admonishing „to get better soonest“. I felt in the good hands of friend who listens and who lets me come to my own conclusions. The book is itself a shining example of mindfulness.
Highly recommended.

I received an ARC via netgalley. The review is left voluntarily.

Was not able to download this book for some reason... and will not let me removed from my shelf. I was excited to read this book and sorry to say that I was not able to!

I really enjoyed the opening chapters of this book, there was a lot that resonated and the idea of nervous system dysregulation was explained in a clear and precise way. There were some useful strategies listed in the initial chapters however some of the information later on seemed very generic and felt very much like telling you what to do rather than showing. Overall, a useful read.

This book offers a comprehensive, science-backed approach to overcoming anxiety, burnout, and chronic symptoms through nervous system regulation. Dr. Passaler's 5-stage plan empowers readers to understand their unique nervous system and implement personalized strategies for healing. While acknowledging the limitations of conventional medicine, the book emphasizes the profound impact of nervous system health on overall well-being, particularly for highly sensitive individuals. This is not a quick fix, but a roadmap for lasting change, providing practical tools and insights to tackle the root cause of symptoms and restore physical, cognitive, and emotional balance.

This came at just the right time for me. Full of great information and practices to put into action. Super helpful. Thank you so much for the ARC.

I truly believe healing the nervous system is healing our whole system. Having lived a lifetime with C-PTSD, I have found this book to be extremely helpful on my healing journey. I really appreciate how clear and accessible this book is. I’m so grateful to the author and NetGalley for my copy of this book. It’s a game-changer!

I would recommend this book to people who know they’re dealing with dysregulation but are unsure where to start in determining their needs and how to meet them, with a huge caveat that this isn’t a handbook for treatment of anything. The strongest aspect to me would be the included exercises and the accompanying resources more than the text in itself. The weakest is the notable failure to touch on the topic of mental illness and other neurodivergencies; it feels like a major oversight considering the subject matter that is almost too glaring not to be intentional. I think this book could be improved with more awareness of neurodiversity beyond “identifying as a trauma survivor is bad, but identifying as a highly sensitive person is good”. Either way, I personally have no interest in reading this author’s work going forward.

The text is coherent overall, but it’s a bit of a slow read. Its structure was a bit clunky at times, with the flow having some issues on account of rephrasing the same things several times per chapter. A majority of the chapters themselves are necessary for the book, though the last handful focused on the author rather than the topic of the book feels like it could have all been condensed into one afterword. Some of the language encouraged versus discouraged in this book gives me pause. As I harkened to earlier, the Highly Sensitive Person concept is founded on obscuring and erasing other, more specific labels (frequently Autism and C-PTSD) that can lend more support and resources to someone, and the amount of emphasis placed on that here while seemingly shaming people for identifying as a survivor sits with me wrong. I feel like there are ways of communicating the concept of someone having more complex regulatory needs, and the idea that we do not have to be inherently trapped with our trauma even though it has shaped us, etc without being so callous.

There is a lot of information in here but it’s quite advanced so it’s more of the next step after beginning your nervous system journey. It’s a great resource for the shelf though.

This book is dense and full of useful information, I'm taking it slowly, allowing myself to digest the information and then trying to apply it in my life. I don't think this is a book I'll ever actually complete because I will keep coming back to it.

Thank you for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Heal Your Nervous System is honestly the best kind of January book to read. I went through a pretty big trauma and life shake up a couple of years ago, and I’m still re-learning regulation and working to heal my nervous system and thought patterns. And for most people, Covid didn’t help ease anxiety either. So I’ve been reading about the nervous system a lot over the last couple of years, and I really appreciated the tactile practical advice and steps in this book. It’s a book that acknowledges how hard change is. It’s not selling an easy fix, but it also didn’t feel daunting, and I have appreciated the steps I’ve already implemented in my life and all the education and research summarized. There’s fantastic little quizzes that help you breakdown how regulated or dis-regulated you are too which I also found helpful.

I took my time reading it, because I really wanted to absorb it all. And it’s the kind of book I want on my bookshelf and will likely end up buying a copy of so I can keep refreshing or reading specific reminders.

Thanks so much to NetGalley, Quarto Publishing Group and Linnea Passaler for the arc to read. All thoughts and opinions are mine.

"Heal Your Nervous System" provides a 5-step program to help your nervous system shift back into relaxed states and become more resilient. There wasn't much science in the book beyond talking about the different states of the nervous system, from relaxed to fight/flight/freeze states. The author did refer to some studies about how different actions can help you change how you react to stress and be able to handle more stress.

She started by talking about signs of nervous system dysregulation (including a quiz to indicate where you are on the scale) and factors that affect how your nervous system responds to stressors and trauma (like how sensitive you are, genetics, childhood safety levels, and bonding to your caregivers). She then covered each step in a 5 stage program. She suggested small actions or contemplations that take 5-15 minutes She stated you shouldn't make too many changes at once, and many of the activities fit into daily life rather than being things you need to find time to do. The 5 steps involve learning awareness of your reactions, regulating your nervous system, restoration of healthy patterns, connecting with others, and expanding your capacity to handle stress. At the end, she told more of her story and how Buddhism influenced her life (and her program). Overall, I felt like she had helpful advice.

Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for providing a free copy in exchange for an honest review!

4.75 stars

This book directly addresses some issues that many of us, including myself, seem to struggle with in this fast-paced world. The presented visuals, comparisons and exercises are very useful in order to better understand and work on these problems, so it’s a good idea to look into them regularly. I also like that the book has a whole community and additional online resources built around it.

Overall, an easy-to-read material about an important topic, including a lot of relevant information. The book is also written in a gentle voice, making it almost soothing to read and apply. Some key parts that I liked:
- discussing spirituality through relevant stories
- discussing the current medical system and its issues
- healing the mind is not enough, as emotions are also related to the body
- how society usually sees sensitivity negatively vs. the actual advantages of being sensitive
- how stress is also important for a regulated nervous system

There is just one main thing that does not let me give a perfect score to this book. I feel that some of the passages were rather repetitive and some ideas could have been written in a more condensed style. Also, the last two chapters containing also the author’s story might have made more sense if placed in the beginning of the book or included in a longer epilogue. I enjoyed hearing a bit about the journey that led to healing, though.

A great guide with easy-to-read steps for healing one's nervous system. Includes up-to-date science and a gentle touch that readers will find incredibly helpful. Definitely buying this for my personal library!