Reads that improve your health

Humans by Brandon Stanton:

• this book is a collection of short responses from people around the globe (over 40 countries and five years) regarding their lot in life
• the pictures of these people tie beautifully to their stories
• Stanton’s first book, Humans of New York, evolved into a storytelling phenomenon that spans the globe with an audience of millions of people
• this book ties to my personal travel experiences in both a sad and happy manner
• if more people traveled the world, I think they would gain a better appreciation of how to treat their fellow ‘Humans’ regardless of their background
• Humans is an easy book to pick up as each story is short and quite enthralling

 

Uplifting Stories by Ione Butler:

• Ione is the founder of Uplifting Content, a social media platform followed by over 1.4 million people, and has interviewed some of the most inspiring people in the world
• in this book, she shares remarkable stories and the lessons these people have learned to help the reader through life’s many challenges
• the stories explored themes like human connection, overcoming adversity, service to others, and the pursuit of passion
• Butler, who struggled with depression herself, firmly believes that focusing on the good in the world helped bring her back from the brink (AMEN on that)
• the one story that blew me away was Daniel Kish, a blind man who learned to ‘see’ using echolocation
• it took me a while to get into this book as some of the stories were quite sad, but I guess that is often part of the journey to get to the uplifting part of life
• it’s not a must-read, as she is not a seasoned writer, but it did get better as it went along and ended with some powerful stories and messages

• Ione is a British actress, host, voice-over artist, and entrepreneur  (we need more people doing what she is doing)

 

Breath by James Nestor:

• there is nothing more important than the 25,000 or so breathes we take each day, yet most of us have never studied the science behind it
• journalist James Nestor traveled the world to figure out what went wrong over time and how to fix it
• Nestor tracked down men and women exploring the hidden science behind ancient breathing practices and teamed up with pulmonary tinkerers to test long-held beliefs about how we breath
• Breath was written in a fashion that the layperson can understand and apply in their everyday life
• for me, it was a great tie into the daily meditation practice I’ve been doing through one of my yoga instructors
• my personal opinion is that the most important things to focus on for optimal health and wellness are breathing, hydration, sleep, and nutrition