This Naked Mind: Control Alcohol, Find Freedom, Discover Happiness & Change Your Life

by Annie Grace

A groundbreaking and inspiring book that challenges our relationship with alcohol by exploring the psychological factors behind alcohol use and the cultural influences that contribute to dependency.

Many people question whether drinking has become too big a part of their lives, and worry that it may even be affecting their health. But, they resist change because they fear losing the pleasure and stress-relief associated with alcohol, and assume giving it up will involve deprivation and misery.

This Naked Mind offers a new, positive solution. Here, Annie Grace clearly presents the psychological and neurological components of alcohol use based on the latest science, and reveals the cultural, social, and industry factors that support alcohol dependence in all of us. Packed with surprising insight into the reasons we drink and Annie’s own extraordinary and candid personal story, This Naked Mind will open your eyes to the startling role of alcohol in our culture, and how the stigma of alcoholism and recovery keeps people from getting the help they need.

This Naked Mind will give you freedom from alcohol. It removes the psychological dependence so that you will not crave alcohol, allowing you to easily drink less (or stop drinking). With clarity, humor, and a unique blend of science and storytelling, This Naked Mind will open the door to the life you have been waiting for.

“You have given me my live back.” —Katy F., Albuquerque, New Mexico

“This is an inspiring and groundbreaking must-read. I am forever inspired and changed.” —Kate S., Los Angeles, California

“The most selfless and amazing book that I have ever read.” —Bernie M., Dublin, Ireland

Genres: Nonfiction, Health, Self Help, Psychology, Audiobook

263 pages, ebook

Published October 12, 2015

Reviews

[Megan Darland · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was hard to get through. It was very boring and seemed to be written by someone who struggles with alcohol addiction, but decided to use her addiction to make everyone else think they could become addicted. She says anyone can be an alcoholic, and she does not believe in addictive personalities. It was more of an opinion piece than anything scientific or clinically backed. One sentence she says she doesn’t judge and the next she’s judging the friends she’s with for drinking and feeling superior to them for not… it’s so bizarre.

[Rhoda · Rating 5 out of 5]

I may not drink, but knowing the dangers (mental and physical) sure makes me want to not begin. This is a great tool for the true seeker. You cannot help someone who does not want to be helped, but this book gives great tools for mindset and lifestyle choices. There is no spiritual or religious influence on this book, purely science-based.

[Grace R · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some great points and enlightening data, but a little intense/black and white, with some over the top analogies. Watching friends drink when you’re sober is not the same as watching friends get onto the titanic…

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really good examination of drinking and habits and our brains. Some of the same information as The Alcohol Experiment but delivered differently

[Morgan McGee · Rating 4 out of 5]

I appreciate the scientific stance Annie Grace takes in evaluating why people drink and how this affects our psychology. The liminal points interspersed throughout the book are incredibly helpful and necessary to understand alcohol’s place in our culture and its consequential influence in our minds.

The only reason I didn’t give this book 5 stars is because the writing sometimes felt less educational and more like a sales pitch, however, it’s still informative and important enough that I wouldn’t let that discourage anyone from reading this book anyway. This was a great read overall!

[Lacey Houston · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book… WOW.
I originally picked it up as part of a fitness and weight-loss program where I had decided to cut back on drinking. But after listening to this audiobook, I’m seriously considering giving up alcohol altogether. Annie Grace has a way of rewiring your thinking and completely reframing what it means to drink.

She presents the information with clarity, compassion, and evidence in a way that makes you take an honest look at your relationship with alcohol. The book shines a light on how deeply normalized drinking is in our culture, yet when you peel back the layers, you realize it’s far more harmful than beneficial.

I recommend the audio version as her narration is especially powerful—her soothing, compassionate voice truly becomes the voice in your head when you consider having that drink. It makes the experience even more personal and impactful.

This isn’t just a book—it’s a perspective shift. It’s helped me see alcohol in a new light, and I know the impact will stay with me long after finishing it.

[Valerie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book for diving into the neuroscience of the mind how we know that alcohol is a poison to the body=mind yet we continue to have a drink socially, end of the day to relax, etc. I loved her research and how the books just changes your perspective on what alcohol is and how it is marketed to the world. Great book for readjusting your views on what is actually serving you in life or slowly taking away from your energy....and even sleep, etc.

[Danielle Nelson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Life changing read. As a former big drinker, this book completely changed my views on alcohol and drinking. I read the book and decided to take a 3 month break from alcohol…. Fast forward 4 years later and I haven’t picked up a drink since. This booked changed my life and rewired my brain. I highly recommend to anyone looking to reexamine their relationship with alcohol.

[Kristina Essenmacher · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am always intrigued with reading books on improving our health so the title of this book caught my eye. Although there were some great points and scientific references, I could not connect with this author. The writing was very repetitive and all over the place finding it hard to decipher the meaning of the chapters.

[Nate Lindgren · Rating 5 out of 5]

Completely flips societies perspective on alcohol upside down.

[Lexie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Haven’t drank since I read this book. Highly recommend for anyone considering stopping alcohol.

[Robban Fleege · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the most compelling and convincing books on controlling (quitting or cutting back on) alcohol. It is a smart book that gives beyond obvious insights...like how alcohol is the "perfect" product: it's a consumable product. It is sweet (sugar alcohOL)so you have a biological attraction to it. It is diuretic so consuming it actually makes you more thirsty, so you drink more. As you drink more your inhibitions, standards and judgement are lowered and impaired...and finally the "best" part is, it's addictive. I listened to the audio (couldnt find the audio version here on GR) - well read, by the author herself.

[Colleen Frizzell · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not a fan of this book. I’ve been reading a lot of quit lit to learn and support my sister who struggles with alcohol addiction. This book felt biased, judgmental, and self-righteous. I appreciate parts of the book that speak to the mindset of someone who struggles with addiction. However, the focus on marketing and advertisements felt misplaced. As a casual drinker (less than once a month), I felt uncomfortable with the generalizations and judgments about anyone who chooses to drink at all, even if someone does not struggle with alcohol use. Maybe this is more helpful for someone in active addiction or questioning their drinking. I didn’t find it helpful as someone who is looking to provide support and does not have problems with alcohol use myself.

[John Mason · Rating 1 out of 5]

note: this is a subjective and unflattering opinion, sorry if it offends anyone, i hope it doesn't stop anyone on their journey to quit alcohol.

this read like she was assigned an essay, chose alan carrs quit smoking and decided to plagiarize the entire thing chapter for chapter.

the reason quit smoking is great is because he picks apart each piece of a smokers psychology in a logically consistent way. the harder and more logically you look at it the more sense it makes.

in contrast the attempts at parallels lack significance because drinking and smoking are not the same. many of the conclusions she attempts are just not strong enough. the harder you look at what she's saying the less it fits with reality.

there are very few, if any, new psychological ideas in this book related uniquely to alcohol and none of them are explored in a way that resonates with me.

with each fallible, loosely related point her premise felt weakened and i grew more annoyed because there are actually so many good points to make about quitting alcohol.

her glorification of marketing seemed self aggrandizing and annoying. yes yes we are all puppets to your profession, look how you've pulled the wool over our eyes only to now pull it away. in your mind it seems we are all in your power either way.

it felt like her goal was counting on being able to reprogram the reader to quit drinking rather than deprogram them from their existing issues and the harder she pushes it that way the less interested i, and people like me, will become.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

A book that trains you to realise how we have been conditioned by society to believe alcohol is an essential part of life, and most necessary in social situations to have a good time. Yet Alcohol is an addictive drug that does more harm than good. It equips you with the knowledge to stop putting this poison that is Alcohol into your body, that affects both your body and mind. Maybe alcohol doesn't have to be a lifelong drug after all?

[Courtney O'Leary · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a life-changing book. I have had my eyes fully opened. I have taken breaks from alcohol, but have struggled to fully stop. Especially given how ingrained it is in so many of my activities, memories, and traditions. But I’m pretty excited to live a life without alcohol and it’s bizarre Unspoken yet expected role in our life. It’s like a giant elephant in the room. Everybody drinks all the time and it’s in every movie and every commercial and every ad and at every party and every festival and every event and I’m sick of it. I’m sick of how it makes me feel, I’m sick of how it makes me questioned myself. I’m sick of how it Makes me want it when I’m feeling uncomfortable or tired, I’m sick of how it messes up my sleep, I’m just over it. Totally and 100% over booze and this book helped me figure out why and how to really read it from my life without missing it. I always missed it before when I’d go for a sober month I always felt like I was missing out and missing out on the fun and depriving myself of the fun and I don’t feel that way anymore. Feel free. It’s fucking awesome. I will recommend this book to absolutely fucking everyone.EDIT: reread. Good to reread to reinforce my understanding of the insidious nature of booze in our society as I go sober for the year. I was mostly sober last year, but November was a slippery slope.

[Katelyn Brewer · Rating 5 out of 5]

This books is a terrific resource for reprogramming your unconscious behaviors relating to alcohol. Too anyone struggling with moderating their drinking, really anyone who drinks, I would highly recommend this book. It’s amazing to take a look at the societal conditioning and programming around alcohol with an objective viewpoint. In the past, I thought I was being objective, but reading this book helped me to see where I was skewed.

[Caity Dillard · Rating 5 out of 5]

This had great perspectives on everyday “reasons” to drink that help empower me to quit drinking. This was a great reading exercise early in sobriety that I leaned on a lot.

[Salli Maddalo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing book! Has really helped me through my first 30 days of sobriety!

[RS · Rating 5 out of 5]

This Naked Mind completely changed the way I understand alcohol, and more importantly, the way I understand myself.

This isn’t a book about willpower, shame, or labels. Annie Grace gently dismantles the stories we’ve all been told about drinking and replaces them with something far more empowering: awareness, choice, and compassion.

What makes this book so powerful is that it doesn’t tell you what to do. Instead, it helps you see alcohol clearly, without fear, guilt, or pressure, so you can decide what role, if any, it plays in your life. The shift is subtle but profound. Once you see it, you can’t unsee it.

Beyond the book itself, Annie also offers a free 30-day course for people who are questioning their relationship with alcohol or struggling to change their habits. NO this is not an advert. I just love Annie! It’s an incredibly generous, supportive resource, and truly life-changing for many. The fact that something so impactful is offered freely speaks volumes about her approach and integrity.

This book (and the course) helped me feel informed, empowered, and calm, not deprived or broken.

If you’ve ever felt conflicted about drinking, curious about changing your habits, or simply want a healthier relationship with alcohol and yourself, this is an exceptional place to start.

Highly recommend. 🌱

[Deidre · Rating 2 out of 5]

I picked up this book because I want to be mindful of when and what I drink. I don’t have a drinking problem… I don’t use alcohol to change how I act or numb feelings, and I don’t crave alcohol or obsess over the next drink. However, drinking is a huge part of the culture where I live that I don’t want drinking alcohol to become the default.

This book is written by a marketer so the use of stats, the causation/correlation distinction, the inferences and conclusions she comes to are wishy-washy at best. Very repetitive because her goal is to reprogram the reader because she believes that we are all doomed to become addicted to alcohol if we drink at all. Feels like this was written so the author can avoid calling herself an alcoholic.

I do think that we should treat alcohol like we now treat cigarettes. We should stop glamourizing alcohol and we should make all the health and social risks clear. The author has also created a community to support people who are giving up drinking. It is well known how essential community and support is to recovery so I have to give her credit for the good that has come out of her finding sobriety.

And listening to her repeat about drinking poison six million times is sure to help me be mindful about how much I drink.

[Jamey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I originally started this book to further educate myself on reasons why I should be for decreasing my alcohol intake, as I have been noticing into my 4th decade, I feel much healthier when I do not drink. In addition, as a health care provider and current recommendations stating no alcohol is safe for your health, I know this may be a great resource for my patients. The book puts many areas into perspective (delving into tolerance, dependence, marketing, health outcomes, childhood trauma experiences), further enlightening a path to consider an alcohol free life. Parts I enjoyed most were including scientific studies or evidence, as some other areas felt a bit of a rambling tangent, and repetitive, which is why I gave it 4 and not 5 stars. I have considered my relationship with alcoholic much differently now, and I am truly grateful I found this book.

[Kelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was intrigued by the title and decided to go ahead and read the book. It was full of information with cited sources. The pro of the book is that it could help people who want to become sober. The cons of the book are that it was a bit repetitive after awhile and secondly, the author came across as biased based on her negative experiences with alcohol.

A middle ground was not encouraged. The author's stance was very clear that alcohol will eventually destroy the life of anyone who has a drop if they don't stop drinking completely.

I would highly recommend the book to someone who wants to stop drinking.

I'm not sure it's the right book for adults who drink responsibly and occasionally.

[CARLA · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was only......ok. I was waiting for some mind blowing new information that she promised in the beginning. What I got was a bunch of analogies and random facts about neuroscience with no real direction. I'm glad I read it because there were couple things I didn't know. But I had to read it with a grain of salt because she very obviously oversimplified a lot of the research and manipulated it to make her point sound a lot stronger that it was. To put it simply, alcohol is a poison and you can spontaneously be sober if you really want to. That's it. Insert lots of research and studies mixed with her own stories.

I am disappointed.

[Klase Licata · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you have ever questioned the role alcohol plays in your life, I recommend this book. While I don’t completely relate to the author’s experience, the mix of the author’s vulnerability with the insane amount of research opened my eyes to the “WHY”. She invites you to change your relationship with alcohol by giving you real facts, science, personal stories and more. This book was recommended to me after speaking with a friend about alcohol giving me terrible anxiety….and I can see why. While reading, I found myself thinking about my own experiences, how it all makes sense, and how I want to use the information provided to improve.

[Courtney Hays · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book, it offered good perspective. The whole idea is to retrain your mind to view alcohol as the poison it is. The last few chapters were repetitive and less informational. Another reader described it as sales pitchy - I agree. It felt like the author was trying really hard to convince the reader of what she believes to be absolute truths, some of which are opinion (ex. alcohol tastes bad). I’m walking away with more of an understanding of how alcohol is physically detrimental, but I am not 100% convinced that my goal is total sobriety.

[Amber · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book does a great job of challenging everything we’ve been taught to believe about alcohol. Each chapter breaks down a common belief, like needing a drink to relax or enjoy social situations, and gives solid reasons why that might not actually be true. The author encourages readers to get curious and try life without drinking, just to see how it feels. It really opened my eyes and made me realize I don’t need alcohol to have fun, and if I feel like I do - I probably wasn’t going to have fun to begin with.

[Deanna Perkins · Rating 5 out of 5]

I decided to read this as I was beginning my alcohol-free journey. The statistics given are chilling. The concerns I had being away from alcohol are addressed in this book (apparently I'm not the only one with the concerns about how I will act in public/private). I recommend this book to EVERYONE.

A thought to carry you through: Alcohol is the only drug that our society has stigmatized NOT doing, yet it's the most dangerous addition.

[Delaina Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked reading this book. It allowed me to take a step back to look how society views alcohol, and really focused on how Marketing has positioned at my entire life.

I do think she takes it to a dramatic level by saying alcohol is the worst drug out there. I definitely don’t believe that, but I do believe alcohol has held me back on having a more fulfilling life.

Going to be alcohol free…. For at least awhile. Let’s see how this goes.

[Radmila · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am gonna tell everyone I care about about this book!
played with the idea of stopping to drink for a few months, and took longer and longer breaks, but living without alcohol seemed impossible. Then I read this book and stopped. And it’s so easy! And I’m so happy. Give it a try if you have some doubts about how alcohol is serving you.