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A Mind Pretending to Be Me: How a F*cked-Up Mind Can Set You Free
OCD, anxiety, and the experience of intrusive thoughts are intelligent survival responses for a person who learned to doubt their natural instincts. Let's set aside the idea of chemical imbalance for a moment. The mind, just like the rest of the system, is only ever trying to help us—even if it is causing tremendous suffering.
The key to freedom is not trying to change the mind. The key to freedom is realizing that we have never been the mind. Not a single thought is yours or about you (even if it sounds like you). You have always been and will always be the intelligent awareness that notices the thoughts.
In A Mind Pretending to Be Me, Katherine Keen Velasquez empathetically walks through how confusion about identity and addiction to the mind begin. She also shows how a messy, chaotic mind is trying to wake you up to the magical truth of who you are. These topics are explored in a down-to-earth, unfiltered, and uncensored way through her personal experience.
This book will help you to:
• Find the freedom of being totally fine with every thought or feeling
• Start experiencing the wonder of every precious moment instead of living with your attention fixated on your mind
• Stop believing the voice of your mental personal narrator as truth, which is the root of mental illness
• End the addiction to your mind that keeps you small and confined
• Tap into your limitless potential by introducing you to the incredible intelligence that you are
• Be more present, mindful, and at peace
The key to freedom is not trying to change the mind. The key to freedom is realizing that we have never been the mind. Not a single thought is yours or about you (even if it sounds like you). You have always been and will always be the intelligent awareness that notices the thoughts.
In A Mind Pretending to Be Me, Katherine Keen Velasquez empathetically walks through how confusion about identity and addiction to the mind begin. She also shows how a messy, chaotic mind is trying to wake you up to the magical truth of who you are. These topics are explored in a down-to-earth, unfiltered, and uncensored way through her personal experience.
This book will help you to:
• Find the freedom of being totally fine with every thought or feeling
• Start experiencing the wonder of every precious moment instead of living with your attention fixated on your mind
• Stop believing the voice of your mental personal narrator as truth, which is the root of mental illness
• End the addiction to your mind that keeps you small and confined
• Tap into your limitless potential by introducing you to the incredible intelligence that you are
• Be more present, mindful, and at peace
246 pages, Paperback
Published April 1, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
April 11, 2026
I unfortunately DNF’d this book. I had high hopes based on following the author on Instagram and requesting an ARC. My jumbled up thoughts are below:
While there are some great descriptions of mental health issues, I have some concerns about how the author’s personal experiences seemed to color every aspect of the concepts presented throughout the book. While I don’t always think this is a con, in this instance it’s hard to tell what kind of book I’m reading. Is it supposed to help me understand my own mental health and how to overcome challenges or is it supposed to be giving me a new perspective on mental health through the author’s life experience? Is this a memoir? It was tough to categorize.
I really enjoyed the perspective. It felt very similar to my own life story and experience. It put a lot of words and descriptions to things I have rarely been able to identify in my own life. I believe having words and other experiences that you can relate to your own is a very empowering part of the mental health journey. Without language and corroborating stories, it almost seems impossible to navigate your own way to help and healing.
I felt very uneasy about a lot of the relation of mental health to childhood experiences. I am not of the opinion that it never makes a difference, but I do think there is often more to the story for people who struggle with mental health from childhood into adulthood or those who experience sudden onset in adulthood, though they may have grown up in loving households with mostly uneventful childhood experiences. In my experience and in a lot of reading I’ve done, it isn’t always helpful to trace every challenge we face in adulthood back to childhood. It also seems that this often excludes the research that mental health should be approached from a whole body perspective, viewing it all from the lens of the childhood experience ignores this aspect completely.
The tone of the book and language is easy to read and understand. The concepts are broken down well. I noticed one or two typos. I wish there was a more informed approach to the concepts described, many of the books I’ve read from professionals or even those with lived experience will include research or psychological terminology to reflect concepts. Without this, the reader is left to take the author at her word and try to piece together how it fits in with the research that has been done.
My biggest critique (that others may not see any issue with) is the crass way the author speaks at times. This always bothers me in mental health books because it can not only be triggering, but it can also be alienating for those who do their best to stay away from books with language. I understand that the cover includes language, but I was hopeful that it would not be a recurring theme throughout the book. This frustrates me in the mental health space, it feels so unnecessary to include language just to emphasize a point or make the reading more relatable.
I was also very frustrated by the negativity toward Christianity, though this may be someone’s lived experience, it alienates those who are Christian and do believe in God. That is what ultimately made me decide to DNF this book about 60% and 115 pages in.
Disclaimer: I did not read the author’s method or belief system about how to approach healing or recovery, so I cannot speak to any of those concepts.
Here’s a quote that felt eye opening and helpful:
“The problems that our mind creates are not real, and therefore, they have no solution. This is why you probably handle crises in the concrete world rather well, and then hopelessly flounder in your mind’s stories related to your anxiety.”
Here’s a quote that felt somewhat off-putting for me:
“The thing is, there is nothing wrong with you. There never was. You only came to believe that because of the teaching and treatment of the confused and probably abused people who took care of you when you were a child. So this navel-gazing and tail-chasing is completely nonsensical. It’s time to wave goodbye to that crazy train and sink your teeth into real life. What the hell are you waiting for?”
While there are some great descriptions of mental health issues, I have some concerns about how the author’s personal experiences seemed to color every aspect of the concepts presented throughout the book. While I don’t always think this is a con, in this instance it’s hard to tell what kind of book I’m reading. Is it supposed to help me understand my own mental health and how to overcome challenges or is it supposed to be giving me a new perspective on mental health through the author’s life experience? Is this a memoir? It was tough to categorize.
I really enjoyed the perspective. It felt very similar to my own life story and experience. It put a lot of words and descriptions to things I have rarely been able to identify in my own life. I believe having words and other experiences that you can relate to your own is a very empowering part of the mental health journey. Without language and corroborating stories, it almost seems impossible to navigate your own way to help and healing.
I felt very uneasy about a lot of the relation of mental health to childhood experiences. I am not of the opinion that it never makes a difference, but I do think there is often more to the story for people who struggle with mental health from childhood into adulthood or those who experience sudden onset in adulthood, though they may have grown up in loving households with mostly uneventful childhood experiences. In my experience and in a lot of reading I’ve done, it isn’t always helpful to trace every challenge we face in adulthood back to childhood. It also seems that this often excludes the research that mental health should be approached from a whole body perspective, viewing it all from the lens of the childhood experience ignores this aspect completely.
The tone of the book and language is easy to read and understand. The concepts are broken down well. I noticed one or two typos. I wish there was a more informed approach to the concepts described, many of the books I’ve read from professionals or even those with lived experience will include research or psychological terminology to reflect concepts. Without this, the reader is left to take the author at her word and try to piece together how it fits in with the research that has been done.
My biggest critique (that others may not see any issue with) is the crass way the author speaks at times. This always bothers me in mental health books because it can not only be triggering, but it can also be alienating for those who do their best to stay away from books with language. I understand that the cover includes language, but I was hopeful that it would not be a recurring theme throughout the book. This frustrates me in the mental health space, it feels so unnecessary to include language just to emphasize a point or make the reading more relatable.
I was also very frustrated by the negativity toward Christianity, though this may be someone’s lived experience, it alienates those who are Christian and do believe in God. That is what ultimately made me decide to DNF this book about 60% and 115 pages in.
Disclaimer: I did not read the author’s method or belief system about how to approach healing or recovery, so I cannot speak to any of those concepts.
Here’s a quote that felt eye opening and helpful:
“The problems that our mind creates are not real, and therefore, they have no solution. This is why you probably handle crises in the concrete world rather well, and then hopelessly flounder in your mind’s stories related to your anxiety.”
Here’s a quote that felt somewhat off-putting for me:
“The thing is, there is nothing wrong with you. There never was. You only came to believe that because of the teaching and treatment of the confused and probably abused people who took care of you when you were a child. So this navel-gazing and tail-chasing is completely nonsensical. It’s time to wave goodbye to that crazy train and sink your teeth into real life. What the hell are you waiting for?”
March 30, 2026
This book is for a scared child now living in an adult body navigating through life. For a dreamer who once learned to overthink. For someone who puts so much importance to the mind.
Life seems to complicated as you grow older, but it really isn't. This book helped me see how the mind is actually different from our existence as a human being, and that I don't need to listen to my thoughts or be afraid of the Ego voice trying to control my life. I am strong enough and complete enough to deal with real life problems on my own. I do not need my inner narrator trying to "solve" issues that it creates.
This book helps untangle the webs that our minds create and to see the vicious cycle that we cannot escape, even though the escape is always there – it's not our thoughts, it's ourselves.
I would highly recommend this book to anyone suffering from anxiety or intrusive thoughts, it's easy to follow as the chapters are not long, and it gives real life examples that help a lot, too.
Life seems to complicated as you grow older, but it really isn't. This book helped me see how the mind is actually different from our existence as a human being, and that I don't need to listen to my thoughts or be afraid of the Ego voice trying to control my life. I am strong enough and complete enough to deal with real life problems on my own. I do not need my inner narrator trying to "solve" issues that it creates.
This book helps untangle the webs that our minds create and to see the vicious cycle that we cannot escape, even though the escape is always there – it's not our thoughts, it's ourselves.
I would highly recommend this book to anyone suffering from anxiety or intrusive thoughts, it's easy to follow as the chapters are not long, and it gives real life examples that help a lot, too.
April 24, 2026
If you or someone you know struggles with OCD, please have them read this book! I can’t say I agree with 100% of the books examples, but I clearly saw the points she was trying to make. I have never read a story so similar to my own. She put words to thoughts and experiences I have struggled with for years.
April 8, 2026
I really loved reading this book! Very helpful in understanding the mind and other people with these same issues. I will definitely recommend this to friends!
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews