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Good Morning, I Love You: Mindfulness and Self-Compassion Practices to Rewire Your Brain for Calm, Clarity, and Joy
Learn how self-compassion can change everything about how you feel, how you relate, and how you live—for good
“Revolutionary findings in neuroscience have demonstrated that we can change our happiness setpoint. But it’s not through changing our external world. It’s through changing our internal landscape,” writes Shauna Shapiro. In Good Morning, I Love You, Dr. Shapiro—one of the leading scientists studying the effects of mindfulness on well-being—shows us that acting with compassion toward ourselves is the key.
In short, lively chapters, Dr. Shapiro explains the basic brain science and offers numerous mindfulness and self-compassion practices. Stories from her life and research demonstrate how this powerhouse combination alleviates anxiety, boosts creative thinking, and enlarges our sense of belonging and purpose.
We can see it on brain scans. Negative and critical thoughts (and the vast majority of our thoughts are negative) cause the part of the brain responsible for learning to literally shut down. Kind and self-compassionate thoughts, by contrast, turn on the parts responsible for growth and change. With practice, we can literally rewire our brains for greater feelings of calm, joy, and possibility.
Try it and see . . . even if it makes you squirm. When you wake up tomorrow, take a deep breath, hand on heart, and say, “Good morning, I love you.” Then try it the next day. And the next. See what happens.
“Revolutionary findings in neuroscience have demonstrated that we can change our happiness setpoint. But it’s not through changing our external world. It’s through changing our internal landscape,” writes Shauna Shapiro. In Good Morning, I Love You, Dr. Shapiro—one of the leading scientists studying the effects of mindfulness on well-being—shows us that acting with compassion toward ourselves is the key.
In short, lively chapters, Dr. Shapiro explains the basic brain science and offers numerous mindfulness and self-compassion practices. Stories from her life and research demonstrate how this powerhouse combination alleviates anxiety, boosts creative thinking, and enlarges our sense of belonging and purpose.
We can see it on brain scans. Negative and critical thoughts (and the vast majority of our thoughts are negative) cause the part of the brain responsible for learning to literally shut down. Kind and self-compassionate thoughts, by contrast, turn on the parts responsible for growth and change. With practice, we can literally rewire our brains for greater feelings of calm, joy, and possibility.
Try it and see . . . even if it makes you squirm. When you wake up tomorrow, take a deep breath, hand on heart, and say, “Good morning, I love you.” Then try it the next day. And the next. See what happens.
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November 5, 2019It seems universally true that people forget everything they’ve read in self-help books the minute they put them down—otherwise we’d all be thirty, flirty, and thriving. What a relief, then, that this book is unlike its peers. Good Morning, I Love You is a guide to mindfulness and self-compassion by psychologist Shauna Shapiro. Decades of research and personal experience culminate into a logical, science-based explanation of mindfulness that is also conversational and engaging. Short chapters avoid rambling and challenge readers to practice and reflect. As a person with anxiety, this book is just what I needed—concepts that therapists have been prescribing me for years have finally clicked!
September 17, 2019
What a lovely, insightful and stimulating book! If you purchase just one book on mindfulness this year, choose, Good Morning, I Love You!
January 8, 2021
20210108 ◊ Meh. Not bad, but thoroughly unoriginal, right down to the quotations used for the chapter introductions. There wasn't anything in here that I haven't already read somewhere else. The personal anecdotes were an unfortunate blend of saccharine, tiresome, and annoying. Solid but recycled content, better read elsewhere -- or at the very least, by someone who hasn't previously read any other books on mindfulness.
March 19, 2024
Böylelikle 41. çevirimin de sonuna gelmiş bulunmaktayım. 41 kere maşallah diyelim 😂
Normalde kişisel gelişim kitapları okumayı sevmem ama Farkındalık uygulaması ile ilgili olan bu kitaptan öğrendiğim birçok şeyi günlük hayatıma sokmayı düşündüğümü söyleyebilirim.
Hayatın telaşına kapılıp sevdiklerinize ve en çok da kendinize gereken özeni ve şefkati göstermiyorsanız bu kitap tam size göre ;)
Normalde kişisel gelişim kitapları okumayı sevmem ama Farkındalık uygulaması ile ilgili olan bu kitaptan öğrendiğim birçok şeyi günlük hayatıma sokmayı düşündüğümü söyleyebilirim.
Hayatın telaşına kapılıp sevdiklerinize ve en çok da kendinize gereken özeni ve şefkati göstermiyorsanız bu kitap tam size göre ;)
September 6, 2024
Another one of those books that feels life changing. How would I feel if I said this every morning when I woke up? Before I get on my phone, before I think about what I have to do, before anything else, say good morning, Marie, I love you. Hmmm. I want to find out!
This book has so many gold nuggets. I love learning about how the brain works and how it’s possible to rewire for kindness and curiosity - two things I am valuing more and more. Love this book! Highly recommend if you want to learn about mindfulness (intention, attention, and attitude) and how we can choose how we live our lives.
Some favorite quotes I want to write down:
Renowned painter Salvador Dali advised, "Have no fear of perfection, you'll never reach it."
One of my favorite zen sayings embodies this paradox: "You're perfect as you are, and there is room for improvement."
As the brilliant psychiatrist Dan Siegel reminds us, "We are always in a perpetual state of being created and creating ourselves."
Where we focus our attention becomes our life.
Self-esteem needs success to prove your self-worth, whereas self-compassion says you are worthy no matter what.
"Let me fall if I must fall. The one I will become will catch me," said the venerated eighteenth-century rabbi Baal Shem Tov.
As meditation teacher Satchidananada says, "You can't stop the waves, but you can learn how to surf."
Pain in life is inevitable. Suffering, on the other hand, is optional.
Suffering = pain x resistance
Name it to tame it.
This book has so many gold nuggets. I love learning about how the brain works and how it’s possible to rewire for kindness and curiosity - two things I am valuing more and more. Love this book! Highly recommend if you want to learn about mindfulness (intention, attention, and attitude) and how we can choose how we live our lives.
Some favorite quotes I want to write down:
Renowned painter Salvador Dali advised, "Have no fear of perfection, you'll never reach it."
One of my favorite zen sayings embodies this paradox: "You're perfect as you are, and there is room for improvement."
As the brilliant psychiatrist Dan Siegel reminds us, "We are always in a perpetual state of being created and creating ourselves."
Where we focus our attention becomes our life.
Self-esteem needs success to prove your self-worth, whereas self-compassion says you are worthy no matter what.
"Let me fall if I must fall. The one I will become will catch me," said the venerated eighteenth-century rabbi Baal Shem Tov.
As meditation teacher Satchidananada says, "You can't stop the waves, but you can learn how to surf."
Pain in life is inevitable. Suffering, on the other hand, is optional.
Suffering = pain x resistance
Name it to tame it.
May 17, 2020
I was looking for a book about mindfulness, and was pleasantly surprised by the mixture of the author’s warm tone and scientific knowledge. Some of my favorite takeaways are being mindful of your intention, attention and attitude. Also, that your brain chemicals literally change based on your thoughts. If you are thinking negatively, your brain produces chemicals that inhibit clear thinking and learning. Conversely, when you are thinking kind, compassionate and curious thoughts, your brain produces chemicals that can help you make sound decisions. This is why, Dr. Shapiro suggests, it is good to bring kindness into difficult situations. Good Morning, I Love You is full of wisdom on mindfulness, and I wholeheartedly recommend it to anyone interested in developing a more a compassionate way of being.
December 30, 2019
I think back 3 months I have been going around and wishing for self help book and when I got email that I am selected to review this book from net galley I got very excited . So I downloaded it and start reading and what I find in this book is peace and different ways to bring mindfulness in your life . A good book for everyone out there who need a little peace in there life .
February 23, 2025
I think my fav mindfulness book i've ever read . 10/10 & will be reading again
March 14, 2021
This was my first full book on mindfulness; Dr. Shauna Shapiro’s wisdoms brought such a clarity, joy, and curiosity to my life. I hold so much excitement for investigating her and her colleagues work further.
October 28, 2020
First of all, I like this book. I did mean to give it 4 stars. But there are several problems with it. If it were any less helpful it would get 2 stars based on these, because some are merely stupid but some are quite heinous:
Shapiro says multitasking is bad and hard and says you can try it yourself by saying the alphabet, counting to 26, and then trying to say A1 B2 C3 etc. to Z26. Yes, it’s harder - because you’re actually doing that, working it out in your mind, not simply reciting something you learnt as a small child. It’s equally hard to say the alphabet backwards (unless that’s something you’ve practised), and that’s clearly not multitasking. I do believe what she's saying about multitasking in particular & the value of attention more generally, but that's such a ridiculous example.
There’s also some confusion when she seems to state that a symptom of depression, lack of curiosity, is a predictor of depression. This doesn’t make a lot of sense. I’m sure it is also a predictor, because what we call the symptoms of depression are simply descriptions of an emotional state with fuzzy edges, but it makes this whole passage pretty useless. And there’s a study about inventors where she’s saying pretty much “could you have guessed that being mentally healthy makes you more successful?” It’s like come on, you already know we are depressed, we bought your self help book, there’s no need to rub it in.
There’s a section where we’re supposed to see a soldier confessing what must have been heinous misdeeds and still accepted by a bunch of fellow I assume murderers as surprising or heartwarming or something. What he did is not explored or named in any way. At first he says it’s what he “did” - after being successfully treated by Shapiro he refers to it as what “happened”, which is worrying, but whatever. This is the treatment men - and she does say they were all men - who have done wrong get. Boundless compassion or something right? (She later goes in to how self compassion predicts motivation to make amends and to change, which is all great.) But not for fat women, who are specifically called out twice for their sin of “self-indulgence” (as if overeating isn’t actually self-harm!) and called amongst other things “such a pig”, “slackers”, and “couch potatoes who eat Twinkies all day long and never exercise”. This is supposedly in the guise of exploring their unhelpful thoughts, but it really stands in contrast to the other example where it apparently wasn’t necessary to even say what he did - or even ultimately that he'd done anything at all! - let alone how he might berate himself over it, for us to imagine that he was doing so. Never mind the implication that PTSD is a manly soldier disease and not mainly suffered by abused women - I had thought this was rather passé by now but apparently not. It's annoying to read this kind of thing in any book, and especially disappointing in a book by a woman.
Amazingly for a supposedly science based book, she promotes forgiveness and says it’s necessary for healing. This is a common myth, anyone should be able to reason out why it’s not true (and, most importantly, why people say it is true) and there are studies to this effect, too. It’s so disappointing. Because she leans on a (very obviously biased, due to the name of the institute!) study to support this, it puts all of her other “oh, a study found...” into serious doubt. It’s acceptance that lets people move on, not forgiveness, and she was already promoting acceptance. Makes no sense.
I didn't read all the hundreds of studies she used, but I am suspicious about them all after some of these - even when I really believe in what she's saying! For example, she says she has a study that shows happy people earn more. No shit, right? But interesting if they really found something like that. I guess it would tally with what we know about income and sex, ethnicity, disability, etc... and it would be interesting if people's (understandable, expected) reaction to oppression could be a factor as well as the oppression itself. I found an updated version of the study she referenced, uploaded for free by the same authors, that says things like “The cheerful students (especially those with high-income parents) tended to earn more than the students who had rated themselves as less cheerful”. That’s evidence for their theory you see, that it’s happiness - and the choice to be happy - that predicts income. This is positively anaemic, intellectually.
She also promotes gratitude, which has plenty of studies showing it hurts as well as that it helps. She says ooh loads of cultures do it, well yeah, it’s a religious thing shared by many cultures. As is what she calls toxic shame and rails against. Perhaps it can help people who believe in a creator of one kind or another, but for me - not believing anyone created me aside from my mother, and not believing she has any control over my life - I’ve no-one to be grateful to for the majority of my experiences. Like forgiveness, people try to redefine these words to mean something other than what they mean when it seems to be impeding their proselytising, but forgiveness means you forgive them in exactly the way that “please forgive me” implies, and gratitude means you thank someone for what they’ve done for you. They involve another, however real or imaginary (including eg writing letters you don't send). They aren't purely internal things or you & your vague, general circumstances things. Acceptance and joy are, though!
All that said, there is some good stuff in this book. Though Shapiro's habit of relying on studies unnecessarily is a bit weird (she even comments on it herself at one point), I guess there may be readers for whom happiness isn't enough and who need to be told that they'll eg have healthier hearts and do better at work and so on. Most of the exercises are useful, though some seem repetitive (though again it may be deliberate and a matter of different yet similar exercises suiting personal taste and needs).
Shapiro encourages you to make a note about each chapter at the end and provides a few sample summary sentences for you to choose from, or you can write your own. I did this, using a mixture of her samples, my own conclusions, and slightly longer quotes - but there was a chapter or two where nothing either resonated or was new/difficult to me to the point where I thought writing it down would be useful, and I wrote 2 or 3 things about some chapters where there was a lot I thought would help me. I don't suppose it matters - and it's probably a good way to approach all nonfiction! That's something I didn't think I would learn from this book :)
The final chapter & exercise is about the phrase in the title. I bought the book after reading an article with a snippet from I think the first chapter (Shapiro's personal story of scoliosis) on Goop, and because something about the title attracted me. I've never been one for affirmations, especially hyper positive ones like "I love you", or the idea of ritually saying them every morning - seems so false. But honestly, it's really powerful. I haven't managed to say the full one yet - I had enough difficulty with just "good morning, [me]", which I really did not expect. I'm not sure if it's the exercise itself or the effect it had on me after reading through the whole book and doing the preceding exercises (well, most of them, and half-heartedly at that, I'll admit - I've always been atrocious at meditation, though this book helped me see that that's a silly thing to believe/say)
If you think you can stomach the problems I highlighted, and anything at all about this book appeals to you, I really recommend it.
Shapiro says multitasking is bad and hard and says you can try it yourself by saying the alphabet, counting to 26, and then trying to say A1 B2 C3 etc. to Z26. Yes, it’s harder - because you’re actually doing that, working it out in your mind, not simply reciting something you learnt as a small child. It’s equally hard to say the alphabet backwards (unless that’s something you’ve practised), and that’s clearly not multitasking. I do believe what she's saying about multitasking in particular & the value of attention more generally, but that's such a ridiculous example.
There’s also some confusion when she seems to state that a symptom of depression, lack of curiosity, is a predictor of depression. This doesn’t make a lot of sense. I’m sure it is also a predictor, because what we call the symptoms of depression are simply descriptions of an emotional state with fuzzy edges, but it makes this whole passage pretty useless. And there’s a study about inventors where she’s saying pretty much “could you have guessed that being mentally healthy makes you more successful?” It’s like come on, you already know we are depressed, we bought your self help book, there’s no need to rub it in.
There’s a section where we’re supposed to see a soldier confessing what must have been heinous misdeeds and still accepted by a bunch of fellow I assume murderers as surprising or heartwarming or something. What he did is not explored or named in any way. At first he says it’s what he “did” - after being successfully treated by Shapiro he refers to it as what “happened”, which is worrying, but whatever. This is the treatment men - and she does say they were all men - who have done wrong get. Boundless compassion or something right? (She later goes in to how self compassion predicts motivation to make amends and to change, which is all great.) But not for fat women, who are specifically called out twice for their sin of “self-indulgence” (as if overeating isn’t actually self-harm!) and called amongst other things “such a pig”, “slackers”, and “couch potatoes who eat Twinkies all day long and never exercise”. This is supposedly in the guise of exploring their unhelpful thoughts, but it really stands in contrast to the other example where it apparently wasn’t necessary to even say what he did - or even ultimately that he'd done anything at all! - let alone how he might berate himself over it, for us to imagine that he was doing so. Never mind the implication that PTSD is a manly soldier disease and not mainly suffered by abused women - I had thought this was rather passé by now but apparently not. It's annoying to read this kind of thing in any book, and especially disappointing in a book by a woman.
Amazingly for a supposedly science based book, she promotes forgiveness and says it’s necessary for healing. This is a common myth, anyone should be able to reason out why it’s not true (and, most importantly, why people say it is true) and there are studies to this effect, too. It’s so disappointing. Because she leans on a (very obviously biased, due to the name of the institute!) study to support this, it puts all of her other “oh, a study found...” into serious doubt. It’s acceptance that lets people move on, not forgiveness, and she was already promoting acceptance. Makes no sense.
I didn't read all the hundreds of studies she used, but I am suspicious about them all after some of these - even when I really believe in what she's saying! For example, she says she has a study that shows happy people earn more. No shit, right? But interesting if they really found something like that. I guess it would tally with what we know about income and sex, ethnicity, disability, etc... and it would be interesting if people's (understandable, expected) reaction to oppression could be a factor as well as the oppression itself. I found an updated version of the study she referenced, uploaded for free by the same authors, that says things like “The cheerful students (especially those with high-income parents) tended to earn more than the students who had rated themselves as less cheerful”. That’s evidence for their theory you see, that it’s happiness - and the choice to be happy - that predicts income. This is positively anaemic, intellectually.
She also promotes gratitude, which has plenty of studies showing it hurts as well as that it helps. She says ooh loads of cultures do it, well yeah, it’s a religious thing shared by many cultures. As is what she calls toxic shame and rails against. Perhaps it can help people who believe in a creator of one kind or another, but for me - not believing anyone created me aside from my mother, and not believing she has any control over my life - I’ve no-one to be grateful to for the majority of my experiences. Like forgiveness, people try to redefine these words to mean something other than what they mean when it seems to be impeding their proselytising, but forgiveness means you forgive them in exactly the way that “please forgive me” implies, and gratitude means you thank someone for what they’ve done for you. They involve another, however real or imaginary (including eg writing letters you don't send). They aren't purely internal things or you & your vague, general circumstances things. Acceptance and joy are, though!
All that said, there is some good stuff in this book. Though Shapiro's habit of relying on studies unnecessarily is a bit weird (she even comments on it herself at one point), I guess there may be readers for whom happiness isn't enough and who need to be told that they'll eg have healthier hearts and do better at work and so on. Most of the exercises are useful, though some seem repetitive (though again it may be deliberate and a matter of different yet similar exercises suiting personal taste and needs).
Shapiro encourages you to make a note about each chapter at the end and provides a few sample summary sentences for you to choose from, or you can write your own. I did this, using a mixture of her samples, my own conclusions, and slightly longer quotes - but there was a chapter or two where nothing either resonated or was new/difficult to me to the point where I thought writing it down would be useful, and I wrote 2 or 3 things about some chapters where there was a lot I thought would help me. I don't suppose it matters - and it's probably a good way to approach all nonfiction! That's something I didn't think I would learn from this book :)
The final chapter & exercise is about the phrase in the title. I bought the book after reading an article with a snippet from I think the first chapter (Shapiro's personal story of scoliosis) on Goop, and because something about the title attracted me. I've never been one for affirmations, especially hyper positive ones like "I love you", or the idea of ritually saying them every morning - seems so false. But honestly, it's really powerful. I haven't managed to say the full one yet - I had enough difficulty with just "good morning, [me]", which I really did not expect. I'm not sure if it's the exercise itself or the effect it had on me after reading through the whole book and doing the preceding exercises (well, most of them, and half-heartedly at that, I'll admit - I've always been atrocious at meditation, though this book helped me see that that's a silly thing to believe/say)
If you think you can stomach the problems I highlighted, and anything at all about this book appeals to you, I really recommend it.
April 13, 2024
Нищо ново като идея, но лек подход и доказателства с научни статии за всички проучвания. Това само по себе си печели точки.
February 3, 2020
Shauna starts the book with the story of how she got a metal rod in her spine and how that experience, although negative at the outset, changed her life. She discovered mindfulness and its power to live a different and happier life.
Mindfulness literally means clear sight, which means seeing what is, not what you want to. Mindfulness is not just about what you are paying attention to, it's also about your attitude (of kindness & compassion) and intention. These are the three pillars of mindfulness practice. And because it is a practice, you need to keep practicing.
"What you practice grows stronger"
There is a small section on neuro-plasticity and Shapiro encourages us to practice positive neuroplasticity which means intentionally focusing on areas that are in sync with your intention.
Shauna focuses a lot on self-compassion throughout the book. She mentions various studies and shares examples of her patients who have been able to heal through self-compassion. There is a section here that I loved, instead of paraphrasing her, I would just quote her.
"When faced with adversity, many of us respond in one of the two ways. We either turn on ourselves, our minds filled with self-judgement and shame. Or we try to paper over mistakes with rationalizations and pep-talks intended to boost our self-esteem. These coping strategies don't work because both are defense mechanisms that distract us from the underlying issues."
Here self-compassion works. We become mindful of the issues and have energy to heal them. Shame doesn't work, mindfulness works.
My favorite chapter was 'Six practices for tough times' where Shapiro shares the practices of - acceptance, emotional regulation, shifting perspective, compassion, radical responsibility, and forgiveness.
Each chapter ends with a mindfulness practice and an invitation to write a 'gold nugget' from the chapter to remember and practice later. This worked well.
I would end this review with one of my favorite lines from the book, which was in the very first chapter.
"I knew that despite everything that had happened, and whatever might happen, there was something within me which was indestructible."
I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley.
Mindfulness literally means clear sight, which means seeing what is, not what you want to. Mindfulness is not just about what you are paying attention to, it's also about your attitude (of kindness & compassion) and intention. These are the three pillars of mindfulness practice. And because it is a practice, you need to keep practicing.
"What you practice grows stronger"
There is a small section on neuro-plasticity and Shapiro encourages us to practice positive neuroplasticity which means intentionally focusing on areas that are in sync with your intention.
Shauna focuses a lot on self-compassion throughout the book. She mentions various studies and shares examples of her patients who have been able to heal through self-compassion. There is a section here that I loved, instead of paraphrasing her, I would just quote her.
"When faced with adversity, many of us respond in one of the two ways. We either turn on ourselves, our minds filled with self-judgement and shame. Or we try to paper over mistakes with rationalizations and pep-talks intended to boost our self-esteem. These coping strategies don't work because both are defense mechanisms that distract us from the underlying issues."
Here self-compassion works. We become mindful of the issues and have energy to heal them. Shame doesn't work, mindfulness works.
My favorite chapter was 'Six practices for tough times' where Shapiro shares the practices of - acceptance, emotional regulation, shifting perspective, compassion, radical responsibility, and forgiveness.
Each chapter ends with a mindfulness practice and an invitation to write a 'gold nugget' from the chapter to remember and practice later. This worked well.
I would end this review with one of my favorite lines from the book, which was in the very first chapter.
"I knew that despite everything that had happened, and whatever might happen, there was something within me which was indestructible."
I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley.
May 27, 2020
My mom bought this book for me and it was a perfect read during these hard times of Covid. Great advice and lots of positivity in this book. I like how Shauna shares her own personal experiences and how she handled different situations. I would recommend this book and moving forward I’m going to practice every morning saying “Good morning, I love you.”
March 7, 2021
I loved this book, it was very instructive and helped me improve my practice. It is a self-improvement read, written by a clinical psychologist that talks about mindfulness and how it can help be more self-compassionate towards ourself and others. It includes many meditation/mindfulness practices and journaling exercises that helps you integrate the learnings and live a happier life! I recommand!
November 20, 2023
so simple and obvious yet profound. anyone and everyone can benefit from reading this
November 5, 2025
I already had an idea of more or less everything that is in the book due to many read books on psychology and many years done in therapy. But it did still help me keep myself much more aware of the intention with which I do things. Which then helps to endure inconveniences on the way and to treasure more other shapes or forms of what I would seek, not just the shape I would initially imagine.
January 11, 2025
I came across this book by chance in a Half Price Books in Dallas. I was with my dad and I was ready to leave but he was on the phone so I took another lap around the store. I saw this book and the title intrigued me but I was unsure about buying it or not. When I grabbed this book there was a christmas card in it for a friend with a cute note in it. I ended up getting it and I’m eternally grateful. I’m so glad my dad took me to that store and I’m so glad he took that phone call and I’m so glad I ended up with this book. This is a book I could reread everyday and not get tired of it. I found myself taking pictures of my favorite pages so I wouldn’t forget them. I also took pictures of different pages to send to my loved ones. This book brought me so much joy. At some parts I read quickly because I couldn’t get enough of it. Other parts I read slowly so it wouldn’t ever end. I love this book so much. It made me laugh and cry and smile. It explained the science backing up the positive impact of mindfulness without it feeling like a textbook. You could feel the authors warmth through her words on the page. The chapter where she talked about awe was by far my favorite. There’s always something that makes me fall in love with life even more. Some days it’s good food other days it’s a sunrise and every time I read this book it made me fall in love. Not only did it make me love life more than I already do but it made me appreciate it more. I was in awe reading this book.
January 25, 2021
I took my time reading this book and doing most of the practices, and I highly recommend this book to those interested in working on self-compassion. Shapiro's shares the research that supports self-compassion and provides compelling anecdotes as evidence of its power.
I appreciated the practices and realized that the practice protocols were often more helpful than open journaling or brain-dumping. The systematic approach of moving from intention, to attention, to attitude supported me in making helpful shifts.
My biggest takeaways? Approach everything, even your anxiety and fears, with kindness and curiosity.
This book gets my highest compliment: it gets a place on my bookshelf as I know I will revisit it regularly.
I appreciated the practices and realized that the practice protocols were often more helpful than open journaling or brain-dumping. The systematic approach of moving from intention, to attention, to attitude supported me in making helpful shifts.
My biggest takeaways? Approach everything, even your anxiety and fears, with kindness and curiosity.
This book gets my highest compliment: it gets a place on my bookshelf as I know I will revisit it regularly.
November 26, 2020
I liked it. It had very useful tips presented in a very accessible manner. Things I didn't love were the workbook style with practice this and write that sections. That's nothing against the book, I'm sure some people like that. The other thing was that several studies were repeated from other things I have read lately. Again, nothing the author did wrong, just the fact that I have read several meditation/mindfulness books lately.
One other note about the tone, it seems like this was probably written pre-pandemic so for a brand new book, parts seem a little out of touch with current events.
One other note about the tone, it seems like this was probably written pre-pandemic so for a brand new book, parts seem a little out of touch with current events.
January 9, 2021
Simply put, this book has changed my life. It came to me at a time when my anxiety was so intense, I didn’t know where to turn. Learning mindfulness the way Shauna has delivered has opened my eyes to a whole new world of clarity and peace. If you buy one book on mindfulness this year, make sure it’s Good Morning, I love you!!
April 8, 2025
“Some days I feel awkward, some days I feel lonely and raw, and some days I feel profound love. Whatever I feel, I keep practicing, and every morning, this pathway grows stronger.”
What a wonderful overview of the power of mindfulness and self-compassion! There was a lot of info regarding happiness, neuroplasticity, and kindness as well. I’ve read a lot about these topics, but never in a book that feels so comprehensive, intuitive, and well-organized--- especially regarding the inclusion of a lot of research. I loved how each chapter included summaries of research and findings that were easily digestible (lots of books I’ve read that talk about mindfulness feel so textbook and hard to follow at points!) while also giving readers concrete exercises to try while relating each topic to everyday life. Although I had already read about most of these studies, I loved how empowering this felt. I’d definitely recommend this for anyone who’s curious about the practical applications of mindfulness, or for anyone like me who often just needs a little push to be reminded of the power of changing some of our small daily habits. This is one of those books that feels straightforward and simple, but that also holds an incredible amount of depth. It inspired me to keep practicing self-compassion and to be hopeful.
Some helpful reflections/reminders for myself:
-What we practice grows stronger. Practice, not perfect.
-Lottery study findings: After a year, winners of the lottery return to their baseline levels of happiness. External changes won’t shift our baseline happiness, but internal changes can.
-London taxi drivers study findings: studying hard for The Knowledge test actually created measurable changes in the brain, causing growth of the hippocampus.
-Piano exercises study: Just imagining exercises actually creates physical changes in the brain in just the same way as literal practice!
-Multitasking does not actually work. It can actually cost up to 40% of someone’s productive time.
-Dishwashing study: what makes us happy has far less to do with what we’re doing and far more to do with whether we’re present. “Whatever you’re doing, whether you love it or loathe is, you’ll be happiest and most effective if you are present.”
-Studies shows that when we are judgmental and shaming instead of kind and curious, the learning centers of the brain shut down, shuttling resources to our survival centers and robbing us of the resources we need to effectively respond.
-Donut study: Researchers found that dieters who were in the control group and told nothing before being asked to eat a donut in the study were very hard on themselves after eating the donut and had higher levels of guilt and shame than those in the study who were encouraged to be self-compassionate about eating the donuts. What’s more, when they were later given the opportunity to eat as much candy as they wanted as part of a “taste testing” session, they ate less candy than those in the control group. Fostering self-compassion lead to healthier and happier decision making.
-Self esteem needs success to prove your self-worth, whereas self-compassion says you are worthy no matter what.
-Study: Students who were encouraged to be more compassionate were more successful on a test, because they saw the failed test as an opportunity to learn rather than failure.
-Study: self-compassionate individuals were described by their partners as more caring, acceptive, and respectful. Self-critical counterparts were more detached, aggressive, and controlling with their partners.
-Study: When students named emotions in faces that they saw, the brain scans showed that their amygdala actually calmed down. By simply identifying emotions, the students put a brake on emotional reactivity.
-“If I am aware of my sadness, my awareness isn’t sad. No matter how bad you may feel inside, the part of you that knows how bad you feel is standing apart from it. This is the part that can help you get through.” --- this is definitely something I’m still processing!
-Study: “growth spurters” were randomly selected, but the teachers’ expectations and beliefs in the students’ abilities resulted in higher test scores. “If you seek to find the good in others, you are more likely to draw it out.”
-Concept of “mudita:” or empathic joy. Sharing in someone’s happiness, focusing on their joy, and then wishing to find that own type of joy in your life. “May your happiness continue. May I find your happiness as well.”
-Lovingkindness meditation: After calling to mind a loved one, next call to mind a person who loves you before thinking of yourself. This helps to open up your heart to thinking positively about yourself. Never heard this variation before!
-Good Samaritan study: When we feel rushed, overwhelmed, and pressured, it diminishes our capacity to be emotionally and intellectually available. By moving more slowly, we can access all our resources and be more aware.
-“Mindfulness practice helps us begin to see that our experience is just one star in the night sky. Our awareness is the entire sky.”
What a wonderful overview of the power of mindfulness and self-compassion! There was a lot of info regarding happiness, neuroplasticity, and kindness as well. I’ve read a lot about these topics, but never in a book that feels so comprehensive, intuitive, and well-organized--- especially regarding the inclusion of a lot of research. I loved how each chapter included summaries of research and findings that were easily digestible (lots of books I’ve read that talk about mindfulness feel so textbook and hard to follow at points!) while also giving readers concrete exercises to try while relating each topic to everyday life. Although I had already read about most of these studies, I loved how empowering this felt. I’d definitely recommend this for anyone who’s curious about the practical applications of mindfulness, or for anyone like me who often just needs a little push to be reminded of the power of changing some of our small daily habits. This is one of those books that feels straightforward and simple, but that also holds an incredible amount of depth. It inspired me to keep practicing self-compassion and to be hopeful.
Some helpful reflections/reminders for myself:
-What we practice grows stronger. Practice, not perfect.
-Lottery study findings: After a year, winners of the lottery return to their baseline levels of happiness. External changes won’t shift our baseline happiness, but internal changes can.
-London taxi drivers study findings: studying hard for The Knowledge test actually created measurable changes in the brain, causing growth of the hippocampus.
-Piano exercises study: Just imagining exercises actually creates physical changes in the brain in just the same way as literal practice!
-Multitasking does not actually work. It can actually cost up to 40% of someone’s productive time.
-Dishwashing study: what makes us happy has far less to do with what we’re doing and far more to do with whether we’re present. “Whatever you’re doing, whether you love it or loathe is, you’ll be happiest and most effective if you are present.”
-Studies shows that when we are judgmental and shaming instead of kind and curious, the learning centers of the brain shut down, shuttling resources to our survival centers and robbing us of the resources we need to effectively respond.
-Donut study: Researchers found that dieters who were in the control group and told nothing before being asked to eat a donut in the study were very hard on themselves after eating the donut and had higher levels of guilt and shame than those in the study who were encouraged to be self-compassionate about eating the donuts. What’s more, when they were later given the opportunity to eat as much candy as they wanted as part of a “taste testing” session, they ate less candy than those in the control group. Fostering self-compassion lead to healthier and happier decision making.
-Self esteem needs success to prove your self-worth, whereas self-compassion says you are worthy no matter what.
-Study: Students who were encouraged to be more compassionate were more successful on a test, because they saw the failed test as an opportunity to learn rather than failure.
-Study: self-compassionate individuals were described by their partners as more caring, acceptive, and respectful. Self-critical counterparts were more detached, aggressive, and controlling with their partners.
-Study: When students named emotions in faces that they saw, the brain scans showed that their amygdala actually calmed down. By simply identifying emotions, the students put a brake on emotional reactivity.
-“If I am aware of my sadness, my awareness isn’t sad. No matter how bad you may feel inside, the part of you that knows how bad you feel is standing apart from it. This is the part that can help you get through.” --- this is definitely something I’m still processing!
-Study: “growth spurters” were randomly selected, but the teachers’ expectations and beliefs in the students’ abilities resulted in higher test scores. “If you seek to find the good in others, you are more likely to draw it out.”
-Concept of “mudita:” or empathic joy. Sharing in someone’s happiness, focusing on their joy, and then wishing to find that own type of joy in your life. “May your happiness continue. May I find your happiness as well.”
-Lovingkindness meditation: After calling to mind a loved one, next call to mind a person who loves you before thinking of yourself. This helps to open up your heart to thinking positively about yourself. Never heard this variation before!
-Good Samaritan study: When we feel rushed, overwhelmed, and pressured, it diminishes our capacity to be emotionally and intellectually available. By moving more slowly, we can access all our resources and be more aware.
-“Mindfulness practice helps us begin to see that our experience is just one star in the night sky. Our awareness is the entire sky.”
December 31, 2022
"At some level you already know everything I have shared with you. This book is simply a reminder. May it be of benefit."
It has been of benefit to me. Unfortunately, it took me almost TWO YEARS to read! Yikes. In part because I was determined to do the exercises as they came up in the book; some of those were really hard for me and so I would sit on them for awhile. Another part is that depression claimed a big chunk of my life in there, sadly, so anything that was mental work was beyond me. But here I am, finished :)
I found it nicely written, relatable, sincere, and helpful. It is clear and concise in the meditations given and in the thoughts expressed.
You could just read the last chapter, which fully explains the exercise and the author's experience with it, that the title is taken from, but I think it helped to have the information leading up to that final piece to have the full impact.
Lovely book.
It has been of benefit to me. Unfortunately, it took me almost TWO YEARS to read! Yikes. In part because I was determined to do the exercises as they came up in the book; some of those were really hard for me and so I would sit on them for awhile. Another part is that depression claimed a big chunk of my life in there, sadly, so anything that was mental work was beyond me. But here I am, finished :)
I found it nicely written, relatable, sincere, and helpful. It is clear and concise in the meditations given and in the thoughts expressed.
You could just read the last chapter, which fully explains the exercise and the author's experience with it, that the title is taken from, but I think it helped to have the information leading up to that final piece to have the full impact.
Lovely book.
February 22, 2024
Decent. I don't know that I will ever be someone who meditates, but she had some other good suggestions for mindfulness. The end of chapters write down your takeaway was a little annoying and her bullet point suggestions seldom had the point I found most interesting. I also almost stopped reading at page 3 when she said you could find mindfulness at any age, but her entry point came at seventeen. But luckily the book didn't dwell on her story too much. The cultivating mudita section was really good. Recognizing when you are jealous and wishing the person you're jealous of continued happiness. Her shifting prospective exercise was also good.
August 20, 2023
Definitely a book you’ll want to read slowly so you can process and practice everything in it. Every chapter focuses on a different aspect of mindfulness and ends with a Golden Nugget and suggestions of how to practice.
This book promotes intention, presence, and an attitude of compassion, kindness, and curiosity. I plan on buying the book so I can focus on a new chapter each week and implement the practices.
This book promotes intention, presence, and an attitude of compassion, kindness, and curiosity. I plan on buying the book so I can focus on a new chapter each week and implement the practices.
June 25, 2020
I had this book recommended and it definitely was a great read! The practices are laid out well and straightforward, simple things that have a lot of depth and take effort but are doable. The “gold nuggets” idea is grand. I appreciated learning a little of the neuroscience behind mindfulness and compassion, it is fascinating to see.
July 13, 2020
Practical book for integrating mindful practices into your life and becoming more compassionate towards yourself and others. Backed by science and research, this turns what otherwise seem “mumbo jumbo” into pragmatic practices.
July 26, 2022
Talk about a serendipity book. I was browsing through my Audible Unlimited when I came across this title. I don’t know what it was that prompted me initially to download this book, but all I know is that it was divine interception. This book made me think and feel differently about mindfulness and compassion, especially for the self. I would highly recommend this book for anyone feeling lost, disconnected, unhappy, lonely, etc. it is truly a gem and I will be ordering myself a physical copy of this to keep. Loved it.
March 18, 2023
I really enjoyed this grounded approach to mindfulness. It’s well organized, easy to read, based on current science and full of meditations to practice. It’s full of gems and inspires me to be more present and more mindful.
February 4, 2022
Lots of practical advice for mindfulness practices centered around curiosity and kindness.
October 7, 2022
Very valuable book on self-compassion and mindfulness. It has exercises that you can follow along with. Many of her examples are very touching. Great work to be listened to many times.
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