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The Cluttered Mind: Organizing the Junk Drawer of Your Mind
In this useful and informative guide, licensed counselor and therapist Deborah J McKenna has provided a program of simple steps to help you release negative feelings and habits, creating a functional "junk drawer of the mind" to organize every aspect of your life toward a happier and healthier path.Book Life Prize 8.00 out of 10.00 The Cluttered Mind breaks down concepts to be accessible to the reader, simplifies without being overly pedantic, and brings new ideas about recovery and change over time into the discussion.Prose/ The book showcases stellar writing, creating a book that is quite well-crafted and a pleasure to The framework is original, and coming from a clear expert, it is a breath of fresh air.Character Development/ McKenna's metaphor of clutter is an apt one, and she carries it through the text in a manner that will deeply resonate with readers seeking to find clarity, order, and calm.
161 pages, Kindle Edition
Published December 11, 2020
20 people are currently reading
11 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
February 20, 2021
A qualified clinical counsellor and practicing hypnotherapist, Deborah McKenna is more than qualified to present the resources in this book, which she does with cheer and personality. However, I do feel that perhaps readers should be advised before going in that it is very faith-heavy – both faith in yourself and positive thinking overall, and of course faith in God. The “clutter” she refers to primarily bases this book on two premises: first, identifying and discarding repressed negative feelings of the past, and second, putting a positive spin on events and decisions in life now and going forward, without regaining or amassing any more negative “clutter”. In this respect then, you could argue that this self-help book is part psychoanalytical and part cognitive, but the methods she puts forward are practical, resourceful, varied and extremely useful – it is at these parts (perhaps in the latter third) that The Cluttered Mind is at its best. The tools and exercises are shared in abundance, making this hugely worthwhile coffee-table book, while Deborah also goes on to evidence her methods with examples of events in her own life and some of her clients’. This perhaps for me then is the reason it feels somewhat undermined by the emphasis on God, which increases as it proceeds. This is no real surprise; self-help books by U.S. authors are wont to do this, but for an atheist reader it will add little to the book. In fact, I would even go as far as to say that readers of faith will invariably take more benefit than those who aren’t.
But, I’ve no wish to portray it inaccurately, and I certainly don’t mean to undermine the credit it deserves; Deborah is a professional and this is a professional reference book. It is well written, with a genuine sense of fun and light-heartedness, and the author is endearing, putting a lot of her own character into the work, without the stuffy airs and graces of academia she is rightfully qualified to present – and I like this about her.
But, I’ve no wish to portray it inaccurately, and I certainly don’t mean to undermine the credit it deserves; Deborah is a professional and this is a professional reference book. It is well written, with a genuine sense of fun and light-heartedness, and the author is endearing, putting a lot of her own character into the work, without the stuffy airs and graces of academia she is rightfully qualified to present – and I like this about her.
October 28, 2021
Decided to read The Cluttered Mind: Organizing the Junk Drawer of Your Mind by Deborah Mckenna because I am preparing to take graduate classes. I’ve been out of school for a few years and I tend to think way too much about certain things so I figured implementing a few steps and habit changes could do me some good. Mckenna is a professional therapist and you can definitely tell. The book focuses on the 4Rs (Recognize, Release, Replace, and Repeat) within our physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual selves. It’s about balance and not finding the quick fixes in life
Cluttered Mind is organized into 8 chapters. Each chapter is quite dense but easy to understand. There aren’t any pictures outside of the charts/illustrations/ figures so I did have to take each chapter as a “study” and took notes. However, I did notice that some of the illustrations were a bit blurry. Otherwise, it was a lot of information to take in even with it being an easy read. The only thing I noted was that there were religious tones in the book. I’m not a very religious person so it’s something to keep in mind if you aren’t or are and if this is something that will bother you or not.
Cluttered Mind is organized into 8 chapters. Each chapter is quite dense but easy to understand. There aren’t any pictures outside of the charts/illustrations/ figures so I did have to take each chapter as a “study” and took notes. However, I did notice that some of the illustrations were a bit blurry. Otherwise, it was a lot of information to take in even with it being an easy read. The only thing I noted was that there were religious tones in the book. I’m not a very religious person so it’s something to keep in mind if you aren’t or are and if this is something that will bother you or not.
October 23, 2021
A wonderful way to clear the mind!
Sometimes, I find myself with too many thoughts and too many unimportant things in my mind. Even if I separate my thoughts into categories and sort them, I still have more. While reading this book, I could see that the author knew what she was twaalking about. I started implementing some of the suggestions in the book, and I began to feel less anxious, less stressed. Less rushed. But I also came to accept that emotions play a large part in this as well. Negative or positive, thoughts can be triggered by almost anything. These in turn can dictate what my actions and behavior unless I take stock of what is going on inside myself. Becoming self-aware of my triggers is something that I have worked on before, but I realize that I will need to continue to do so because there is no quick fix. I love how this book is organized, and the amazing writing clearly shows the knowledge of the author. I would recommend this book if someone is in need of some guidance on how to clear up the mind, even if it is just a little.
Sometimes, I find myself with too many thoughts and too many unimportant things in my mind. Even if I separate my thoughts into categories and sort them, I still have more. While reading this book, I could see that the author knew what she was twaalking about. I started implementing some of the suggestions in the book, and I began to feel less anxious, less stressed. Less rushed. But I also came to accept that emotions play a large part in this as well. Negative or positive, thoughts can be triggered by almost anything. These in turn can dictate what my actions and behavior unless I take stock of what is going on inside myself. Becoming self-aware of my triggers is something that I have worked on before, but I realize that I will need to continue to do so because there is no quick fix. I love how this book is organized, and the amazing writing clearly shows the knowledge of the author. I would recommend this book if someone is in need of some guidance on how to clear up the mind, even if it is just a little.
October 15, 2021
The Cluttered Mind: Organizing the Junk Drawer of Your Mind by Deborah McKenna will make you look deep into your life so you can consider the changes you want to make. Do you know the things in your past that trigger negative and positive thoughts, actions, and behavior? By recognizing what triggers your thoughts, you can change. The author uses the 4Rs as an effective tool to help her readers.
Deborah McKenna has used her personal and professional experience in life to help people overcome deeper issues, starting with their thoughts. You can tell while reading this book that the author truly cares for people and desires to help them. My favorite chapter is "The Key to Discovering Your Heart's Desire"; this is where I am right now as my life has changed. I have to rethink what I want in life, and this chapter was just what I needed. Learning self-hypnosis is a fascinating skill I never thought to use in my life.
Deborah McKenna has used her personal and professional experience in life to help people overcome deeper issues, starting with their thoughts. You can tell while reading this book that the author truly cares for people and desires to help them. My favorite chapter is "The Key to Discovering Your Heart's Desire"; this is where I am right now as my life has changed. I have to rethink what I want in life, and this chapter was just what I needed. Learning self-hypnosis is a fascinating skill I never thought to use in my life.
October 23, 2021
Clear your mind and easy your stress
I think it's pretty fair to say that my mind feels a bit cluttered all the time lately. Though I do understand why, with work and family deadlines, lack of sleep throughout the week, and responsibilities that I know I can't slack on, it's easier said than done to just unclutter the mind. This book, The Cluttered Mind, takes readers through a well-thought-out form to help you to release negative feelings and habits and replace them with organization and functionality that will benefit you both in the long run and the short run. I've never thought of the human mind to be similar to a "junk drawer," but after reading about the reference within this book, I'm seeing a correlation between the previous state of my mind and that insanely unorganized junk drawer in my kitchen. Just reading through this one gave me a moment of peace of mind and allowed me to categorize my thoughts in a more organized way.
I think it's pretty fair to say that my mind feels a bit cluttered all the time lately. Though I do understand why, with work and family deadlines, lack of sleep throughout the week, and responsibilities that I know I can't slack on, it's easier said than done to just unclutter the mind. This book, The Cluttered Mind, takes readers through a well-thought-out form to help you to release negative feelings and habits and replace them with organization and functionality that will benefit you both in the long run and the short run. I've never thought of the human mind to be similar to a "junk drawer," but after reading about the reference within this book, I'm seeing a correlation between the previous state of my mind and that insanely unorganized junk drawer in my kitchen. Just reading through this one gave me a moment of peace of mind and allowed me to categorize my thoughts in a more organized way.
October 23, 2021
Departing out all the junk from our minds and heading towards an optimistic life needs some tricks and tips. So, all these cues and gimmicks are provided in the book 'The Cluttered Mind' by Deborah McKenna. In this busy schedule of life, one person can get more tension and worries which never helps for the personal growth of a person. Personal improvement is only possible by deleting all the unnecessary files in the mind and inserting them with new positive vibes. So as the 4Rs -Recognize, Release, Replace, and Repeat has their significance. Whenever people take these four facets, they will only have success and opulence in life.
This book gave me an encouraging feeling on how to take things that go wrong. Because things may not go as we guess and one should be prepared to take it with an open mind.
This book gave me an encouraging feeling on how to take things that go wrong. Because things may not go as we guess and one should be prepared to take it with an open mind.
October 23, 2021
In this book, therapist and counsellor Deborah J McKenna, clearly illustrates the signs of a weary mind. Bad habits and the lack of rest lead us to have and accumulate damaging feelings toward ourselves and the people who are closer to us.
In this wonderful guide I found essential information and important advice to start healing my mind and free myself from bad feelings and behaviours. I could really put these tips into practice and they helped me a lot with my relationships and even work.
I recommend reading it carefully and to think and reflect about ourselves before implementing the changes the book proposes. I think that it is also really helpful to share and comment it with friends and family.
In this wonderful guide I found essential information and important advice to start healing my mind and free myself from bad feelings and behaviours. I could really put these tips into practice and they helped me a lot with my relationships and even work.
I recommend reading it carefully and to think and reflect about ourselves before implementing the changes the book proposes. I think that it is also really helpful to share and comment it with friends and family.
October 25, 2021
I dare to say that this book really resonates with me and I found it very easy to incorporate what it said. It has helped me to remind why and how important it is to have an inner connection with our higher self and soul.
Deborah J McKenna, is a talented therapist and licensed counsellor who guided me with simple steps to clean negative habits and feelings. Clear examples and achievable advice are included throughout the pages which undoubtedly illuminated me. I really enjoy reading and learning how our brain works and what I can do to live a more fulfilling, happier, relaxed and organized life. Though a bit repetitive at times, I enjoyed it very much.
I strongly recommend “The Cluttered Mind” and I can’t wait to look more into what this author has to offer.
Deborah J McKenna, is a talented therapist and licensed counsellor who guided me with simple steps to clean negative habits and feelings. Clear examples and achievable advice are included throughout the pages which undoubtedly illuminated me. I really enjoy reading and learning how our brain works and what I can do to live a more fulfilling, happier, relaxed and organized life. Though a bit repetitive at times, I enjoyed it very much.
I strongly recommend “The Cluttered Mind” and I can’t wait to look more into what this author has to offer.
October 22, 2021
Since the global pandemic hit, I began to focus on myself and begin to eliminate bad habits and feelings from my life. "The Cluttered Mind: Organizing the Junk Drawer of Your Mind" helped me a lot in my purpose. Deborah McKenna is the writer of this wonderful book. The author presents us with a program of simple steps to help us release negative feelings and habits.
I think the author's approach is very good and I have put many of her suggestions into practice. The changes are not easy and in my experience they should be gradual, in order to assimilate them better. With a practical and easy guide, this book motivated me to change, that is why I recommend it.
I think the author's approach is very good and I have put many of her suggestions into practice. The changes are not easy and in my experience they should be gradual, in order to assimilate them better. With a practical and easy guide, this book motivated me to change, that is why I recommend it.
October 22, 2021
Getting rid of certain negative habits can be an arduous task, especially those that we have sustained for many years. Yet, the Cluttered Mind is a useful book that aims at helping us to release these feelings and habits and lead a happier life. The author of this book is counsellor and therapist Deborah J McKenna who has based herself on her personal and professional experience to create this great book. I really enjoyed it throughout and I felt really grateful for the strategies and pieces of advice provided. What is more, McKenna has adopted a friendly style which makes it really easy to follow. Highly recommended!
October 26, 2021
Releasing negative feelings and habits? Quite a job, right? I have been noticing I was able to see these things in my friends but not in me and I decided to give this book a try. The Cluttered Mind is a really helpful guide with simple and easy steps to organise aspects of our lives that when in order will let us start seeing things with different eyes and feeling less anxious.
Becoming aware of what is going on inside us has become easier after I read this book. Through her personal and professional experience, author McKenna has been able to develop a narrative loaded with tools which are easy to pursue and understand.
Becoming aware of what is going on inside us has become easier after I read this book. Through her personal and professional experience, author McKenna has been able to develop a narrative loaded with tools which are easy to pursue and understand.
November 3, 2021
A must read for all
This book called The Cluttered Mind written by Deborah McKenna is a helpful and very informative guide. This is aimed at helping people release the negative aspects of their lives. I believe this is a very helpful book that can and should be read by everybody.
We all want to be happy or happier than we are and for that we should find ways that help us. This book provided me with plenty of ideas, and moreover, it is original and accessible to everyone. I believe this is a must read for all.
This book called The Cluttered Mind written by Deborah McKenna is a helpful and very informative guide. This is aimed at helping people release the negative aspects of their lives. I believe this is a very helpful book that can and should be read by everybody.
We all want to be happy or happier than we are and for that we should find ways that help us. This book provided me with plenty of ideas, and moreover, it is original and accessible to everyone. I believe this is a must read for all.
October 18, 2021
This book has an interesting concept: unclutter your mind as you would a closet or a whole house. There is some scripture quotes and the author uses stories from the bible to showcase some points. Identifying “clutter” in your mind and life can be important, but I really resonated with the chapter on identifying and overcoming obstacles. I found the book overall to be very helpful and I think that many people can benefit from this book and the advice within.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews