Walking Your Blues Away: How to Heal the Mind and Create Emotional Well-Being

It was just as difficult to deal with trauma in ancient times as it is today. The difference is the type and kinds that have now evolved, added to many of those that have always been, creates a festering turmoil within, that becomes a destructive force. I believe that everything revolves around the "Law of Cause and Effect", and that you can't really eliminate an effect unless you take away the cause. In pursing that effort you must first gain understanding. Thom's book gives that opportunity in a very easy read type of presentation, and shares what he has learned. Understanding leads to knowledge so that you can implement a way forward as is outlined in the book. Everything in life is a process, some results cause suffering, others bring joy. This book gives a process to change some of the effects of our sufferings, by eliminating the pain that is associated with them. The cause still remains but is changed in the way it is perceived, and so the effect remains but is changed in the way it manifests and makes us feel. This is the process of changing poison into medicine. I think Thom is a brilliant man. I buy and read his books, as well as listening to him daily on WCPT AM Radio. I have had the pleasure of meeting him at a book signing and he is very genuine and sincere in all aspects. I wish this book would be given to our Veterans at the time of discharge. I believe the suicide rate among them would drop dramatically.

This book gives you a super fast and easy way to deal with past traumas or emotionally upsetting memories that you can easily incorporate into your life, i.e. by walking. The steps to the process are below:1. Define the Issue: Find the unresolved issue from the past trauma, visualize it, and feel the trauma.2. Bring Up the Story: Boil the thought pattern down to a few sentences and scale it from 1 to 100.3. Walk with the Issue: Walk 20 minutes minimum with the picture or feeling in a relaxed manner.4. Notice How the Issue Changes: the image darkens, feelings change, and the story changes.5. Anchor the New State: visualize the new image of the trauma.6. Journal the New Vision: Repeat the new vision by writing it in your journal and scale the trauma again from 1 to 100 to see the change in intensity of your feelings.I also recommend incorporating the teachings of Hilary Jacobs Hendel's book "It is Not Always Depression" into the above walking therapy.

I really enjoy Walking Your Blues Away. While I'm not a therapist, I am familiar with bilateral therapy by way of some Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) work I've done myself. Intuitively, I've long know how therapeutic walking is - and not just for emotional reasons. Anytime I'm starting to get sick, or even when I am sick, I go for walks and it has great therapeutic benefit.The books is rather on the academic side. Mr.Hartmann takes much of the first part of the book to provide a robust history of bilateral therapies. Most interestingly, that it was employed by Freud in his early days. But, due to the rapid establishment response to hypnosis and the incorrect correlation of hypnotic with bi lateral therapy, he was forced to abandon it. He subsequently developed a stupendously expensive and indirect approach in what we know today as traditional psychoanalysis!If you have an interest in self-help and enjoy walking, this book can be a wonderful asset in focusing some time during your walks to your advantage!

Really return to fundamental function of your mind and body working together toward inner peace. A very great reminder that you control your life and emotions through action. No wonder I have good memories of walks I've taken. Looking forward to more.

I ordered this book on a lark. Before I ordered it I had a very successful EMDR session and this book shows a perfect way to get the same benefits. It addresses trauma and how to process it so it becomes something of the past. I can't recommend this book enough for anybody who is stuck in a painful situation, has PTSD, or simply wants to become more alive to the moment. EMDR: American Psychiatric Association (2004). Practice Guideline for the Treatment of Patients with Acute Stress Disorder and Post-traumatic Stress Disorder. Practice Guideline for the Treatment of Patients with Acute Stress Disorder and Post-traumatic Stress Disorder. Arlington, VA: American Psychiatric Association Practice Guidelines. * EMDR was given the highest level of recommendation (category for robust empirical support and demonstrated effectiveness) in the treatment of trauma.Department of Veterans Affairs and Department of Defense (2004). VA/DoD Clinical Practice Guideline for the Management of Post-Traumatic Stress. Washington, DC. * EMDR was placed in the "A" category as "strongly recommended" for the treatment of trauma.

I met Thom Hartmann in St. Paul a few years ago. He spoke at a church that day. Though I am one year older than he is, he is one of my true cultural heroes. Check his internet site, all his varied books, etc. What a genius! I think he should hire me to do something. Currently, I live in St. Peter, Minnesota. I do get around, though. I love to walk fields and hike mountains. Walking your Blues Away gave me insights on why I felt so good after a long walk about, be it in the Midwest, Colorado, California shoreline, wherever. The only writer who has taught me more is Thomas Moore with his soulful books. Thanks to both. They call me Lucky, too.

Based on sound therapeutic evidence. For starters, search for Chris Cockrell's 'Walking and Talking' therapy and EMDR (eye movement desensitization).

Just so thankful to find this book. I started intuitively walking, something I never liked to do and few weeks later I was led to this book once again, intuitively. Everything in here is what I was and am experiencing. Walk and see the glorious truths and benefits.

Of very little practical use. It is largely an outline of the history of hypnotherapy, most of which is widely known. The practical element of this book could be condensed into one short sentence. If you have a problem, walk for about 20 minutes, holding the problem in front of you like a ball; at the end of that time, the problem will have been processed and absorbed into your past. That's it.

Great book and buying experience

It has a lot of really interesting useful and practical information packed into a small book. It is a combination of mindfulness combined with EMDR.

Not as good as his other books a bit repetitive

Great book for dealing with stress. Well priced.