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    The Well-Gardened Mind: The Restorative Power of Nature
    The Well-Gardened Mind: The Restorative Power of Nature
    The Well-Gardened Mind: The Restorative Power of Nature
    Audiobook11 hours

    The Well-Gardened Mind: The Restorative Power of Nature

    Written by Sue Stuart-Smith

    Narrated by Sue Stuart-Smith

    4.5/5

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    About this audiobook

    A distinguished psychiatrist and avid gardener presents “a truly uplifting book on the power of gardening—and how it can change people’s lives” (Stylist, UK).

    The garden is often seen as a refuge, a place to forget worldly cares, removed from the “real” life that lies outside. When we get our hands in the earth we connect with the cycle of life in nature through which destruction and decay are followed by regrowth and renewal. Gardening is one of the quintessential nurturing activities and yet we understand so little about it. The Well-Gardened Mind provides a new perspective on the power of gardening to change people’s lives. Here, Sue Stuart-Smith investigates the many ways in which mind and garden can interact and explores how the process of tending a plot can be a way of sustaining an innermost self.

    Stuart-Smith’s own love of gardening developed as she studied to become a psychoanalytic psychotherapist. From her grandfather’s return from World War I to Freud’s obsession with flowers to case histories with her own patients to progressive gardening programs in such places as Rikers Island prison in New York City, Stuart-Smith weaves thoughtful yet powerful examples to argue that gardening is much more important to our cognition than we think. Recent research is showing how green nature has direct antidepressant effects on humans. “The most original gardening book ever [that] combines observation, horticulture, literature and history” (Sunday Times, UK), The Well-Gardened Mind is a book for gardeners and non-gardeners alike, and the perfect solace for people seeking healthier mental lives.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherSimon & Schuster Audio
    Release dateJul 7, 2020
    ISBN9781797113098
    Author

    Sue Stuart-Smith

    Sue Stuart-Smith, a prominent psychiatrist and psychotherapist, took her degree in English literature at Cambridge before qualifying as a doctor. She worked in the National Health Service for many years, becoming the lead clinician for psychotherapy in Hertfordshire. She currently teaches at The Tavistock Clinic in London and is consultant to the DocHealth service. She is married to Tom Stuart-Smith, the celebrated garden designer, and, over thirty years together, they have created the wonderful Barn Garden in Hertfordshire.

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    Reviews for The Well-Gardened Mind

    4.5/5

    43 ratings5 reviews

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    • 5/5
      The book is certainly a powerful and vivid type of book that delves into the psychological benefit of our natural world. It’s no wonder that most of our ancient civilizations and cultures had an intricate connection to nature. I concur with the authors argument that we have indeed become separated from nature, and consumed in a world of screens.

      It resonates with me because of how I enjoyed running outdoors and allowing my imagination to go free, without any worry or anxiety. While I have an immense appreciation of nature hikes and walks, I’ll probably consider doing volunteer work with a gardening project. This is a book that can start oneself on the path to tend not only the physical natural gardens around us, but also the garden of our minds.

      5 people found this helpful

    • 5/5
      A perfectly written masterpiece that is beautifully painted by an amazing artist.

      2 people found this helpful

    • 5/5
      Beautiful work. Coming from a different country and in times of COVID I often have felt like a transplant that doesn't quite fit and that is growing under tons of stress yet grounding roots into this new soil. Gardening is another language much more loving and understanding than English.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 5/5
      I read the ebook version of this and loved it. It was very well researched, I enjoyed how each chapter covered a different aspect of how gardening helps people and really can change lives. I always used to think of gardening as something retired people do to fill their time, but this book inspired me to take to gardening in an attempt to comfort my soul after the recent death of my soulmate, and it really has helped. Gardening for me in the past has felt like more of a chore, so I abandoned the practice years ago, but this book really changed my perspective about it and helped me remove the sense of time consuming urgency and difficulty from gardening, turning it into a more calming and almost meditative practice. Now spending time gardening feels wholesome instead of just one more thing to worry about, and I was inspired to dedicate my "gardening practice" to the memory of my soulmate, naming my garden space The Spirit Garden and planting several varieties of forget-me-nots and sunflowers in her memory, so when I'm out there I feel a bit closer to her memory and my spirit is soothed a little. The book really changed my perspective and inspired me to find peace and comfort in the work of gardening, even the hard parts. I think of it like gardening for my soul, and as strange as it may sound it's become sort of a spiritual practice for me in some ways after reading this.

      I highly recommend this book, read it with an open mind and you may be surprised what it will inspire in you.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 4/5
      During lockdown, I started gardening on my balcony. Never was interested before but just felt a need to do so. I felt so good whenever i was spending time with the plants. The book helped me to understand how they helped me to deal with everything whats going on.