self help books annoy me
When I've finished a book and its time to get a new one, I often have something in mind. I search a word, like "health" on the library computer, pick one book for a general location, then go look on those shelves to see what options are available.
I eat vegan-ish, I have osteopenia (likely bc chronic Vit D deficiency), and have had a lot of chronic pain. I'm 32.
So I've been motivated recently to learn more about health. I'm taking my daily Vit D & Calcium supplements now. I'm cooking for myself a little more. And I don't think I'm getting as much protein as my doctor or internet articles recommend.
And I want to understand why I need 90+ grams of protein a day. And do I really need that many? I weigh 150 pounds, and I'm pretty sedentary, all but the two days a week I go to the gym.
But when I peruse the health books at the Library, 90% of them are self-help gobbledygook. "How you can [achieve specific health result]". I don't want that.
I want to learn, I want to be educated, and I want it from a perspective of education, not of self-help.
Why? I don't know. I've read a bit of self-help in the past, and sometimes I've rather enjoyed it. But self-help often has this ... vibe that I don't like. It just doesn't sit right with me. The one trick? nope. The one lifestyle option? Nope.
What are the options, what are their different effects, pros & cons? I'm driven more by my curiosity & desire to learn than by my specific desire to be healthy. Being healthy is part of it, but scratching that curiosity itch is a much bigger part of what drives me, as far as I can tell.
And I understand some books have a dumb title to draw you in, but then are actually quite good.
A book I recently read, on addiction, was 'Never Enough'. She's (Judith Grisel's) a former addict, turned neuroscientist professional smart lady. It was not self help. Sure, she had some tidbits of self-help in there, particularly the last page or two. But the book was an inquiry about addiction. What causes it? What can be done about it? And she talks a lot about her personal experience.
It was more of an intellectual inquiry than a "let me help you i have the answer" ... and boy she does NOT have the answer. Not "THE" answer, anyway. I loved that book.
Well I did find some books today that I think I like.
Move is about the science of movement, how body and brain are connected. Really drew me in with a first chapter talking about how the evolution of movement (Apes swinging in trees) was connected to the evolution of thinking (planning ahead which trees to swing/jump to). Yes, this book will help me, and it does have an interest in helping people. But the vibe is not "I have all the answers, let me help you." The vibe is "Here's what I know about movement," I guess. Idk. I like it.
I got a book about Osteoporosis & Osteopenia (100 questions you might have) from 2006. It's quite obviously intended for helping people, but I still wouldn't regard it as the "self-help" genre. It's the "learn about this disease you have" genre.
I got a book (is it called "Cure"? No? Yes? Idfk.) that is an inquiry into ... the scientific study of non-western medicine, and the connection between mind and health. The author seems to be of a western-medicine mindset (which I prefer). They like their facts and science and testing and stuff. But, they also said that ... Just because something works "no better than placebo" ... doesn't mean ... that it doesn't work.
I.e. Placebos sometimes work. What can placebos actually do? What are their limits? How much power does the mind actually have in helping you heal? It is well-understood that stress causes illness, so why not inquire into happiness causing health? And I guess there is some scientific evidence to this point. So I'll hopefully learn about alla that in this book.
Again, it's not the "self help" genre as far as I can tell. It's a scientific inquiry, a study of health. I feel like a fellow student who's trying to get educated, not like a patient who they're trying to fix.
The last one is about ... ugh ... heal your emotions to heal your body. Its self help. Every 10th sentence or so, I'm like "Really? Ehhhh". To them everything is ... about love. I see where they're coming from, I appreciate their perspective, and I AM interested. But they're preaching to me. They have a western-medicine background as well, but they're still preaching to me.
It is most likely that I drop this last book. I don't know. I really like some of what they're saying: If you take an antacid after eating too much pizza before bed, you don't learn to treat your body better (i.e. don't eat pizza before bed).
Like I jive with that. I had jaw pain when I was sick recently, and I went on a long walk. The jaw pain went away and my sinuses drained and I felt SO much better. I prefer that over mucinex, personally.
He's also making a point to acknowledge the need for modern medicine, and that it can be quite useful at addressing symptoms. I don't think he's a quack, and I don't think he has unrealistic expectations about his "love" shit. But it's self-help nonetheless. It doesn't feel like I'm being educated as a student, but that I am being treated as a patient.
Fact is, I am sick. I live with anxiety, depression, obsession, chronic wrist pain, chronic knee pain, butt pain, low back pain. I have Osteopenia. I've been alcohol sober for 9 or 10 years. I've been weed sober for, fuck, three months? 2 & a half. I'm sick, dog. I do need help. So I'm interested. I wanna hear him out, and see what he has to say.
But that doesn't stop me from being annoyed at the genre of "self-help", or surface-level "do what I tell you" education (these are different things).
Like the article online that tells me I need 100 or whatever proteins a day because it will help with ... idr. I want to actually understand more about proteins, not what the health guidelines are. Am I making sense? Whatever. I'm done.
Have a great life!