Snacks. Sex. Shopping. Whether we realize it or not, all of us have strategies for self-medicating ourselves when we feel threatened or overwhelmed by tension or tiredness. But why do people respond to pressure in such different ways? And what really helps most to reduce tension and increase energy, a brisk ten-minute walk, twenty minutes of meditation, or two hours of watching TV? In this fascinating book, now new in paperback, Robert E. Thayer serves as an expert guide through the latest scientific research into moods and mood management, revealing which behaviours energise and empower us, and which sabotage our best interests. (Just five or ten minutes of walking, for example, can enhance mood for an hour or more, while sugar snacking, Thayer shows, causes more tension that it reduces.) Far from a shallow quick fix book, The Origin of Everyday Moods brings readers to a new understanding of the underlying biology of their daily cycles of energy and tension, and offers powerful recommendations for breaking self-destructive habits and leading a richer, more enjoyable life.

About the Author
Robert E. Thayer is Professor of Psychology at California State University, Long Beach. A pioneering and highly influential researcher in biopsychology, he is the author of The Biopsychology of Mood and Arousal.

Reviews
While writers of "pop psychology" books are notorious for passing off their own unsubstantiated notions as scientific fact, Thayer is careful to avoid this trap. The book is readable and easily digestible by nonscientists, while for those who want to know more about the scientific background there is a comprehensive series of notes and full references. * New Scientist *



Book Information
ISBN 9780195118056
Author Robert E. Thayer
Format Paperback
Page Count 288
Imprint Oxford University Press Inc
Publisher Oxford University Press Inc
Weight(grams) 390g
Dimensions(mm) 154mm * 233mm * 19mm