Just Chaaa...

This short guide to a healthier, more relaxed, and balanced lifestyle posits strategies that are easy and memorable.

Acupuncturist and Chinese-medicine practitioner Kearney is a well-educated and experienced author with a message. In this text, he presents his own journey of healing personal ailments, such as a stutter and anxiety, through practices such as meditation, stretching, and controlled breathing. He presents a well-organized, well-researched text containing empowering solutions for stress, depression, and a host of other physical issues. With endorsements from such household names as Ringo Starr, Kearney suggests simple tactics, including mindful breathing, pausing, and using humor, to ground oneself in the present moment. In a humorous anecdote that explains the book’s odd title, the author describes the mantra, “Just Chaaa,” as a memorable, universal idea of relaxing, accepting the present, and releasing the need to control external factors. The book is also full of intriguing perspectives on biology. For example, the author states that the human eye was designed to view the horizon and wide-open space; thus, he says, bodily alignment, lifted stature, and an open gaze help restore the body to its natural, relaxed state. It’s easy to see why contemporary practices, such as long hours at a computer or lying on a couch watching television, wouldn’t signal the body to relax in the same way that engagement with nature on a trail, beach, or an open field might. What sets this book apart from other self-improvement texts is its innovative approaches: “walking breath,” “slow power,” and resting before sleep are just a few of the ideas that are easy to try right away, and the author takes the time and care to explain the science and rationale behind each practice. In one example, Kearney suggests using the fingertips to apply pressure to certain points of the body in order to bring energy into these places. Overall, this book is a breath of fresh air to the self-improvement genre.

A creative, solution-filled book about restoring rest, health, and vitality to one’s life.