Afraid, Arash Javanbakht, MD
Afraid, Arash Javanbakht, MD
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Afraid
Understanding the Purpose of Fear and Harnessing the Power of Anxiety

Author: Arash Javanbakht, MD

Narrator: Arash Javanbakht

Unabridged: 7 hr 47 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 03/05/2024


Synopsis

About a third of the world population suffers from an anxiety disorder, and half of Americans have had at least one traumatic experience like rape, assault, shooting, or natural disasters. Fear and anxiety are with us everywhere we go.

Fear is deeply woven into our biology, culture, politics, and day to day life. We sometimes don't even know what we are afraid of. What we know for sure is that we are afraid too often.

But why are we so scared? How does fear work in our brains? What is the evolutionary purpose of fear? Why do we enjoy watching horror movies? How do we learn to be afraid, and how can we unlearn? Can we use fear to our advantage?

In this book, a psychiatrist and neuroscientist answers these questions. Arash Javanbakht explores how our childhood experiences define the role fear plays in us as adults, how fear may or may not affect our genes, what excessive fear and anxiety can do to our brains and bodies, and the role of fear in the wake of trauma. Listeners will come away with a better understanding of fear and how we can tamp its negative effects, how we can treat it medically if necessary, and how we can protect ourselves from fear's most negative consequences.

About Arash Javanbakht, MD

Arash Javanbakht, MD, is a psychiatrist and neuroscientist who currently serves as the director of the Stress, Trauma, and Anxiety Research Clinic (STARC) at Wayne State University, School of Medicine. Dr. Javanbakht is a frequent invited speaker at national and international conferences and universities. Multiple media outlets and scientific organizations have featured Dr. Javanbakht's work, including: CNN, NPR, Smithsonian, Aljazeera, the Atlantic, the Washington Post, Scientific American, Science, American Psychiatric Association, Anxiety and Depression Association of America, and the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. He is the academic advisor on the PBS documentary Mysteries of Mental Illness. He lives in Ann Arbor, Michigan.


Reviews

Goodreads review by J.A. on December 02, 2008

Awesome debut. I wish I'd written it.........more

Goodreads review by Mort on July 04, 2018

It starts with a mysterious helicopter crash in the town called Safe Haven... Okay, since it's called Safe Haven, you know that shit's about to go down, don't you? The murders start soon. An elite, highly-trained, completely sociopathic, sadistic and, as if they needed another edge, chemically enhance......more

Goodreads review by Rowena on August 02, 2009

I like cozies. I might as well be honest about that. Also happy ever afters. Further, in the interests of full disclosure, you should know that I read AFRAID by Jack Kilborn (with a view to a review) because Joe Konrath dared me to do so.He has a thick skin, and a strong stomach... and anyone who re......more

Goodreads review by Blake on July 02, 2016

AFRAID is a bungee jump into pure terror, a story that plays brilliantly on all our primal fears, and stands shoulder to shoulder with the very best of Harris, Koontz, and King. A classic horror novel.......more

Goodreads review by Dave on April 22, 2021

"What turns a person into a monster like this? Training? Some horrible event in his past? Genetics? How does a man lose his humanity?" I've had this book sat on a shelf for nearly a year. Why the hell did it take this long for me to read it? It has pretty much everything I look for, violence, vio......more