How to Stay Sane
The School of Life
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
$0.99/mo for the first 3 months
Prime members: New to Audible? Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
How to Stay Sane
Buy for $14.17
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Zoe-Anne Phillips
-
By:
-
Philippa Perry
About this listen
An Economist Best Book of the Year
Everyone accepts the importance of physical health; isn't it just as important to aim for the mental equivalent? Philippa Perry has come to the rescue with How to Stay Sane—a maintenance manual for the mind.
Years of working as a psychotherapist showed Philippa Perry what approaches produced positive change in her clients and how best to maintain good mental health. In How to Stay Sane, she has taken these principles and applied them to self-help. Using ideas from neuroscience and sound psychological theory, she shows us how to better understand ourselves. Her idea is that if we know how our minds form and develop, we are less at the mercy of unknown unconscious processes. In this way, we can learn to be the master of our feelings and not their slave.
This is a smart, pithy, enjoyable book that everyone with even a passing interest in their psychological health will find useful.
Download the accompanying reference guide.©2012 The School of Life (P)2012 Macmillan Digital AudioListeners also enjoyed...
-
The Book You Wish Your Parents Had Read
- (And Your Children Will Be Glad That You Did)
- By: Philippa Perry
- Narrated by: Philippa Perry
- Length: 8 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 683
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 579
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 575
In this instant Sunday Times bestseller, leading psychotherapist Philippa Perry reveals the vital do's and don'ts of relationships. This is a book for us all. Whether you are interested in understanding how your upbringing has shaped you, looking to handle your child's feelings or wishing to support your partner, you will find indispensable information and realistic tips here. Philippa Perry's sane, sage and judgement-free advice is an essential resource on how to have the best possible relationships with the people who matter to you most.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Excellent advice overall
- By Kindle Customer on 05-06-21
By: Philippa Perry
-
A Simpler Life
- A Guide to Greater Serenity, Ease and Clarity
- By: The School of Life
- Narrated by: Rachel Lanning
- Length: 3 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 95
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 80
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 79
The modern world can be a complicated, frenzied, and noisy place, filled with too many options, products, ideas and opinions. That explains why what many of us long for is simplicity: a life that can be more pared down, peaceful, and focused on the essentials. But finding simplicity is not always easy; it isn’t just a case of emptying out our closets or trimming back commitments in our diaries. True simplicity requires that we understand the roots of our distractions – and develop a canny respect for the stubborn reasons why things can grow complex and overwhelming.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Bite-size practical tips for a better life
- By Tonya Kubo on 02-12-22
-
Anxiety
- Meditations on the Anxious Mind
- By: The School of Life
- Narrated by: Rachel Lanning
- Length: 2 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 30
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 24
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 24
This is a guide to anxiety: why we feel it, how we experience it when it strikes, and what we can do when we come under its influence. Across a series of essays that look at the subject from a number of angles, the tone is helpful, compassionate, and in the best sense, practical.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Insightfulness
- By Anonymous User on 06-10-23
-
What They Forgot to Teach You at School
- Essential Emotional Lessons Needed to Thrive
- By: The School of Life
- Narrated by: Sonya Cullingford
- Length: 3 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 60
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 52
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 51
We probably went to school for what felt like a very long time. We probably took care with our homework. Along the way we surely learned intriguing things about equations, the erosion of glaciers, the history of the Middle Ages, and the tenses of foreign languages. But why, despite all the lessons we sat through, were we never taught the really important things that dominate and trouble our lives: who to start a relationship with, how to trust people, how to understand one’s psyche, how to move on from sorrow or betrayal, and how to cope with anxiety and shame?
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Wonderful
- By Anonymous User on 07-18-21
-
On Confidence
- By: The School of Life, Alain de Botton
- Narrated by: Alain de Botton
- Length: 1 hr and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 189
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 156
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 153
We spend vast amounts of time acquiring confidence in narrow technical fields: quadratic equations or bioengineering; economics or pole vaulting. But we overlook the primordial need to acquire a more free-ranging variety of confidence - one that can serve us across a range of tasks: speaking to strangers at parties, asking someone to marry us, suggesting a fellow passenger turn down their music, changing the world. This is a guidebook to confidence, why we lack it and how we can acquire more of it in our lives.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Poignant and timeless
- By Graceny Jimenez on 08-15-20
By: The School of Life, and others
-
The School of Life
- An Emotional Education
- By: The School of Life
- Narrated by: Alain de Botton, Charlie Anson
- Length: 9 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 59
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 51
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 51
Emotional intelligence affects every aspect of the way we live, from romantic to professional relationships, from our inner resilience to our social success. It is arguably the single most important skill for surviving the twenty-first century. But what does it really mean? One decade ago, Alain de Botton founded The School of Life, an institute dedicated to understanding and improving our emotional intelligence. Now he presents the gathered wisdom of those ten years in a wide-ranging and innovative compendium of emotional intelligence that forms an introduction to The School of Life.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
The school of life needs to be in schools.
- By Angela pope on 02-03-23
-
The Book You Wish Your Parents Had Read
- (And Your Children Will Be Glad That You Did)
- By: Philippa Perry
- Narrated by: Philippa Perry
- Length: 8 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 683
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 579
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 575
In this instant Sunday Times bestseller, leading psychotherapist Philippa Perry reveals the vital do's and don'ts of relationships. This is a book for us all. Whether you are interested in understanding how your upbringing has shaped you, looking to handle your child's feelings or wishing to support your partner, you will find indispensable information and realistic tips here. Philippa Perry's sane, sage and judgement-free advice is an essential resource on how to have the best possible relationships with the people who matter to you most.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Excellent advice overall
- By Kindle Customer on 05-06-21
By: Philippa Perry
-
A Simpler Life
- A Guide to Greater Serenity, Ease and Clarity
- By: The School of Life
- Narrated by: Rachel Lanning
- Length: 3 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 95
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 80
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 79
The modern world can be a complicated, frenzied, and noisy place, filled with too many options, products, ideas and opinions. That explains why what many of us long for is simplicity: a life that can be more pared down, peaceful, and focused on the essentials. But finding simplicity is not always easy; it isn’t just a case of emptying out our closets or trimming back commitments in our diaries. True simplicity requires that we understand the roots of our distractions – and develop a canny respect for the stubborn reasons why things can grow complex and overwhelming.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Bite-size practical tips for a better life
- By Tonya Kubo on 02-12-22
-
Anxiety
- Meditations on the Anxious Mind
- By: The School of Life
- Narrated by: Rachel Lanning
- Length: 2 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 30
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 24
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 24
This is a guide to anxiety: why we feel it, how we experience it when it strikes, and what we can do when we come under its influence. Across a series of essays that look at the subject from a number of angles, the tone is helpful, compassionate, and in the best sense, practical.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Insightfulness
- By Anonymous User on 06-10-23
-
What They Forgot to Teach You at School
- Essential Emotional Lessons Needed to Thrive
- By: The School of Life
- Narrated by: Sonya Cullingford
- Length: 3 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 60
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 52
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 51
We probably went to school for what felt like a very long time. We probably took care with our homework. Along the way we surely learned intriguing things about equations, the erosion of glaciers, the history of the Middle Ages, and the tenses of foreign languages. But why, despite all the lessons we sat through, were we never taught the really important things that dominate and trouble our lives: who to start a relationship with, how to trust people, how to understand one’s psyche, how to move on from sorrow or betrayal, and how to cope with anxiety and shame?
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Wonderful
- By Anonymous User on 07-18-21
-
On Confidence
- By: The School of Life, Alain de Botton
- Narrated by: Alain de Botton
- Length: 1 hr and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 189
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 156
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 153
We spend vast amounts of time acquiring confidence in narrow technical fields: quadratic equations or bioengineering; economics or pole vaulting. But we overlook the primordial need to acquire a more free-ranging variety of confidence - one that can serve us across a range of tasks: speaking to strangers at parties, asking someone to marry us, suggesting a fellow passenger turn down their music, changing the world. This is a guidebook to confidence, why we lack it and how we can acquire more of it in our lives.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Poignant and timeless
- By Graceny Jimenez on 08-15-20
By: The School of Life, and others
-
The School of Life
- An Emotional Education
- By: The School of Life
- Narrated by: Alain de Botton, Charlie Anson
- Length: 9 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 59
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 51
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 51
Emotional intelligence affects every aspect of the way we live, from romantic to professional relationships, from our inner resilience to our social success. It is arguably the single most important skill for surviving the twenty-first century. But what does it really mean? One decade ago, Alain de Botton founded The School of Life, an institute dedicated to understanding and improving our emotional intelligence. Now he presents the gathered wisdom of those ten years in a wide-ranging and innovative compendium of emotional intelligence that forms an introduction to The School of Life.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
The school of life needs to be in schools.
- By Angela pope on 02-03-23
-
Calm
- By: The School of Life
- Narrated by: Rachel Lanning
- Length: 4 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 14
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 11
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 11
Few life skills are as neglected, yet as important, as the ability to remain calm. Our very worst decisions and interactions are almost invariably the result of a loss of calm - and a descent into anxiety and agitation. Surprisingly, but very fortunately, our power to remain calm can be rehearsed and improved. We don’t have to stay where we are now: our responses to everyday challenges can dramatically alter. This is a book that patiently unpacks the causes of our greatest stresses and gives us a succession of arguments with which to defend ourselves against panic and fury.
-
How to Overcome Your Childhood
- How to Raise Contented, Interesting, and Resilient Children
- By: The School of Life
- Narrated by: Sonya Cullingford
- Length: 2 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 66
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 49
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 49
When trying to deal with our current troubles and anxieties, it can be deeply irritating to be asked to consider our childhoods. They happened so long ago; we can probably barely remember, let alone relate to, the little person we once were. But one of the most powerful explanations for why we may, as adults, be struggling, is that we were denied the opportunity to fully be ourselves in our earliest years. This book is a guide to better understanding our younger selves in order to shape who we wish to be in the future.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
An essential read.
- By Anonymous User on 12-03-23
-
How to Think More Effectively
- A Guide to Greater Productivity, Insight, and Creativity
- By: The School of Life
- Narrated by: Sonya Cullingford
- Length: 2 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 31
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 26
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 26
We know that our minds are capable of great things because, every now and then, they come out with a brilliant idea or two. However, our minds are also unpredictable, spending large stretches of time idling or distracting themselves. This is a book about how to optimize these beautiful yet fitful instruments so that they can more regularly and generously produce the sort of insights and ideas we need to fulfill our potential and achieve the contentment we deserve.
-
Small Pleasures
- By: The School of Life
- Narrated by: Rachel Lanning
- Length: 5 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 1
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 1
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 1
We exhaust ourselves and the planet in the search for very large pleasures, while all around us lies a wealth of small pleasures, which—if we only pay more attention—can bring us solace and joy on a daily basis. This is a guidebook to life's small pleasures: everything from the distinct delight of holding a child's hand to the joy of watching the evening sky. It's an intriguing, evocative collection that will heighten our senses and return us to the world with newfound excitement and enthusiasm.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
An underrated treasure
- By Anonymous User on 08-12-23
-
Self-Knowledge
- By: The School of Life
- Narrated by: Fiona Buckland
- Length: 1 hr and 16 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 64
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 55
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 53
In Ancient Greece, when the philosopher Socrates was asked to sum up what all philosophical commandments could be reduced to, he replied: "Know yourself". Self-knowledge matters so much because it is only on the basis of an accurate sense of who we are that we can make reliable decisions - particularly around love and work. This book takes us on a journey into our deepest, most elusive selves and arms us with a set of tools to understand our characters properly.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
terrible voice
- By Tina Crosby on 08-27-20
-
The Consolations of Philosophy
- By: Alain de Botton
- Narrated by: Simon Vance
- Length: 6 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 673
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 501
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 499
Alain de Botton has performed a stunning feat: He has transformed arcane philosophy into something accessible and entertaining, useful and kind. Drawing on the work of six of the world's most brilliant thinkers, de Botton has arranged a panoply of wisdom to guide us through our most common problems.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Cheering, empathic, helpful
- By Austin on 11-11-09
By: Alain de Botton
-
The School of Life: On Failure
- How to Succeed at Defeat
- By: The School of Life
- Narrated by: Rachel Lanning
- Length: 5 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 7
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 7
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 7
This is a hopeful, consoling, gentle book about failure. Our societies talk a lot about success, but the reality is that no one gets through life without failing–in small and usually also in large ways. Sometimes our failures are very obvious, at other times, we feel we have to conceal them out of shame. This book encourages us to accept the role that failure plays for all of us and to feel compassion for ourselves for the messes we can’t help but make as we go through our lives.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
The second part of the book was really good perceived failure.
- By Anonymous User on 12-29-23
-
Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before?
- By: Julie Smith
- Narrated by: Julie Smith
- Length: 7 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 699
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 617
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 613
Filled with secrets from a therapist's toolkit, Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before teaches you how to fortify and maintain your mental health, even in the most trying of times. Dr Julie Smith’s expert advice and powerful coping techniques will help you stay resilient, whether you want to manage anxiety, deal with criticism, cope with depression, build self-confidence, find motivation, or learn to forgive yourself.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
Monotonous
- By John Olson on 02-28-22
By: Julie Smith
-
How to Think More About Sex
- The School of Life
- By: Alain de Botton
- Narrated by: David Thorpe
- Length: 3 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 283
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 240
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 239
We don't think too much about sex; we're merely thinking about it in the wrong way. So asserts Alain de Botton in this rigorous and supremely honest book designed to help us navigate the intimate and exciting—yet often confusing and difficult—experience that is sex. Few of us tend to feel we're entirely normal when it comes to sex, and what we're supposed to be feeling rarely matches up with the reality. This book argues that twenty-first-century sex is ultimately fated to be a balancing act between love and desire, and adventure and commitment.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
How to Think About Sex as Only Sex
- By Richard on 02-26-13
By: Alain de Botton
-
Essays in Love
- By: Alain de Botton
- Narrated by: James Wilby
- Length: 7 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 301
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 257
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 259
Essays in Love is a stunningly original love story. Taking in Aristotle, Wittgenstein, history, religion and Groucho Marx, Alain de Botton charts the progress of a love affair from the first kiss to argument and reconciliation, from intimacy and tenderness to the onset of anxiety and heartbreak.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Every relationship you've ever analyzed
- By Maria L. Lantin on 05-07-12
By: Alain de Botton
-
Reinventing Your Life
- The Breakthough Program to End Negative Behavior...and Feel Great Again
- By: Jeffrey E. Young, Janet S. Klosko, Aaron T. Beck - foreword
- Narrated by: Fred Sanders
- Length: 15 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 186
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 155
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 152
Unsatisfactory relationships, irrational lack of self-esteem, feelings of being unfulfilled - these are all problems that can be solved by changing the types of messages that people internalize. These self-defeating behavior patterns are called “lifetraps”, and Reinventing Your Life shows you how to stop the cycle that keeps you from attaining happiness.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Revolutionary
- By Kindle Customer on 10-07-20
By: Jeffrey E. Young, and others
-
The Highly Sensitive Person
- By: Elaine N. Aron
- Narrated by: Barbara Caruso
- Length: 9 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 2,018
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,643
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,627
Elaine N. Aron, Ph.D., is a world-renowned psychologist and speaker. The Highly Sensitive Person is an in-depth look at characteristics that define sensitivity. Through self-assessment tests and techniques, Aron shows listeners how to identify their own personality traits. This exceptional book can lead to remarkable results for many who suffer from constant stress and anxiety.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
Highly Scientific
- By Steph on 01-07-10
By: Elaine N. Aron
Critic reviews
“Self-Help Books for the Rest of Us.” —The New York Times
“Sanity, Philippa Perry shows in this brilliant little book, is not about normality, but about how to maintain a flexible position between rigidity and chaos.” —The Economist, Books of the Year
“[Perry's] inviting tone (complimented by lighthearted illustrations throughout) and friendly prose make this an accessible addition to the School of Life publications.” —Publishers Weekly