This messy magnificent life : a field guide
(Book)

Inspiring, personal, and often spiritual reflections on how women can find peace, make wise choices, practice everyday joy, and step into their power from Geneen Rothauthor of the #1 New York Times bestselling Women Food and God. From the beginning, Geneen Roth was told she was too sensitive, too emotional, too curious, too demanding, too intense, and too big. Yet gaining and losing weight for decades did not improve her self-worth or reduce other peoples criticisms. Like most women who struggle with their weight, she believed that if she could resolve what seemed to be the source of her self-hatredhow and what she ateshe would be thin, happy, and free. That belief, she discovered, was false. When her struggle with food endedand didnt change anything except the size of her thighsshe kept trying to fix other broken parts of herself with therapy, intensive meditation retreats, and rigorous spiritual practices. Yet it was only when Geneen stopped trying to change or fix herselfthat she was at last able to feel at home in her mind, body, and life. Now, she shares the wisdom of giving up what Geneen calls "the Me Project," and finding the freedom, peace and power that await us just beyond it. With humor, compassion, and insight, This Messy Magnificent Life explores the personal beliefs, hidden traumas, and social pressures that shape not just womens feelings about their bodies, but also their confidence, choices, and relationships. This provocative, enchanting, and sometimes laugh-out-loud look at the imperfect path women take to step into their own power, presence, and ownership is based on the authors personal journey and her decades of work with thousands of women around the country. Roth embraces everyones unique and often unsung potential and shows us how to be open, curious, and kind with ourselves; how to say no to people and ideas that hold us back; how to let go of grudges and anxieties; how to pick ourselves up after setbacks; how to say a resounding yes to the world; how to move from fixing ourselves to finding ourselves; how to find joy in the ordinary; and how to experience the extraordinary right here and now in our bodies. With a foreword by Anne Lamott, This Messy Magnificent Life is a compelling and often quirky look at what it means to be an imperfect but unapologetic woman living a (mostly) magnificent life.