More and more of us are becoming aware that stress takes a toll on the body, but few of us know the crucial role it plays when it comes to illness. Oh sure, we know on an intellectual level that high levels of continuous stress is bad, but we live in a world where we seem to thrive on it, and few of us grasp the significance of what it can do to us.

When the Body Says No is not just another book about stress, but it's an exploration of how the mind and body are connected in relation to certain chronic diseases, such as ALS, MS, rheumatoid arthritis, breast cancer and others. It's a wake-up call to everyone and especially the medical community about how to recognize this if we are to properly view and treat the person with the illness.

Dr. Maté speaks of psychoneuroimmunology (PNI) which is the study of the interaction between psychological processes and the nervous and immune systems of the human body. Granted, sometimes the medical explanations went a little over my head, but overall even a lay person like me could easily understand how our past and present experiences, such as verbal, physical or sexual abuse, alienation, and dysfunctional family relationships are connected to illness.

Dr. Maté includes life histories and interviews of many of his patients throughout the book. There were times when I had to shut off the audio and take a rest from this revelatory book just because it filled me with a heavy sadness for what some people have had to endure and their resulting illness brought on by the effects of stress. It made me reflect on my own life and if I was pursuing a lifestyle that was healthy, if I was providing a loving family atmosphere, and if I was handling my stress well. It made me realize how important it was to take care of myself, say no when my schedule was full and to pursue a positive outlook.

This is the second audiobook I listen to with narrator Daniel Maté and once again his narration was warm, engaging and fluid, displaying a comfort with sometimes complex medical notions and concepts. I enjoyed his narration, and I now love the sound of his voice.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in psychoneuroimmunology, the mind/body connection or anyone in the medical field—doctors, nurses, psychologists, and psychiatrists, but especially medical interns who are our future doctors, leading the way to seeing a patient as a whole person with an inseparable mind and body.

Note: This book is rated C = clean read, however, there are a few instances of profanity during the interviews.

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