How to Make Your Brain Your Best Friend

A Neuroscientist's Guide to a Healthier, Happier Life

De: Rachel Barr

Narrado por: Rachel Barr

'Fun, but still deeply, rigorously researched.'—Professor Neil Shyminsky

'A true masterpiece. Rachel Barr has done a phenomenal job breaking down the complexities of the human mind.'—Jeffrey Meltzer, LMHC

'Insightful and relatable psychoeducation that demystifies the brain . . . it’s a resource I’ll proudly keep on my shelf as a therapist.'—Joshua Fletcher, anxiety therapist

Your brain is the most remarkable thing in the known universe.

Always trying to mend itself, and always trying to protect you, it’s in a constant state of flux—adapting, reconfiguring, finding new pathways . . . And it has an astonishing capacity for recovery.

Only it doesn’t always get it right.

Rachel Barr struggled through years of devastating loss, heartache, and uncertainty until neuroscience gave her the first spark of self-belief she had felt in her adult life—and proof that, because of the brain’s near-infinite potential for neuroplastic change, it’s never too late to carve out neural pathways to form new habits, new skills, and new ways of thinking.

Whether you want to nerd-out on Neuroscientific acronyms, finally understand what’s going on in your head, or take refuge in an audiobook that’s like a warm hug for your mind, How to Make Your Brain Your Best Friend is a delight-filled, evidence-based guide to taking better care of your brain—so it, in turn, will take better care of you.

Rachel Barr holds a master’s degree in molecular neuroscience and wrote How to Make Your Brain Your Best Friend while completing her PhD in the electrophysiology of memory and sleep.

Beyond the lab, her videos as ‘Rachel the Neuroscientist’ demystify the fundamental principles of brain science, empowering her million-plus followers to make informed decisions about their mental health.

Born and raised in Fife, she studied in Bristol and is now based in Quebec, where she shares her home—and keyboard—with Gnocchi the cat.

©2025 Rachel Barr (P)2025 DK Audio

Heartfelt and informative

This is a heartfelt and truly informative read. As a mental health counselor, I found her insights both professional and deeply relatable. It’s one of those books that not only enriches your own practice but also feels like a warm conversation between colleagues. I’ll definitely be recommending it to fellow professionals and even to clients who are looking to understand their minds better. It’s a gem in our field.

A warm hug for your brain

Well worth the read/listen. Not only does the author provide reasons to view your brain as a friend, not an enemy, she gives suggestions on how to develop that friendship that are simple and attainable. For a long time I struggled with viewing my brain as something that was working against me, but this has helped me to see it as a well intentioned friend that I can work with. I may buy the physical book as well just so that I have easy access to the end of chapter reviews.

As far as an audio book goes, the author herself reads the book and she is genuine and fun.

If your brain needs a warm hug, which it probably does, this is worth your time.

1st book review ever

I don’t think I’ve ever written a book review, but this seems important. I can’t recommend this book (especially the audio) enough. The world would be brighter if it were required reading.

Dear Rachel Barr,

Thank you so much for using your voice, insight, education and experiences to lead me to better understand my brain. I have been studying for many years about the effects of CPTSD and how to cope with and heal from it. Your wonderful book brought me to a much-needed level of awareness. I think we are all suffering from chronic traumas, both individually and collectively; therefore, I recommend this book to everyone who wants to be the best kind of friend to themselves and to others as we journey together on this planet. I look forward to hearing from you again. Most sincerely, Treasure Seeker

The humor sprinkled in stood out the most

I liked how the personal experiences of the author can be a lesson on how to improve your brain. Great book/audiobook.

A vital book for a world full of needy minds!

The authors expertise, carefully articulated, words, and useful analogies makes this a must listen. Each chapter also includes a l very useful summary of the information just covered.
Her delightful personality and Scottish accent add joy to the listening experience.

Lovely book.

It's a delightful read cover to cover with simple strategies that work and glimpses of the neuroscience principles that explain why they do.

Neuroscience with humorb& storytelling that's accessible to a lay audience.

I'm not a lay audience, I have. BSc. in Neuroscience but this is probably the most accessible book on neuroscience that offers REAL & immediately actionable strategies I haven't found anywhere else.

What's most important to me is that it's told by a REAL expert, not some social media fake expert, of which there are FAR too many.

She addresses thes topics in everyday language, with humor, vulnerability & humanity.

It both verified some of my own personal discoveries, pointed to what I could do more of & of course taught me new tools, approaches & frames for applying what's she teaches.

It's especially close to my heart that:
She's ADHD as am I.
She's autistic, which I've often wondered if I am.
And she fell in love with neuroscience via a book on neuroplasticity, of which I studied deeply since my undergrad professors were pioneers in.

If you read ONE book on neuroscience, make it this one.

If you want to read more, ask me, & this author for recommendations :-)

Beautiful, Actionable, Engaging

Such a beautifully written story by Rachel. She has such a wonderful way of pulling you into her world with her writing and reading, the whole audiobook felt more like an incredibly engaging conversation. Excellent, engaging book the whole way around!

Accessible Neuroscience!? And it’s enjoyable?!

Barr takes neuroscience and makes it understandable, even relatable, and then applies it to how we can best improve our thinking processes. The magic—she does it with absolutely humility and makes such complex ideas accessible so that we can really learn how our minds work and what contributes to our behavior. This was an absolute joy to read, even for someone who has absolutely zero clue about the inner workings of the brain. Barr’s narration was conversational, kind, and hilarious, and I’d recommend this book to anyone and everyone I know.