MIND AND BRAIN BY JEFFREY M. SCHWARTZ & SHARON BEGLEY

Key Points:

• Self-Directed Neuroplasticity: The brain isn't a fixed machine; it is highly "plastic." Schwartz demonstrates that adults can intentionally change their brain’s structure through focused attention and mental effort.
• The Four-Step Method for OCD: The book details a clinical system—Relabel, Reattribute, Refocus, and Revalue—that allows patients to treat OCD by recognizing intrusive thoughts as "false alarms" from a faulty brain circuit and consciously choosing new behaviors to create healthy neural pathways.
• Mental Force: Schwartz introduces the concept of a "mental force" that connects the mind and the brain. He argues that this force is the physical expression of will and is supported by the laws of quantum physics
  
   

Quantum Physics & The Observer

• : Drawing on the work of physicist Henry Stapp, the book explores how the "Quantum Zeno Effect" explains how sustained mental focus can hold a brain state in place, allowing it to become physically "wired" into the system.

• A New View of Free Will: By proving that conscious choice can change physical biology, Schwartz provides scientific evidence for the existence of human free will, challenging the idea that we are merely "programmed" automatons.
• Mindfulness as a Tool: The book bridges ancient Buddhist philosophy with modern neuroscience, showing how the practice of "mindful awareness" is the key to activating the brain's capacity for change.