Quantum Wellness

Starred review from March 31, 2008
Former model Freston (The One
) writes intimately about healing and finding wellness through “incremental changes that vault us to a new experience of ourselves.” Peppered with examples from Freston’s own path to more conscious, healthier living (quitting smoking, becoming vegan), the book methodically addresses what it means to be healthy in mind, body and spirit and how the three are inextricably intertwined. Some of Freston’s prescriptions—such as cleansing, meditation and yoga—are familiar and feel like Hinduism and Buddhism lite—but her contention that “e cannot thrive as individuals without tending to the ills of this world and all its inhabitants” is powerfully argued. The book devotes considerable attention to promoting vegetarianism (“It’s about having integrity in the most fundamental of our actions—eating”), and in keeping with the book’s attention to “incremental” change, Freston introduces ways for even the most hardened carnivore to start leading a cruelty-free life. With compelling chapters on dealing with crisis and an innovative section on “personal energy management,” Freston invites—and equips—readers to become their own healers in moments of sickness, despair and loss.