Blissful Thinking: A Memoir of Overcoming the Wellness Revolution
Never give up, especially not on yourself.
Blissful Thinking is the sweeping story of L.L. Kirchner's search for nirvana that took her from university halls in the Persian Gulf to the streets of Manhattan to a sex cult in India.
Between her family's gym and the years she'd spent in substance abuse recovery, Kirchner felt versed in physical and spiritual wellness. But when her husband demanded a divorce over the phone, she feared a return to her addictions.
Forced to confront the fact that her painful family dynamics remained unresolved, the author embarked on a spiritual journey to regain her trust in the universe. She tried yoga, meditation, chanting - all the things meant to cultivate bliss. Each brought some relief, but it wasn't until she visited a psychic that she knew her life had changed.
In a memoir that's both rapturous and page-turning, Kirchner captures the terrors and joys of searching for radical honesty - and a second date.
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"L.L. Kirchner's Blissful Thinking is the deeply moving story of a woman seeking herself, after years of addiction, recovery, and grief. I read this book in one sitting, such was the force of Kirchner's prose, and of the grip her unwaveringly candid story held on my heart all the while. Pretty near everyone will recognize a bit of themselves in this sharp, often funny, and ultimately triumphant story of learning to sit with one's imperfect self."-Lynn Melnick, author of I've Had to Think Up a Way to Survive
"Raw, honest, and engaging, Kirchner's story of addiction, loss, and, ultimately, her path to self-discovery is a page turner that will leave readers not knowing whether to laugh or cry or both, but it will, no doubt, leave them wanting more. This book of resilience and bravery should be on everyone's reading list."-Aileen Weintraub, author of Knocked Down: A High-Risk Memoir
"A funny and heart-warming story that offers a refreshingly honest take on the idea of what wellness even means."-Ophira Eisenberg, author of Screw Everyone: Sleeping My Way to Monogamy "It's not often one finds humor, addiction, grief, and genuine openness tangled into one memoir, but L.L. Kirchner's Blissful Thinking does exactly that. Traversing both the globe and her inner landscape, Kirchner shows readers what it means to search, try, and even hope during life's most challenging moments."-Rev. Dr. Angela Yarber, author of Queering the American Dream "A vivid, sharply humorous and insightful account of the pursuit of wellness-L.L. takes you on a trip you'll remember.-Vasudha Viswanath, author of The Vegetarian Reset and Founder, We Ate Well
"This memorable book will send you on a hunt for more of everything inside: more information on yoga, meditation, chanting, gurus, and all the ways these spiritual pursuits do and don't work. In a fascinating travelogue that spans New York City, Qatar, and cities all over India, Kirchner shares the story of her quest for self-improvement. It is told with rich sensory detail, the local food and physical settings in all these locations dropping us right into the moment, with Kirchner's introspection and memories gently pulling us up and out and then back in. There is much to love and learn from all of her attempts at spiritual growth, but her healthy skepticism and strong inner voice is what finally brings her home."-Debi Lewis, author of Kitchen Medicine
"A captivating and thoroughly enjoyable read, Lisa Kirchner's Blissful Thinking is a moving journey, at turns introspective and hilarious, through one woman's quest to find herself. With richly drawn portraits of the people she met along the way, Kirchner's engaging voice made this a pleasure to read." - Erin Khar, author of Strung Out.
