Dr. Gladys McGarey’s The Well-Lived Life offers a remarkable blend of wisdom, science, and personal anecdotes from a life well-lived. At 102 years old, Dr. McGarey combines her extensive medical knowledge with a lifetime of experience to present six key principles for achieving health and happiness.

The book is structured around these six "secrets," which Dr. McGarey has distilled from her decades of practice and personal journey. Each principle is explored with clarity and depth, ranging from the importance of self-care and a positive mindset to the significance of community and finding purpose. Dr. McGarey’s advice is not just practical but also deeply philosophical, reflecting her belief that true well-being encompasses mind, body, and spirit.

One of the book’s strengths is Dr. McGarey’s ability to make complex concepts accessible and actionable. Her writing is warm and engaging, filled with personal stories that illustrate her points and inspire readers. Her insights into aging, health, and happiness are both refreshing and empowering, challenging conventional views and encouraging readers to rethink their approach to life and well-being.

The Well-Lived Life is more than just a guide to aging gracefully; it’s a testament to the idea that a fulfilling life is attainable at any age. Dr. McGarey’s approach is holistic and optimistic, and her enthusiasm for life is palpable on every page. Whether you’re looking for practical advice or philosophical reflections, this book offers a valuable perspective on living a life full of vitality and joy.

Dr. Gladys McGarey’s The Well-Lived Life is an amazing book about the secrets to health and happiness. At age 102, holistic medicine doctor, Dr. McGarey writes about topics like love, exercise, learning, and purpose. I voluntarily read and reviewed a complimentary copy of this well-written, inspiring book. Well-done, Dr. McGarey!

Thank you for sharing this book with me.
I appreciate the opportunity to read The Well Lived Life and share it with my followers.

I loved this one! A perfect read for those feeling stuck and wondering about their next steps. I loved hearing from an author who has lived a long time, reflected and has so many jems to share.

THE WELL-LIVED LIFE by Gladys McGarey shares "Six Secrets to Health and Happiness at Every Age" and is written by a 102-Year-Old Doctor. Her advice begins with "You are here for a reason" about finding and staying oriented to your life's purpose. Subsequent sections look at the importance of movement (spiritual, mental, and physical) and "Love is the most powerful medicine." McGarey also notes the importance of building a meaningful community, something that government officials here and abroad are increasingly stressing. As an educator, I truly appreciated her fifth secret: "Everything is your teacher" (as she says, deep learning comes from setbacks). Finally, she recommends "spend your energy wildly" where she writes about embracing life and feeling motivated every day. Anecdotes from her patients and her own long life (like another centenarian, Sister Jean, shared in Wake Up with Purpose!) are interspersed. McGarey also includes small contemplative exercises related to each secret and hopes that they become habits for readers. Clearly, she believes in the value of shifting perspective and the suggestions offered reflect her advocacy for holistic medicine. Creating a doctor-patient relationship with yourself may be difficult for some readers to accept, but McGarey says, this sentence summarizes her life's work: "To be truly alive, we must find the life force within ourselves and direct our energy toward it."

Initially I was a little skeptical of the claim that the author had 70+ years of experience in the medical field; I fell in love with the tree on the cover and neglected the additional wording of "A 102-year-old doctor's six secrets to health and happiness at every age" (in capital letters) that was also on the front cover.. The Well-Lived Life is a combination of sharing Dr. Gladys life experience, her guides and secrets to living well and memoirs. Well written and she has had an amazing life. Her parents volunteered in the medical field in India when she was young. I loved the elephant and cow and turtle stories.

Although I really enjoyed The Well-Lived Life, I did need some time to absorb the material. I read the book completely (cover to cover), but not in one sitting.

Thank you to NetGalley, especially for (yet once again) introducing me to a "new to me author". The opportunity to review the advance read copy is in exchange for this honest review. Publication date is May 2, 2023. Thank you to Dr. Gladys McGarey the author and Atria Books the publisher.

Sometimes books like this one are filled with advice that it seems everyone knows already, other times, the suggestions are ones where you are left wondering how the person could live that long and still be healthy. In this book, you get more than most people would expect.

Gladys goes beyond her idea of what foods we should eat and delves into things like: getting along with others; keeping a positive attitude; perspective changes; and visualization for health issues. She also adds personal stories of her own and those of others she has known.

I thought this was an extremely helpful book, and I highly recommend it.

I was honestly a little skeptical in the beginning of this book, simply because of my lack of knowledge in this subject and I'm proud to say I was wrong. This is a great book, full of practical uses, stories to connect to, and various ways to incorporate practice into our lives. It was a slow read for me and will be a re-read soon, when I can really put some recommendations into practice.

If you enjoy simple yet profound, with human connections throughout, this is a book for you.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
#thewelllivedlife #netgalley

I really enjoyed this easily digestible book on thriving and healing. The wisdom and love this woman has for her work and life itself spills from the pages. Reading this book is like sitting with a beloved elder who is ready and willing to share a life-time of stories to reflect on. After reading this book you will definitely wish Gladys McGarey was your doctor.

💕You might like this book if:
🔹 you enjoy books about health by authors such as Gabor Mate or Mark Hyman
🔹 you like when real-life stories are added into self-help / healing books
🔹 you enjoy reading what others have learned from their personal life journey

Very entertaining. I didn't find a lot of answers here, but I'm sure others will. It's clear that the author has charisma and wisdom. There are some good ideas and maybe inspiration. Recommended.

Thanks very much for the free copy for review!!

I cannot recommend this book enough.

If you deal with Anxiety, Depression, Chronic Pain, Trauma…If you feel emotionally stuck in life, stuck in emotions, stuck in thoughts…even simple things like constipation - READ THIS!

When I read the description I was immediately interested. What I didn’t bargain for is the Knowledge Tree I tapped into. This isn’t your typical holistic book. This is a WHOLE body health book - Mind, Body, Spirit. Written by a centenarian who is a pioneer in holistic medicine, she is able to shed light on the connection between the way our body’s ailments and our emotional/mental/spiritual state. She leaves no stone unturned in this book. I immediately googled her to see if I can read anything more from her, this book was that amazing.

At the end of each section she provides some “Practice” things you can do to help you work through particular issues. Although I won’t say what exactly my issue was, I will say, I did her easy to follow practice and slowly started to feel better - emotionally and physically. About 12 years ago my body broke down in such a way that my family thought I was going to die. The Doctors ran every test they could think of. Things they couldn’t explain were deteriorating in my body and they couldn’t figure out why. They finally decided it was the stress that was causing my body to literally break down. I started to feel that way again recently and when I read this book, I realized EXACTLY what the issue was. This book helped me to remember that our mental state affects our physical state and I am so glad it did.

EVERYBODY should read this book. If you like this type of stuff, read it. If you don’t, take a leap of faith and READ it. Instead of just moving through life and dealing with what is, you can help yourself to get better. You’ll be so glad you did.