The positive benefits of reading are too many to list in a single post. As they say, reading is to the mind what exercise is to the body. Honestly, I am not talking about daily reading from a tweet, Instagram post, a text message from a friend or any other social media posts. I am not speaking about an “express” reading, but about the reading considered part of a pleasure time or enjoyment. The reading that gets you acquaintance with a book. Connect you with a single story; its plots and characters since the moment you opened the first page.

True story: Several years ago, I got terribly sick, and my memory was the most affected. I could not function normally; therefore, I became obsessed with my cognitive recovery. I once had a neurologist who told me that the best thing I could do for my brain was never to stop reading. Staying mentally active can help repair the brain. Companies like Lumosity or CogniFit (which I used at the time), are online programs and applications for brain exercises and have become favorites using such facts. The brain is also a muscle; exercise is needed to keep it healthy. Besides reading, If you want to learn more about improving your mind in natural ways, then you got to watch these TEDx Talks from Psychiatrists Daniel Amen. Based on his book – Change Your Brain, Change Your Life.

It does not matter how much chaos you have in your life; it all just disappears when you find yourself concentrated reading a great story. A good book will make you fantasize and keep you entertained. It will take your mind away from the present and help you to relax. My favorite “Me, Myself and I” moment is when I sit holding a cup of tea (Matcha, anyone?), while lost on a good book story.

Like some of my recent favorites: Paris Time Capsule or A Paris Apartment, both based on the true story of a beautiful apartment abandoned in Paris for seventy years. When the apartment got open for the first time, after all those years of being closed, then it was discovered that it used to belong to a Parisian Belle Epoque courtesan. She left her secrets, a story of romance, history, and mysteries hidden inside that apartment. I devoured both stories in a couple of days. These books were incredibly fun to read. Great stories!

Reading is often, feeding the brain with brand new data and information. The more useful information you put in there, the more active the mind is to confront and handle upcoming new challenges (be selective with your reading choices!). There is real evidence that book lovers can make their brain come alive with emotions and senses. A similar benefit for those that enjoy listening to a good book let’s say through Audible.com. The brain gets to light up when you hear an interesting narrated story. The central part of the brain which process language, gets activated. Reading makes you connect to real-life experiences; the mind believes that you have lived and experienced the story.

Each time I read a book, I end up remembering a series of situations like location described, characters and episodes. Focusing on a single subject is important for our brains to confront modern days. Day by day, our mind is divided between several tasks, work, and assignments. Just think of yourself right now, while you are reading this from your computer or smartphone. How many more tabs do you have open? How many other apps? There is so much to read. Communication is being bombarded at us, every second from all directions, right? However, when you read through a book, what happens? You are engaged and set to a single story at that precise moment. Such solitude of attention, it is excellent and healthy to improve your memory and focus.

We learn to relate to others. It increases the capacity to deduce what others are thinking by reading into people’s feelings. As we let go of the mental chatter in the real world, in-depth reading, allows us to feel what the characters within the story are feeling. Reading makes us more empathetic and increases our awareness of others.

The National Institute Of Aging stated that some factors associated with Alzheimer could be prevented. Evidence suggests that activity like reading has cognitive benefits. People who don’t exercise their brain stand a chance of losing brain power. Reading exercises the brain and prevents inactivity, which prevents the likelihood of being diagnosed with Alzheimer.