The fascinating science behind the intersection of sexual pleasure and brain functionality.In her debut book, cognitive neuroscientist and sex therapist Wise presents the "culmination of many decades" of scientific study dedicated to sex and its effects on the human brain. Findings from the author's clinical neurobiological research comprise the first sections of the book, in which Wise reveals how the primal emotional brain and its serpentine circuitry helps to drive our ability to experience joy. In many of her clients, the author recognized a "pleasure crisis," whereby debilitating symptoms like anxiety, stress, and chronic depression stifle one's ability to feel gratification. Though addictive quick fixes such as TV and social media have become exceedingly popular, their effects are fleeting, and anhedoniaan inability to experience pleasurebriskly returns to dull the psyche. Wise examines how we arrived at this crossroads by way of our historic ambivalence toward pleasure; while "we are intrinsically sexual beings," the number of roadblocks obstructing the pathways to true sexual satisfaction increases with age and the complexities of modern life. The author describes our "seven emotional systems" and how understanding them "is the first step to bringing your own brain-body into balance and returning to pleasure." Wise then introduces patients from her psychotherapy practice whose personal happiness has been hijacked by emotional imbalances and a lack of brain pleasure chemicals such as oxytocin and dopamine, which are released through touch and orgasm. For readers less scientifically attuned, the book's second half clearly addresses core issues of sex and pleasure through the practices of "good sex tools" (yoga, breathing exercises, etc.) to promote better self-care, erotic empowerment, and a heightened understanding of what role sex plays in our lives. Featuring a harmonious blend of clinical research and relatable instruction, the book will appeal to sexuality specialists and lay readers seeking guidance on matters of achieving pleasure.A rewarding text steeped in laboratory analysis and thought-provoking, motivating patient-based conclusions. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

In this astute debut, neuroscientist and therapist Wise analyzes the connection between mental health and sexual satisfaction and offers tips to improve one's sex life. Humans are addicted to "quick pleasure fixes" like television and social media, Wise writes, and suffer from anhedonia--an inability to experience authentic pleasure. There's a heavy focus on science in the first part of the book, as Wise discusses brain circuitry, neuromodulators, and the brain's relationship to sex and pleasure. She shares her research into how the brain reacts to an orgasm (it becomes infused with oxygen) and concludes that "orgasm may serve as the best possible 'exercise' for the brain." She addresses the ways that various stresses (fear, rage) create an emotional imbalance and lower sex drive, and shares stories of patients she's treated who've confronted issues related to intimacy, self-esteem, and more on their way to better sex. Wise also offers "Good Sex Tools," which include generic self-care tips (do yoga, journal) and a test for readers to figure out which kind of lovers they are ("rough and tumble," "needy"). Those looking for a more fulfilling sex life will benefit from this smoothly written, if at times clinical, look at how a person's mental state can elevate or sabotage their sexual experience. (Jan.)