Showing results by author "Maria Merlino" in All Categories

You’re not stuck because you didn’t get closure. You’re stuck because you were taught you needed it. Some hurts do not end with a final conversation. Some people never explain, never apologize, and never even admit that what happened mattered. This book is for the people left carrying that silence. The Closure Myth challenges the idea that healing depends on getting answers from the person who hurt you. In clear, compassionate language, Maria Merlino explores why so many people stay emotionally trapped waiting for understanding that may never come, and why that waiting can keep pain ...

In the weeks before Hanukkah, Rifka Katz makes her way to her favorite yarn shop and selects what she always selects: Peaches and Crème cotton in National Blue and White. The colors of the Israeli flag. The colors her grandmother Perl Katz carried out of Poland when she had almost nothing else. Round by round, stitch by stitch, Rifka crochets three potholders for her three daughters, the same pattern passed down through three generations of women who understood that small things add up. When her grandson Daniel asks why the flag is blue and white, Rifka finds herself reaching back through ...

What do a desert lizard, a Beijing field hamster, a horseshoe crab older than the dinosaurs, and a cone snail at the bottom of the Pacific have in common? They all knew something we didn't. And their secrets are keeping you alive. In this book, biochemist and former Ringling Bros. clown Maria Merlino takes you behind the scenes of the most astonishing pharmacy on earth: the natural world. Every chapter reveals one creature, one accident, one ignored scientist, and one discovery that changed medicine forever. You will meet the Gila monster whose venom became Ozempic. The hamster caught in a ...

A bicycle on layaway. A lost receipt. A birthday cake at checkout. A child reaching for a doll. In these ten heartfelt stories, everyday people face money troubles, family strain, grief, and unexpected kindness. In these ten moving stories, ordinary people carry private heartbreaks under the bright lights of a big-box store.A grandmother makes payments on a bicycle she hopes will bring her family back together. A widow finds a receipt that changes what she thought she knew about her husband. A cashier watches a little girl lay birthday coins on the belt and must decide whether life has ...

What happens when influence becomes more powerful than truth This book asks the questions most people never think to ask. The Shadow of the Guru takes a closer look at the public image and cultural influence of modern spiritual figures, including well-known names such as Deepak Chopra. It explores how reputation is built, how authority is maintained, and how proximity to power can shape what people are willing to see or question. This book does not claim to expose hidden facts. Instead, it examines patterns. It looks at how public perception is formed through image, association, and ...

You knew something wasn’t right. But you just couldn't prove it. But every time you tried to explain it, it slipped through your fingers. He didn’t hit you. He didn’t scream. He didn’t leave obvious damage. So why did you feel confused… anxious… and like you were slowly losing yourself? Because sweetheart, he knows exactly what he’s doing. This book breaks down the five oldest manipulation tactics used in relationships — the subtle ones that make you doubt your memory, question your instincts, and stay longer than you should. Inside, you’ll learn: why you keep second-...

Do you struggle to speak up when something bothers you? Do you say yes when you mean no, avoid conflict, or replay conversations in your head long after they end? Many people learn early in life that keeping the peace is safer than speaking the truth. Over time this habit becomes a pattern. You swallow your words, smooth things over, and try to make everyone comfortable. On the outside you appear kind, easygoing, and dependable. On the inside you may feel resentful, exhausted, or invisible. Say It Anyway is a practical and compassionate guide for people who want to stop people pleasing ...

If you are tired of people pleasing and searching for how to set boundaries without guilt, this book will show you how. You know something has to change. You are tired of saying yes when you mean no. You are tired of feeling pulled in every direction. You are tired of losing your voice, your time, and your sense of who you are. This book is for anyone who feels stuck in people pleasing, overwhelmed by others’ expectations, or unsure how to take their life back. My Life, My Choices, My Power, My Path is a practical guide to reclaiming your voice, setting boundaries, and building a life ...

Do This Together is a practical relationship guide for couples stuck in the anxious avoidant cycle. If one of you craves closeness and reassurance while the other shuts down, pulls away, or feels overwhelmed, this book helps you understand what is happening and what to do next. Instead of giving you only attachment theory, this book gives you simple activities you can do together to build emotional connection, improve communication, reduce conflict, and create more safety in the relationship. It is designed for anxious and avoidant couples who want real help, not vague advice. Inside, you ...

Four point two million Americans are trapped in gambling addiction right now. The average debt when they finally seek help? $27,500. This is not a problem affecting a few unlucky people. This is a national crisis that is getting worse every single day. Since sports betting was legalized in 2018, searches for gambling addiction help surged 23 percent nationally. In Ohio, the increase was 67 percent. Young men aged 18 to 34 now show gambling problems at a rate of 13.4 percent. And 90 percent of young bettors believe they can make money gambling on sports. They cannot. But by the time they ...

What if everything you were taught about human origins was wrong? For 6,000 years, we've been told we evolved randomly from apes. But your DNA tells a different story, one of deliberate design, genetic engineering, and an ancient conflict that continues today. THE EVIDENCE IS IN YOUR CHROMOSOMES While all great apes have 24 pairs of chromosomes, humans have only 23. Human Chromosome 2 shows clear signs of fusion, two ancestral chromosomes deliberately merged together. Random evolution? Or genetic engineering by an advanced civilization? Ancient Sumerian texts provide the answer. The ...

Why do you keep repeating patterns you hate? Why does the life that looks right on paper feel hollow? Why do you want things you cannot seem to reach, and reach things that do not satisfy you the way you expected? The answers are in your brain. Specifically, in five neural drives that have been running your life since before you could name them. In Your Wanting Brain, Maria Merlino draws on decades of research across attachment theory, reward neuroscience, developmental psychology, and the emerging science of meaning to reveal the five core drives that shape every significant choice you ...

A quiet story from the Scottish Highlands becomes something you can hold in your hands. The Weaver’s Tongue begins in 1747, in a landscape shaped by loss, memory, and tradition. Through the eyes of a young girl, we see how cloth becomes more than warmth. It becomes a way to speak when words are no longer safe, a way to remember what cannot be said out loud. After the story, the book opens into a complete modern crochet pattern inspired by a vintage plaid afghan design. The pattern has been carefully rewritten in clear, modern language so today’s crocheter can recreate the look and ...

Your Pet, Understood is for people who love their animals deeply,but sometimes realize love alone doesn’t answer the real question: What does life feel like from their side of the leash, the cage, the tank, or the terrarium? Most of us were taught to read pets through a human lens. We call a dog “stubborn,” a cat “aloof,” a bird “happy” because it sings, or a hamster “energetic” because it runs for hours. But behavior isn’t a personality label—it’s communication. When you learn to read real signals instead of guessing, you stop managing symptoms and start meeting ...

Author's Note: Pattern included makes a cross in one piece. No Sewing! Phyllis has spent her life making delicate crochet crosses for her church. Each one is small enough to slip into a Bible, made with fine thread and steady hands. But when her eyesight begins to fail, the work she has always loved becomes impossible. Faced with losing her place in the world, she must decide whether to stop or begin again. What follows is a quiet, powerful story about change, aging, purpose, and the courage to keep creating even when life asks you to do things differently. Inspired by a real vintage ...

What does a mental health diagnosis really mean? For many people, the DSM feels confusing, clinical, and out of reach. Labels can feel overwhelming. Explanations often sound like a foreign language. This book changes that. The Joy of Understanding Mental Health Diagnosis breaks down how mental health diagnosis actually works in clear, simple language. It explains what the DSM is, how professionals use it, and what those labels do and do not say about you. This is not a textbook. It is a practical, human guide designed for real life. You will learn how diagnoses are made, why symptoms ...

Some people do not lie to hurt you. They tell the truth. But they tell it in ways that shame you, criticize your body, and slowly erode your confidence in the relationship. When Honesty Turns Cruel explores a painful and often misunderstood pattern in intimate relationships. Many people believe honesty should strengthen love. Yet some partners use truth as a weapon. A private insecurity becomes a cutting remark. A vulnerable moment becomes a cruel comparison. A partner calls it honesty, but the result is humiliation and control. Drawing on research in relationship psychology, emotional ...

You can be smart, self aware, and still repeat the same painful patterns.You promise yourself it will be different next time. You will react less. You will choose better. You will not spiral. And yet the same triggers show up, the same feelings take over, and the same outcomes repeat. This is not a lack of willpower. It is a loop.Breaking the Loop is a practical schema therapy workbook designed to help you identify the deep patterns that drive anxiety, self sabotage, people pleasing, emotional shutdown, conflict, and relationship distress. These patterns often formed early as survival ...

What if the reason you couldn’t “just walk away” wasn’t weakness, or stupidity, but chemistry? Romance scams don’t only steal money. They hijack your brain’s reward system, your stress system, and your bonding system, then use that biology against you. The result can feel like love, obsession, panic, and withdrawal all at once. And even after the truth comes out, your body can keep craving the person who harmed you. The Dopamine Trap explains, clearly, calmly, and without judgment—how scammers engineer attachment and why smart, capable people can get pulled in. You’ll learn ...

Grief does not only come from death. It can also come from lost love, divorce, betrayal, estrangement, and the kind of goodbye you never got to have. Sometimes the loss is real and final. Sometimes the person is still alive, but the relationship is gone. Either way, your brain can react as if something essential has been torn away. The Grief Trap explains why some people do not move through grief in a straight line. It shows how love and attachment are wired into the nervous system and why the mind can get stuck replaying memories, searching for answers, and hoping for a different ending. ...