2017 was a huge learning curve for me. Besides my Master's studies I read tons of books. And, as many of  you requested, here is my list of the best 15 books I read in 2017 (in no specific order): 
​

​1. In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters with Addiction- by Gabor Mate.
This is the best book I’ve read describing addiction, and the meaning, implications and approaches to healing. Yet, don’t be fooled by the name, this book showed me how, in a way, we’re all addicts. We’re all trying to fill this emptiness inside us and everyone has his/her personal way of doing that.

​2. Cultivating Wholeness: A Guide to Care and Counselling in Faith Communities by Margaret Kornfeld. 
Although written for Christian faith communities, it is still extremely valuable for all communities. This book is a valuable asset for spiritual leaders and community builders.

3. Collective Narrative Practice: Responding to individuals, groups, and communities who have experienced trauma - by David Denborough. 

This book shows how our stories can heal us. It is about finding meaning in our challenges, a meaning that can not only help us but also extend beyond that to help the world at large. If you are a care provider, community leader or therapist who work in group coaching and counselling, this book is a great tool to add to your practice.

4. Love & Happiness: A collection of personal reflections and quotes by Yasmin Mogahed. 

Easy read, poetic, very deep and wise thoughts, as expected! I absolutely love it! It is an everyday companion in an ever challenging world.

5. Change Your Brain, Change Your Life: The Breakthrough Program for Conquering Anxiety, Depression, Obsessiveness, Lack of Focus, Anger, and Memory Problems by Daniel G. Amen.

​The book offers new holistic approach to Mental Illness. Although the author advocates brain scanning so much (which I am not really sure about), yet the book still holds valuable information about how brain works, what goes wrong and how to fix it in a holistic approach. One of the best I have seen especially that it comes from a well-known psychiatrist. 

​6. Expert Secrets: The Underground Playbook for Finding Your Message, Building a Tribe, and Changing the World by Russell Brunson.

​Great information for those of you who want to build an online community and market your online courses in a non-salesy way.

​7. How God Changes Your Brain: Breakthrough Findings from a Leading Neuroscientist by Andrew Newberg and‎ Mark Robert Waldman.

The authors show how the brain actually changes when we experience the Divine or the transcendent reality. The authors give scientifically proven tools to broaden this awareness and live in a more connected way.

​8. Revive Your Heart: Putting Life in Perspective by Nouman Ali Khan.

​Amazing lessons from the Qur’an written in Nouman Ali Khan's captivating interesting way. 

​9. Strong Imagination: Madness, Creativity, and Human Nature by Daniel Nettle.

This is a fairly old book, yet it offers radical view to mental illness, truly fascinating.

​10. First, We Make the Beast Beautiful: A New Journey Through Anxiety by Sarah Wilson.

The best book I have ever read about anxiety, depression, and OCD, a captivating memoire that highlights the struggle and the way to thrive with a ‘beast’ that the author finally decided to stop fighting and make it beautiful instead

11. The Happiness Hypothesis: Finding Modern Truth in Ancient Wisdom by Jonathan Haidt.

​Haidt compares the human mind to a rider (conscious, analytical mind) on the back of an elephant (subconscious beliefs, drives, and perceptions). Regardless of how much will power the rider has, he cannot move the elephant against its will. We need to learn how to “tame the elephant” which what the book is all about.

12. Switch: How to Change Things When Change Is Hard by Chip and Dan Heath.

​Beautifully written book, good read for anyone who wants to make change whether on the personal, professional, or community levels.

​13. Alchemy of Herbs: Transform Everyday Ingredients into Foods and Remedies That Heal by Rosalee de la Foret.

I love Rosalee’s teaching, her approach to herbs is so natural showing how to integrate them in everyday life and how to choose the ones that suits your body  need and your temperament.

​14. Anything You Want: 40 Lessons for a New Kind of Entrepreneur by Derek Sivers.

​Best business book ever!  Feels like Sivers wrote it especially for an introvert like myself who find it very hard to embrace all the ‘have-to’ stated by modern-day business gurus. Derek’s rule is simple: Do anything you want!

​15. And, of course, I can’t end the list without my own book in its newly designed cover: Body Whispers: Unraveling the Emotional & Spiritual Root of Illness and Restoring Energy & Vitality. 

​If you did not get it yet, check out what it is all about here. The information in there are truly life changing... 

My 3 big goals for 2018 are: (1) launching my signature training program "A Brave Woman's Journey of Self-Discovery" hopefully you all going to love it! I have been working on it for a long time now and it is one of the best curricula I have ever developed; (2) establish a woman circle where I live so we can actually meet and create our little community of brave, ambitious, like-minded women who support and help one another and support and help their communities. (3) finish at least 7 more courses of my Master's degree.

Now it is your turn... Take out your journal and make some reflections! 
​Happy New Year!

Ramadan for me this year was a time for reflection and deep introspection… I needed this time off to re-orient my thinking and hone on the next step in my path.
It has been almost 10 years now since my first book Healing Body & Soul was published. I am so blessed and grateful that Healing Body & Soul has achieved more success than I ever dreamed of. It has been on the best selling list for 8 years in a row and has been translated into nine languages. 

​I’ve received hundreds of emails from readers telling me how the information in the book changed their lives and how they did not even know that many of the discussed topics in the book were an integral part of our Islamic beliefs: happiness, volunteering, gratitude, finding life meaning and mission, following your path and passion, affirmations, meditation, positive thinking, optimism, healthy eating, friendship… and many, many more…
 
In this time of my journey, I feel that I could no longer stay in my comfort zone behind my computer screen… I feel my duty and my life mission is to deliver this deep teaching of health and healing to women who are destined to raise our next generation of happy healthy and successful youth and the only way for those women to achieve that is to be happy, healthy and successful themselves.
 
My mission is to teach women how to heal the scars engraved on their hearts and soul along with healing the chronic whispers of their weary and depleted bodies.
It is a tough mission especially in this tough time of our history but my heart believes that this is my current calling…
 
This, my friend, will be my life mission… teaching women how to heal their Body & their Soul… Teaching them how to love one another, forgive themselves and others, how to give without awaiting rewards, how to strive while surrendering and enjoy while striving… teaching them how to eat healthy, how to live healthy and how to build healthy relationships and communities… teaching them how to listen to their Body Whispers® and decode the signs that their body, heart and soul are sending them for them to follow their bliss, find happiness, health, life meaning and passion.
 
I am starting a faith-based revolutionary movement in health and happiness … I am building a community… and I would really love for you to be part of it… My practice, my tribe and teaching will remain, as it has always been, welcoming to all faith… I am not teaching religion… I am teaching life skills, health and spirituality practices conforming to my Islamic faith.
 
If you would like to be part of this revolutionary movement- and I would really love it if you do, please share this blog with your friends and family and comment below to let me know what you would like to see me write, blog, teach about… If you didn't yet, join our Facebook page... I will be much more active in it from now on, so come along and invite all your friends... Let's Heal our Body & Soul and embark together on a mission to heal the world.

I am writing today to ask for your support … I am asking for your support to reach more and more women around the globe… I am asking for your support to spread the message of this faith-based health and wellness movement to all women who want to heal their soul along with healing their body and embark on their own mission to heal the world.