The soothing power of books - 6 Minute English

best-selling

a book or other product that is among those sold in the largest numbers

fiction

a literary work based on the imagination and not necessarily on fact

prescription

a piece of paper written by a doctor that lets you get medicine at the pharmacy

Stimulus

a signal to which an organism responds

Dementia

a slowly progressive decline in mental abilities, including memory, thinking, and judgment, that is often accompanied by personality changes

automatic

acting by itself; self-regulating

benefit

advantage

scheme

an elaborate and systematic plan of action

configuration

arrangement

soothing

calming

chronic pain

episode of pain that lasts for 6 months or longer; may be intermittent or continuous

relief

feel glad

area

field

ups and downs

good and bad times

hemisphere

half of a sphere, human brain

complicated

hard to understand or deal with

trauma

injury, wound

Scanning

reading material in an investigative way to search for specific information

Skimming

reading or glancing through quickly

charity

showing kindness by giving money or gifts to organizations that need them

sickness

state of illness

pressure

the stress or urgency of matters demanding attention

Bibliotherapy

the use of a self-help book to treat a disorder

come to life

to appear realistic

remedy

to cure

cope with

to deal with

tackle

to deal with

meet up

to meet another person in order to do something together

extended

to reach out

observe

to see; to notice

work out

to solve a problem by calculation or study; to produce a way of dealing with a problem or situation by thinking.

remind

to state again; to cause to remember

involved in

to take part in an activity or event, or be connected with it in some way

borrow

to use for a time and then return

wonder

to want to know about

emotionally

with strong feelings

definitely

without any doubt