Best of the Year: The 13 Best Well-Being Listens of 2022

Audible's Well-Being Audiobook of the Year, 2022

This year’s best well-being listen is proof that sound can change lives. Talented music producer and cancer survivor Maejor (né Brandon Michael Green) explores the positive relationship between sound and wellness in his 11-part podcast, Maejor Frequency. I was blown away by the scientific insights, meditative music design, surprising guest stars, and compelling travel narrative spanning five countries that shape this one-of-a-kind listen. Follow Maejor’s journey from researching Nikola Tesla’s sonic resonance theories, to taking an ayahuasca trip with celebrity spirit guide, Shaman Durek, on Mount Shasta, to connecting with galactic vibrations at the Great Pyramid of Giza. Each episode explores a different healing frequency to create a healing audio experience like no other. Listen with headphones on for full effect. —Rachael X.

Susan Cain’s narration of Bittersweet brings the listen to a whole new level, as when (in an Audible interview), she described her “five-year quest to grasp the power of a bittersweet and even melancholic way of being” in her own words: “What I had learned is that the bittersweet tradition is centuries old, and that we really are creatures born to transform pain into beauty ... In shutting ourselves off from that side of discourse, we are also depriving ourselves of centuries of wisdom that comes to us from our artists, writers, and wisdom traditions.” —Christina H.

Happiness, sadness, anger, and ... then? In surveys taken by 7,000 people over five years, Brené Brown and her team found that on average people can identify only those three emotions as they are actually feeling them. In Atlas of the Heart, Brown unpacks 87 distinct emotions, gathered into 13 land masses—including such biggies as loneliness, jealousy, love, hopelessness, and despair—and backs it up with research. In a veritable cartography of the human experience, Brown goes beyond her previous works to mine her personal biography, revealing new layers of vulnerability despite all the logic and intense study. On brand, she vulnerably shares her own personal battles, all punctuated with her big laugh and Texas twang. —Jerry P.

National Book Award-winning author Dr. Ibram X. Kendi begins How to Raise an Antiracist by weaving together the personal experiences of his pregnant wife with the harsh realities of Black maternal mortality. Their journey underscores the fact that racism begins in our earliest days, and it is up to us to guide today’s youth toward living life as an antiracist. As a parent I found this listen vital, but it’s truly for caretakers of all kinds. Dr. Kendi’s voice feels like poetry as he wraps you up in his wisdom and arms you with tools to build a better world for all children. —Katie O.

As a millennial parent of three, it feels very “on brand” to say that most of my parenting tips and tricks come from Instagram. My favorite follow is Dr. Becky Kennedy and her Good Inside movement. I’m grateful to finally have a comprehensive guide to her tips and tricks in her debut book, and hearing Dr. Becky distill her advice in audio is the perfect medium for fans who are accustomed to her videos. As a clinical psychologist and a mom to three herself, Dr. Becky’s beliefs are founded on the idea that “behavior isn’t identity.” We are all Good Inside. —K.O.

As an Audible editor, figuring out how to say things is literally my job. As of this year, there’s a Great Course for that. In just 10 lectures spanning under five hours (that’s about a week of lunch breaks), Professor Allison Friederichs Atkison unpacks everything listeners need to know to get ahead at work and in life. In a post-pandemic world rife with rusty social skills, Dr. Atkinson’s practical lessons are just what we need right now. Plus, the high-quality recording of this course transports listeners back to the classroom. —R.X.

I struggle with how to categorize Melissa Febos’s listen Body Work—but maybe that’s the point. Part memoir, part how-to, this intelligent and emotional listen explores the nuances of creative writing—and the language we use to talk about others' vulnerabilities. Leaning on her decades of experience as a celebrated writer and professor, Febos attempts to answer thought-provoking questions such as: “Who owns our most intimate moments once we commit them to the page?” In the end, Febos’s self-reflective and honest performance is what landed it a spot on our best well-being listens of 2022 list. If you’re a writer (particularly one who identifies as a woman, or queer, or someone who writes about trauma—or bodies—or about other writers' work) this one is for you. —R.X.

Black, queer, nonbinary (pronouns he/they) activist, writer, and actor Brandon Kyle Goodman (you may know him as the voice of the lovebug named Walter on Netflix’s Big Mouth spinoff, Human Resources) shares wisdom for finding self-love in his debut listen, You Gotta Be You. Growing up in an unsupportive household, Goodman’s path to self-acceptance was fraught with doubt. Through it all, he found the motivation to ask himself and others: “Who would you be without society?” What most stood out to me in Goodman’s stellar performance is his hilarious, down-to-earth, and relatable advice for loving yourself when your community tells you not to. —R.X.

Chad Sanders was a struggling writer sleeping on a mattress without a bed frame in his Brooklyn apartment not long before his Hollywood screenwriting career took off. While a pay increase and connections to great talents like Spike Lee and Kanye West afforded Sanders new comforts, it also came with challenges that nagged at his sense of self. In his new Audible Original podcast Direct Deposit, Sanders documents his career journey and invites notable celebrities such as Issa Rae, Charles King, Soledad O'Brien, Gabrielle Union, and more to weigh in on a conversation about the personal ramifications of becoming wealthy, especially as they intersect with race. —R.X.

I work out with Tunde Oyeneyin five days a week on my Peloton bike, so I thought I knew a lot about her. But listening to Speak has given me a new appreciation for my favorite cycling instructor. While recounting the grief, setbacks, and disappointments she’s endured, including the loss of her parents and a younger sibling, Oyeneyin’s infectious, joyful spirit never skips a beat as she talks through her SPEAK acronym—surrender, power, empathy, authenticity, and knowledge. Whether you’re a Peloton rider or not, Speak motivates and inspires you to want better and do better for yourself. —Margaret H.

If you’ve ever pored over a Cosmo dating tips article (guilty), this one is for you. Authors of How to Be Fine: What We Learned from Living by the Rules of 50 Self-Help Books, Kristen Meinzer and Jolenta Greenberg take on relationship advice—some sensical, some zany—in their new Audible Original podcast, Romance Road Test. Over the course of 15 episodes, Meinzer and Greenberg put their marriages to the test as they re-create their first dates, clip their husbands’ toenails (no thanks), and ✨add a little bit of spice✨ to their daily routines. Having been with my partner for more than seven wonderful years, I enjoyed discovering new tips for how to stay connected ... and LOVED listening to someone else try out bad advice so I don’t have to. —R.X.

If you’ve ever felt like your emotions are controlling you instead of the other way around, comedian Kevin Hart’s latest Audible Original Monsters and How to Tame Them is for you. In this laugh-out-loud funny (but helpful!) guide to taming your inner “monsters,” Hart draws on his personal experience to offer down-to-earth advice for becoming your best self. In each chapter, you’ll tackle a different subject, like the “Comparison Monster” that’s responsible for feelings of jealousy and inadequacy, or the “Approval Monster” that says you aren’t good enough until you win the favor of everyone around you. As someone who leans a little toward being type A, I especially appreciated Hart’s tips for confronting my “Do-It-All” and “Control” monsters. Of course, Kevin Hart’s unparalleled performance always makes for a stand-up listen. —R.X.

I often describe Mel Robbins as the best friend who may not always tell you what you want to hear but ALWAYS tells you what you need to hear. In her 14-episode Audible Original podcast Here’s Exactly What to Do, Robbins uses her signature tell-it-how-it-is delivery to walk us through self-acceptance, motivation, manifesting, forgiveness, energy, passion, and more. If you’re ready to stop waffling on when to making lasting change, start here. —R.X.