Brain: We left the oven on!
Me: No don’t say that, I’ve not got time for this!
Brain: The house is probably on fire!
Me: Stop it, I need to write this book description.
Brain: But the blazing fire.
Me: We didn’t even use the oven today.
Brain: But what if –
Me: No. We’re not doing this, I’m finishing this description.

Hello there! Hayley Morris here. Or you might know me as the Brain Girl, and don’t be fooled…it’s not because I’m outrageously smart. Just an avid overthinker. I’m on a mission to prove once and for all that You. Are. Normal. Running through imaginary arguments whilst showering, hiding your knickers in the nurse’s office before they look directly into your vagina, or not knowing how to be a normal human when you have the plumber over. I’ve spent the majority of my life saying and doing embarrassing things that wake me up in a cold sweat at 3am as my Brain reminds me of every minor detail.

In this book, I’ve overthought absolutely everything so you don’t have to. I’ll be talking about everything from dating to discharge, mental health to menstrual cups. I might not be able to banish your anxiety or make you feel 100% comfortable in your skin, but I hope I can at least give you a break from the constant brain chatter and we can rejoice and laugh at how similar we actually all are.

I’ll start by saying I’d never heard of Hayley Morris before picking up this book. So I knew nothing about her social media channels, etc. What drew me to this book on a supermarket shelf, initially, was that I consider myself an overthinker.

I returned home from said supermarket and couldn’t get the book out of my head, so I checked it and the reviews out and decided to buy it given everyone was saying it was hilarious.

Now, I’m not going to dispute that the book is funny but I’m also not going to say that this book is about overthinking as it isn’t about overthinking in the way the dictionary states overthinking is – ‘think about (something) too much or for too long’. Thoughts that go on and on.

To me, this means things like lying in bed of a night time replaying the day’s events or more worryingly running through scenarios in your head of things that most likely will never happen. Such as, if I let my child go into town on their own this weekend will someone hurt them, or take them? And then thinking about all things to do with that for the next few hours, kind of scenarios.

Me vs Brain: An Overthinker’s Guide to Life is more small thoughts in different situations. Like when you are at the hairdresser’s and you look at all your imperfections in the mirror that highlights everything. Wow, my eyes are not quite level, is my nose really that wide, etc? To me, these are just random thoughts, not overthinking.

So if you are after a book that is about overthinking then this isn’t it. However, if you are after a light-hearted read that will give you a giggle about everyday situations then this is certainly the book to pick up.

Hayley Morris is an award-winning comedian and internet sensation, best known for her hilarious and taboo-busting sketches which regularly attract millions of views on Instagram and TikTok. Morris was named Content Creator of the Year at the Funny Women Awards, TikToker of the Year at the Blogosphere Awards, and featured in the Sunday Times Top Faces to Know 2022