Jump to ratings and reviews
Rate this book

The Vulnerable Man: Break your patterns. Master your emotions. Reclaim your life.

Rate this book
An inspiring life story about the difficulties in breaking patterns, handling and understanding your emotions, and finding the way back to yourself in an overwhelming world. Now available in English, this openhearted book has featured on national television in Sweden.

Thomas Anderson is a Swedish entrepreneur, experienced leader, change manager, and life coach. In the middle of life, he was successful at work and had a family, a nice house, and a rich social life—everything looked good on the outside, and he should have been happy. But on the inside he was in a dark place, a whirlpool of self-doubt, stress, anxiety, and feelings of worthlessness. He was trapped in an emotional prison and self-sabotaging behavior. He still managed to be there for everyone else, in his relationship, with the children, at work—but he didn’t know how to be there for himself, and he was now on the brink of burnout.

At this time, his gut feeling told him that something had to change—this was not the way he wanted to feel for the rest of his life. This marked the beginning of an inner journey, finding the way back to himself. The turning point for Thomas was understanding what it means to be a Highly Sensitive Person (HSP, as an estimated 15–20 % of us are). All the things he thought and felt, being overwhelmed—it now made sense. He is one of those people who takes in and processes more information; there was nothing wrong with him, he just hadn’t learned how to handle it.

The understanding of HSP and of how to handle emotions gave him courage and confidence in taking action and making the changes he needed in life: setting boundaries and creating space for his recovery and wellbeing, building healthier relationships, understanding his own patterns, taking ownership for his emotions, and facing the unaddressed conflicts. He re-evaluated and healed his past. With a new-found confidence he created the balance he needed in today’s boundless work life. With the tools to manage his emotions and thoughts, he created an inner peace that allows him to handle major life changes and stay centered in day-to-day life.

In this book Thomas openly shares his journey, in his own words from his diary over three years—from the brink of burnout to finding happiness. He shares his doubts, shortcomings, learnings, and experiences, the inner work and the strength that comes from being vulnerable. His purpose with being this open is to be a companion on your own journey to change. When he was in his darkest place he felt completely alone, and it was hard to seek help. But by hearing others share, he could share and break free. He hopes that taking part of his story will help you on your vulnerable journey, breaking free and reclaiming your life.

In The Vulnerable Man you get:
•A true and personal story about doing the inner work and how it can feel on the inside going through change.
•Experience, learnings, and inspiration to how you can break patterns and manage your emotions.
•A workbook for self-reflection that you can use by yourself or together with others.

238 pages, ebook

Published April 23, 2021

Loading interface...
Loading interface...

About the author

Thomas Anderson

1 book2 followers
I am a Swedish entrepreneur, change manager, inspirational speaker, and life coach. I am a passionate hiker and have gone on the Camonio de Santiago in Spain two times so far. Love nature, coffee addict and doing yoga.

The idea to write the book book came to me walking the Camino in 2017. The years before I had been very efficient on my way to burnout and in 2015 it just became to much, I did "everything" right, but I got stuck in my emotional prison, didn't know how to reach out for help or process my inner doubts, fears and emotions. During my recovery, understanding my emotions and healing, one big part was hearing stories from others, they felt the same as me. I had felt so much, but thought I was wrong, but I just hadn't learned how to handle my inner world and understand and process my emotions.

Back on the Camino in 2017 I talked to a man from USA, I then realized my experience helped him to open up and heal. That was the moment that I thought maybe my words can help others on the way back as other stories helped me. Two years later the books was first published in Swedish.

It might be more books coming out, but now I hope my words can reach out, help and to take the stigma off mental illness. We are humans with feelings, thoughts, doubts. We go through life, maybe now in a time with a faster phase with less time to stop and reflect. To stop, take a moment and think about how you feel is important, life is to short feel stressed all the time.

So, that is a little about me. And of course, love to read books aswell.

Ratings & Reviews

What do you think?
Rate this book

Friends & Following

Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!

Community Reviews

5 stars
15 (44%)
4 stars
7 (20%)
3 stars
5 (14%)
2 stars
3 (8%)
1 star
4 (11%)
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
20 reviews1 follower
October 16, 2021
Great title but the book itself doesn’t carry out its implied promise. It’s really just diary excerpts and rambling interpretations of what the author learned. His insights are valuable but they’re buried in repetitive words that are hard to wade through. The concept of the book was good, however. The workbook at the end looks helpful. Won this in a Goodreads giveaway.
Profile Image for bookswithsakshi .
411 reviews30 followers
February 15, 2022
Are Men around you freely vulnerable?

We live in a society where it is considered a weakness if Men show their vulnerability. I have seen Men around me being told not to cry, not to talk so much and try being a real Man. Till date, I still don't understand what's "real" Man. Are the rest of them Aliens? Vulnerability is not related to a particular gender but every human that exists on this planet.

The author opens up about his past life where he felt anxious and worthless even when he was surrounded by his Family. No one feels that way unless there is a reason and so was the case with Thomas ( author of this book ).

He has shared his diary entries that he has been maintaining for several years. Through those diary entries, we can see the vulnerable state of Thomas and how it starts becoming a pattern.

Many of the traumatic events that we experience as an adult are linked to our past. Unless and until we know about the patterns that we are unconsciously becoming a part of, we can't break through them.

In order to break from these toxic loops, we need to follow SPOT, STOP, SWAP method. It's highly demanded that we surround ourselves with good habits and more importantly with people who make us feel seen and heard.

I often remind myself that I am not alone in this. I was having one of those rough days when I started reading this book and surprisingly, it came as a gentle reminder to me. We are all in this together. We should seek help whenever we feel the need of it.

Mainly this book is for Men as they are conditioned to suppress their emotions and not let vulnerability over power them but women can read this book as well. At the end, vulnerability isn't gender specific.

The book is written in a simple language with powerful words to impact the readers. It will allow you to be open and vulnerable without feeling guilty about it. A great Non-Fiction to read and implement in your life.
Profile Image for Chirag Malik.
157 reviews16 followers
March 11, 2022
𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧:

We live in a society where we are supposed to be strong mustn’t show our feelings or be vulnerable especially so for men. We hide behind a wall that acts as an emotional prison.

✍️We play different roles with different people & situations to a point where we no longer recognize our true selves.

✍️We have imposed so many “shoulds” & “must” on ourselves that we no longer know how to live life on our own terms.

☝️We choose to help our spouse/partner by sacrificing our well-being, because we are afraid to say no, & deep down feel that we are not good enough. But we fail to recognize that we are not being fair to ourselves and our partners.

☝️We feel that by pleasing others we’ll be respected in our tribe and we sacrifice our own self-esteem in the process.

This book is a journey of the author of how he transformed himself by breaking mental patterns through self-exploration.

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮’𝐥𝐥 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐧:

🔺TO BE YOURSELF, you don’t have to act in a certain way to be good enough or fit in.

🔺Crying doesn’t necessarily mean something bad has happened, it’s just about venting out our emotions and letting go of the excess baggage that’s bogging us down.

🔺Homophobia, macho culture, social problems like violence & criminality would decrease drastically if we especially boys were allowed to show feelings & be vulnerable.

🔺Recovery is a journey that is a unique & personal experience for every individual. We should not rush through it, taking the time and understanding what are the things that work for us.

🔺Saying no, to the things/tasks/people that drain your mental & physical energy is actually a Yes to you and your mental peace.

🔺If anything that bothers you, it means it is important to you, do not keep the lid on these little things, instead talk about it, communicate.

𝐅𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐎𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐨𝐧:

A wonderful book on self-reflection, breaking patterns, mastering your emotions, & achieving peace of mind.
Profile Image for Unleash The Knowledge.
142 reviews18 followers
November 19, 2021
Vulnerability.

A state of being that men “should” not express.

For centuries, men have been portrayed as this fearless, undeniable creature that never backs down to any problem, consequence, or challenge.

Yet, men are just as human as women or any other biological makeup in the human species.

So, why are men subjected to never expressing their vulnerability?

They haven't been "allowed" to.

Thomas Anderson is The Vulnerable Man and he tells his inspiring story of struggle and healing in his new book.

As a Swedish entrepreneur, experienced leader, change manager, and life coach, Thomas shares:

- His difficulties in breaking patterns
- Handling and understanding emotions
- Finding the way back to himself in an overwhelming world

This book is structured with journal entries from Thomas’ personal writings.

In the middle of his life, he had it all.

A successful career, a beautiful family, a nice house, and rich social life.

Everything looked dandy on the outside but he was suffocating in an internal whirlpool of self-doubt, stress, anxiety, and feelings of worthlessness.

It is time to get out of your emotional prison if this post resonates with you!

Thomas will help you get out with his compelling stories from his real life!

Grab this book or pass a copy over to someone who needs it most!

This book is another step towards spreading the global message that vulnerability and mental health do not discriminate.

Help those around you that are struggling!
Profile Image for Arun Verma.
341 reviews5 followers
December 27, 2021
📚 𝐁𝐞 𝐟𝐫𝐞𝐞. 𝐈𝐭’𝐬 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐢𝐜𝐞.

We hide our emotions and feelings in fear of being judged by others but, this act of hiding our emotions are harmful and the author Thomas Anderson has gone through this phase and then realised how this held him back and not being truly himself.

He shares his journey through his diary entries of the past and explains how he felt during those times. By sharing his past experiences he teaches you some valuable lessons on how to manage your emotions and how to effectively communicate your thoughts and feelings with others in order to live a happy and peaceful life.

He encourages you to create an environment for yourself and others to openly share and talk about your feelings. He explains why it’s important to manage and understand your emotions and how he break his mental prison and began to listen to his feelings more, trusting his feelings and gained courage to speak his mind to others clearly. He wants to make you learn the same through this book.

What a world it would be where everyone can fearlessly show their vulnerable side to others. The goal of this book touched my heart and I recommend everyone to read it and try to bring some change in yourself and society.

If you feel the difficulty of managing and speaking out your feelings to others then this book can provide a really good help.
Profile Image for Adam.
81 reviews5 followers
October 25, 2021
This book is about finding true happiness even when you are successful in other areas of your life. This book is about breaking patterns, understanding emotions, and finding yourself and happiness.

This book dives deep into the mind and feelings of someone on the verge of burnout. Thomas shares his journey and vulnerability. This book is a diary of his thoughts, feelings, mindset, emotions, hardships, learnings, and experiences from the past 3 years. Each diary entry is further explained with lessons and teachings, providing you insights not only into Thomas’ mindset but also the lessons he learned on his journey to happiness.

By sharing his vulnerability and being open Thomas hopes this book can help you on your journey to happiness.
January 25, 2022
Join author Thomas Anderson on his emotional journey of self-love and self-discovery as a highly sensitive person in The Vulnerable Man.

Anderson vulnerably combines his personal journal entries with commentary that helps empower the reader to better understand their own emotions and learn to embrace themselves for who they truly are. This read is incredibly necessary in the ever-stoic and emotionless society we’ve become, particularly in the male arena.

I most appreciated Anderson’s open and honest approach to sharing his story with the reader. His internal dialogue helps guide the reader along in their own thoughtfulness and introspection. A very necessary read for men and highly recommended for anyone struggling with mental health, sensitivity or finding oneself.
October 29, 2021
some people may seem like they have it all, but on the inside feels trapped in an emotional prision.

Thomas Anderson was successful at work and in family but like many he struggled with self-doubt, stress and axiety. He would put others before himself.  

Thomas reached the point to which he had enough.

In this book he shares what gave him the courage to make the changes to find himself again. When you read this book, you will realize that you are not alone in this struggle.

If you are looking reclaim your life, master your emotions and break your patterns check this book out!

Thank you Thomas for this amazing book!
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews

Can't find what you're looking for?

Get help and learn more about the design.