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3.61 AVERAGE
3.61 AVERAGE
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Just what the book QUIET by Susan Cain did for introverts, FIRST, WE MAKE THE BEAST BEAUTIFUL does for anxiety. Sarah Wilson not only gives you ways to cope, but gives you ways to embrace your anxiety other than just trying to medicate it away.
While reading this book, I heard several opinions of it, some negative. This is not a how to book and for me that is why I loved it. It felt like a conversation with a friend that has done a lot of research on the subject of anxiety AND that is also sharing her personal
experience with it. I thought it was excellent.
experience with it. I thought it was excellent.
I'm not sure what I expected when I randomly searched "anxiety" in Libby and checked out the first book that was available that looked interesting. I'd been feeling more and more anxious and wanted to read about anxiety.
This turned out to be a great read for me. I wasn't looking for medical advice or self-help. I was looking for a philosophical/personal exploration of anxiety -- and that's just what Sarah Wilson provides. This book is really more of a memoir, not science or medical advice.
The main takeaway of this book for me was to frame anxiety as existential. In other words, at the bottom of all my small worries are big worries -- meaning of life kinda stuff. It helps to think of my anxiety as a symptom of caring. In that sense, I don't have to resist it, I can sit in it. Like one of those finger traps you can only get out of when you stop trying to get out of it.
I also liked how Wilson calls not-anxious people "life naturals." Does being alive come naturally to you? Then you might be a Life Natural.
Wilson made me want to read Montaigne, so now I have [b:How to Live: A Life of Montaigne in One Question and Twenty Attempts at An Answer|7624457|How to Live A Life of Montaigne in One Question and Twenty Attempts at An Answer|Sarah Bakewell|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1320521919l/7624457._SX50_.jpg|10108715] checked out.
This turned out to be a great read for me. I wasn't looking for medical advice or self-help. I was looking for a philosophical/personal exploration of anxiety -- and that's just what Sarah Wilson provides. This book is really more of a memoir, not science or medical advice.
The main takeaway of this book for me was to frame anxiety as existential. In other words, at the bottom of all my small worries are big worries -- meaning of life kinda stuff. It helps to think of my anxiety as a symptom of caring. In that sense, I don't have to resist it, I can sit in it. Like one of those finger traps you can only get out of when you stop trying to get out of it.
I also liked how Wilson calls not-anxious people "life naturals." Does being alive come naturally to you? Then you might be a Life Natural.
Wilson made me want to read Montaigne, so now I have [b:How to Live: A Life of Montaigne in One Question and Twenty Attempts at An Answer|7624457|How to Live A Life of Montaigne in One Question and Twenty Attempts at An Answer|Sarah Bakewell|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1320521919l/7624457._SX50_.jpg|10108715] checked out.
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
informative
reflective
medium-paced
There were big chunks of the book that really spoke to me and bits of advice and techniques I will take with me and use. I felt like she understood some of my anxiety in a way that nobody else has. However some of it bugged me. It jumps around on a timeline too much and I struggled to follow it. Some of the editing was bad. Some of the blanket statements about anxiety (like ‘anxiety makes you fat’) were irresponsible I think. I wish she’d acknowledge her privileges a bit more. Lots of her experiments with her anxiety aren’t available to most of us, and it read like a book for middle class white women in a lot of places.
While there were some good ideas in there as to things you can do to help or habits you should set, the majority of the book was a personal rambling anecdote that felt exclusive if anything to those who feel anxious. It also felt as though a large section in the middle could have been cut out and chapters narrowed down to get the ideas across clearer.
As this was someones personal experience, it feels a little dangerous to be looking at this as what anxiety must feel like across the board. Feeling something different to whats described is anxiety inducing itself and is a bit frustrating to read.
As this was someones personal experience, it feels a little dangerous to be looking at this as what anxiety must feel like across the board. Feeling something different to whats described is anxiety inducing itself and is a bit frustrating to read.
I rarely leave reviews of anything. Especially books. It’s too easy to not be obtuse about personal preference vs the actual content. That being said. I wanted to leave one here because I read most of the one and two star reviews on this book, and saw that many said this book made them more anxious. I want to say that I understand that. And. Warn anyone about to read this book of a few things. It contains triggers and is scattered (which is frequently exactly how I and many other anxious people think). I found that when reading this in a quiet place I was able to concentrate on it, read slowly, and find large amounts of insight and comfort. When I read it in my living room with my kids running around and me rushing to get to the next page, I couldn’t get anything from it. Don’t go into it expecting it to be a scientific review of facts, or a coping plan. It’s neither but a mix of both along with many anecdotes. To me it was more about how to cope with what anxiety does to your life and how to explain it to others. I had my boyfriend read this after I finished it and he said that he recognized so many things about me that he has never been able to piece together on his own even though we have been together almost ten years and he felt that he had it figured out.
Takeaway - it’s not for everyone. But you’re more likely to appreciate it in a calm space where you can focus on what it is trying to tell you.
Takeaway - it’s not for everyone. But you’re more likely to appreciate it in a calm space where you can focus on what it is trying to tell you.