IF YOU'RE FREAKING OUT, READ THIS

A guidebook to help you through the rough spots in life.

In an upbeat, lighthearted narrative that combines elements of memoir, guidebook, and workbook, DeAngelis interweaves her personal story with therapeutic practices and exercises to help readers regain balance when all seems hopeless. The author’s past was filled with depression, bouts in psychiatric hospitals, and thoughts of suicide until she began applying these coping skills: paying attention to one’s breath, integrating movement to ward off depression, experiencing forgiveness, addressing grief, and more. Each of the 10 sections, which feature frequent lists, sidebars, and font changes, is intimate and expressive, pushing readers to fully explore what they are feeling or thinking at the moment. For anyone who has read the work of SARK, the format will feel familiar, with its handwritten notes interwoven with typed sections and blank spaces left for the reader’s own thoughts to be included on the page. DeAngelis combines insight into the realities of deep depression with humor and encouragement. Certain exercises may strike some readers as overly saccharine—e.g., creating a happy jar filled with happy thoughts—but most will help readers seeking to cope with the difficult aspects of life. “This is not one of those books where I am promising that your life will change if you take these simple steps,” writes the author. “I have no idea what will happen in your life and you do not need to try anything that does not sound cool. I do not and cannot know what is best for you or what will work for you.” With that in mind, readers can pick and choose what most appeals to them, knowing that all the exercises have worked at one time or another for DeAngelis, which is a good testament to their efficacy.

A quick read that provides tested techniques to reestablish equilibrium in one’s life.