As far as I can tell, no one’s written the book specifically aboutdealing with anxiety during a global pandemic except sci-fi writers. But since an estimated deal with serious anxiety in the best of times,there arelots of options for people seeking books that offer general mental-wellness help, from straightforwardadvice to relatable personal stories. Three recent nonfiction books takedifferent approaches to the task.When it comes to deeply felt, personal experienceslike acute anxiety, there’s no such thing as one size fits all. So takewhat resonates, and leave the rest—there’s plenty else to worry about.
‘Wisdom from a Humble Jellyfish and Other Self-Care Rituals from Nature,’by Rani Shah
Shah’s book is pure self-help, butwith a distinctive conceit: the author dishespractical advice through interesting anecdotes about creatures in the natural world. For example,you’ll read that sloths move an average of 123 feetper day. Your takeaway as a human: yes,we can move a lot faster than sloths, but slowing down to their pace can help us live longer.
Shah presents 18 well-researched examples that are accompanied by cutesy illustrations fromartistGemma Correll, pull quotesthat tend to feature specific animal trivia, andgems oflittle koans at the end of each chapter. The presentation gives the vibe ofa coffee-tableor novelty book. It would be a great gift for a younger personor for anyone who likes advice delivered simply, like this lesson from a night-blooming cereus:“Knowing what time of day works best for you helps you truly bloom.” Or this piece of wisdom, courtesy of a porcupine:“You can’t control whether or not you get hurt…. But you can control how much you allow it to affect you.”
I’vefoundthata good way to ingest annoying truths you know you should listen to is to come at themsideways.Shah does just thatthrough highly specific facts about wombats and axolotls.
‘First, We Make the Beast Beautiful: A New Journey Through Anxiety,’by Sarah Wilson
If you’d like to face anxiety head-on and yet vicariously, this book is a blend of self-help, memoir, and researched meditation on the author’s own experience with it. She also lives with a thyroid condition and bipolar disorder. is a helpfully messy reflection on what anxiety feels like for Wilsonand an honest look at how she’s managed it. To Wilson’s credit, she’s not trying to sell anyone an easy fix. She emphasizes that anxiety tends to be a lifelong challenge, especially for those who suffer it acutely, and most of her advice is delivered in a sort of “I know, but it does work”tone. (The recommendations are all things you’ll have heard of before, but Wilsonand probably scores of others have foundthem to be effective: meditation, breathing exercises, long hikes, and seeking long-termfulfillment instead of fleeting happiness.) It’s a meandering and conversational read, but manyof the feelings, activities, and themes Wilson describes are likely to resonate, and her advice is worth considering in a cafeteria-style way: pick whatever seems compellingto you.
At one point in First, We Make the Beast Beautiful, Wilson evokes Danish philosopher Soren Kierkegaard’s saying that anxiety is the “dizziness of freedom,”that modern anxiety can stem from the realization that life is finite, though the world seems to offer infinite choice. There is an existential dread, Kierkegaard argues, that comes with not knowing whichdirection to take. Wilson writes:“More choice is meant to bring us more freedom (so says capitalism). And yet we’re happier when we’re bound. In fact, to be rendered choiceless is the ultimate freedom.” Those words were printed long before mandatory self-isolation became part of daily life, but I had to laugh while reading them in my house, where I now spend 95 percent of my time. They feel very precientright now.
‘Why Fish Don’t Exist: A Story of Loss, Love, and the Hidden Order of Life,’by Lulu Miller
Not every book that helps you grapple with anxiety is branded that way. tells the story of taxonomist David Starr Jordan, who in the late 19th to early 20th centuries experienced both quirky success and devastating loss in nearlyequal measure. His wife died, his child died,and then an earthquake causedsevere damage to Stanford University, where he was the founding president.
Incredibly, as Jordan passionately collects fish specimens from around the world, they keep getting destroyed in freak accidents: fires, lightning strikes, earthquakes. Miller, cohost of the beloved human-behavior podcast , takes us along for the ride while cheerleading Jordan’s freakish capacity for resilience. The book feels well-timed if you can’t stop thinking about all the things in your life—and the world—that you just can’t control. Miller addresses chaos as though it’s a living, breathing character in the book. Maybe in anothererathat would’ve seemed dramatic. Right about now, it feels oddly relatable. This book is a great escape fromcontemporary examples of despair, but it’s also an extended reflection on how toweather the stormduring trying times.