I Am Anxiety: A Step-By-Step Guide to Anxiety Recovery is a nonfiction self-help, health and wellness book written by David McLaughlin. What actually is anxiety, and what can you do to get rid of it? The author has been there and shares his experiences and insights as he began to understand more about a condition which affects a surprisingly large percentage of people worldwide. He explains that all the physical symptoms begin in the brain. The amygdala reacts to what it perceives as “fight or flight situations,” releasing stress hormones that affect the hippocampus, which controls our thought, learning and memory processes. Anxiety and stress can actually increase the size of the amygdala and decrease the size of the hippocampus -- something that certainly bears some good hard thought.

McLaughlin discusses the physical manifestations of anxiety, which include shaking hands, brain fog, sleeplessness and panic attacks, and he explains that part of the healing process is dependent upon an understanding of how those symptoms arose and an acceptance of them. He cautions that recovering from anxiety is not an instant process, but rather an incremental journey complete with occasional setbacks and moments of doubt. He also shares how mindfulness and meditation can actually reduce the size and hyperactivity of the amygdala and help the hippocampus grow increasingly stronger. The author discusses the different forms of meditation and mindfulness exercises that he’s tried, and he shares his own favorite techniques. He also covers medication and its efficacy in treating anxiety, and the effect diet and exercise can have on that condition.

I Am Anxiety is a well written and user friendly resource for laypeople which is written by a layperson -- someone who’s been there. I was most impressed by his no-nonsense approach in discussing brain function and found myself wondering if I really needed to check in with my social media on a daily basis after reading about the amygdala. McLaughlin uses a conversational style of narrative that makes accessing the material effortless and natural. His shared commentary on his own anxiety is quite useful for helping the reader see how the approaches he’s used have or have not been effective. His presentation is easy to follow, and his discussion of meditation techniques is informative and excellent. I Am Anxiety: A Step-By-Step Guide to Anxiety Recovery is most highly recommended.

I Am Anxiety: A Step-By-Step Guide to Anxiety Recovery is a work of non-fiction and self help literature penned by author David McLaughlin. As a self proclaimed sufferer with anxiety and someone who has recovered from the most crippling aspects of the condition, the author presents this guidebook as a realistic heart to heart of what it’s like to live with anxiety, and how to stop it from continuing to rule your life. The volume is determined not to speak purely medically about the condition, but about the reality of living every day with no other feeling than fear, and it documents how the author broke that cycle which connects the mind to the body.

This is very much a book of two halves, partly autobiographical in the genre of shared experience, and partly a practical 'how to' guide of real steps that can be taken in life to try to overcome the problems which anxiety brings with it. Author David McLaughlin writes with great honesty about his own suffering, making for endearing reading and a shoulder for readers to cry on with the confidence that they are listening to someone who really understands the crippling nature of the condition. His recovery programme details the hard work required, but it comes with a message of hope and persistence, and the author himself shows real living proof that the method works. I found I Am Anxiety to be a well organized exploration of the condition which holds nothing back and offers everything to its readership. An inspiring read.

I am Anxiety by David McLaughlin is a self-help book providing a step-by-step guide to recovering from anxiety, one of the most common mental health conditions in the world. This book has been written by somebody who has suffered from the condition and recovered. David McLaughlin developed Generalized Anxiety Disorder at 33 years of age following a period of stress and worry. He remained troubled by anxiety for a number of years and this had a profound effect on his life, leading to the loss of a job. He spent time researching the condition and came to understand how it affects the human mind and body. He then used this knowledge to break the cycle of anxiety and fully recover.

David McLaughlin has written a very clear and easy to understand book explaining how the mind works and why the body reacts as it does. It was a privilege to read his very personal experience of anxiety and how he overcame it. It was fascinating to be able to finally understand anxiety and to know that those suffering from it can do something to stop the cycle by following a set of relatively simple steps. I was very impressed with the strategy which includes meditation, something which has been scientifically proven to change the brain's grey matter in a positive way. Although anxiety is a complex illness that affects people in different ways, I feel sure this book could be of help to anyone who is unfortunate enough to experience the condition. I Am Anxiety is a powerful book providing those with anxiety the tools to heal themselves from an illness that exhibits some of the most frightening of symptoms.

Simply trying to function while experiencing anxiety can be an endless cycle of worry which leads to negative symptoms, which lead to more worry and on and on. It seems like it’s never going to stop and it seems like everything that you do causes you to worry. Rather than the average person who experiences mild worry once in a while or extreme worry very rarely, someone suffering from anxiety can experience it every moment of the day. Everything you do is reason for concern, whether it’s walking down the street or even sitting in your own home. The multitude of things that could happen or that are running through your head at any moment in time seem like they’re putting your body on overload, and that overload seems to get worse (even when you think it couldn’t possibly get worse). I Am Anxiety by David McLaughlin is about this seemingly never-ending cycle, but it’s also about more; it’s about the process of recovery and the process of helping yourself to finally see the world, and yourself, for what you really are.

There are millions of people around the world suffering from anxiety at any given moment and far too many of them never seem to get the help they need, or they suffer for far too long before they get the help they need. But there is hope out there. There is help out there. Unfortunately, it’s not all based in the medications that doctors like to prescribe. While the medications may help, they’re not going to cure the anxiety all on their own. That takes truly understanding what you’re going through, and working your way through it on your own and with the help of others. I Am Anxiety: A Step-By-Step Guide to Anxiety Recovery by David McLaughlin is a book for those who have experienced anxiety on everything that it can do to you, and what it takes to overcome anxiety. It starts with acceptance, but it doesn’t end until you start the process of building your life without anxiety.