Be Calm: Proven Techniques to Stop Anxiety Now

by Jill P. Weber

Manage anxiety anytime and anywhere with simple, practical strategies

If you suffer from anxiety, you may feel helpless to reduce your panic symptoms, avoidance behavior, or worried thoughts. Be Calm empowers you to handle your anxiety whenever and wherever it strikes with simple evidence-based techniques that can reduce your anxious feelings and responses on the spot.

Learn about the causes of different types of anxiety and their physical and psychological effects. Then learn how to implement effective, practical strategies to help you control even the most acute symptoms, from social anxiety to insomnia to panic attacks. Now when you find yourself in anxiety-producing situations, you'll always be prepared.

This easy, accessible self help guide

Find relief from anxiety and open the door to a happier, more fulfilling life with Be Calm .

Genres: Self Help, Nonfiction, Psychology, Mental Health, Health, Audiobook, Personal Development

262 pages, Paperback

Published March 19, 2019

About the author

Jill P. Weber, Ph.D., is a clinical psychologist in private practice in the Washington, DC area. She has appeared as a psychology expert in various media outlets including Nightline, U.S. News and World Report, Teen Vogue, USA Today, Washington Post, Family Circle, Seventeen, CNN, Associated Press and the Discovery Channel. She specializes in the impact of culture on female identity and relationship development. She writes for Huffington Post and a blog for Psychology Today called "Having Sex, Wanting Intimacy" at http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/h...

Reviews

[Lola · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got this book on a whim. I think it was in a Bookbub e-mail one day that I spotted it and as I've been struggling with anxiety for as long as I can remember, that title grabbed my attention. I have to admit I was quite skeptical and didn't quite believe this book would have information I didn't already know, but it was only 99 cents and in the end my curiosity won out and I figured even if the book only had a few pieces of new information it would already be worth it.

Be Calm is a practical self help book for everyone who struggles with anxiety, fears or worries at times. It has lots of advice and techniques you can easily implement yourself. I enjoyed reading this book and it had quite some techniques I hadn't heard of before. Ofcourse there were also some techniques I already knew or was aware of, but that's okay and I had expected that as I already know quite a bit about the topic. It still surprised me how many new things I learned from this book, there were some really eye opening pieces of information that made me see my anxiety in a different light. And the whole book was written in a really motivational style that made it pleasant to read.

The writing style really fit this book. It had that no pressure, helpful type of style and it was written in a very motivational way. It made me believe I could do this and that these techniques would help, which I think is quite the accomplishment as the right mind set can be so important for things like this. It also helps that the author clearly knows a lot about this topic and has seen these techniques actually helping people. That proof underneath all the techniques only underlines the fact that these things work. I also liked that while there are a lot of different techniques in the book, the author also makes it clear that not every technique might work for everyone and that it's okay to just start with some and find out what works for you. There was also some helpful advice on how to track these techniques and persist with them.

Overall I think the book did a good job outlining the different techniques and how to implement them. The author also addresses this theory framework where thoughts, feelings and behavior all influence anxiety and you can start on one aspect or all three of them. The techniques in the book are listed per each of those three topics. There is also some basic information about how anxiety works and some additional tips for addition ways to help with your anxiety of the techniques don't work enough, like therapy or even medication.

I would've liked a short summary or list at the end with all the different techniques as now you have to scroll back to re-read each part when you want to implement something. I also thought the part about meditation and mindfulness was a bit limited, but I think that as that's such a big topic it would be handy to just buy a separate book for that topic if you want to know more about that.

To summarize: I would definitely recommend this book for those who have anxiety whether often or only sometimes. This book is filled with techniques that can help you deal better with your anxiety. I really liked the tone and motivation style of the book. The author lists a lot of techniques, but there is no pressure to do them all and the motivational and encouraging style makes you feel like you can do this. While there were some techniques I already knew of, there were still plenty of new things I learned from this book and some parts that really helped me. I would've liked to see a short summary of all the different techniques at the end for easy overview and I think for some topics like meditation it would be helpful to read more about it to know more about the topic as the information here is a bit limited. All in all I think this is a good starting point for anyone who has anxiety and wants to know some ways to better manage their anxiety.

[Pallavi · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars
RTC

Happy Reading!

[Kristina · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great book for those, like me, who struggle with anxiety. I highly recommend this book - and therapy.

[Hanin Reads · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Many helpful, scientifically backed ideas that I’ve already started implementing with positive results. This book speaks to you in a very non judgmental way.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

A lot of self-help books tend to ramble, to talk about the author's life or their feelings about things, but this book actually got right to the point and really helped me put my anxiety into perspective. It gave me clear, concrete strategies, and it was a brilliant read to start the new year off with. It is set out well, and gives you grounded information about various subject matters concisely, but with substantial research behind it. Although the audiobook version suffered from the obvious fault of not having physical tables / graphs etc, or places on paper to do the relevant thought exercises, it came with a downloadable ebook companion which mostly obviated the need for the paperback.

I was very impressed with this book and the way it helped me - honestly, I really didn't believe that a book about anxiety could actually be this helpful. I know will go back to this book again and again.

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a good and quick read with some great tips for those dealing with anxiety.

[Heather]

This might be good for someone who hasn't read much about anxiety; it is clearly written and well organized. I didn't finish because the first half didn't have anything that I didn't already know.

[Wyatt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Concrete methods, exercises and examples throughout the book.
Something you will likely refer back to rather than just reading once straight through.

[Lala Rustamli · Rating 3 out of 5]

Writing a review at 05:20 on a Sunday morning, what can go wrong?

This was a nice book with practical techniques on how to reduce anxiety.

I think I am not the right target for this book because I am convinced that I am not an anxious person. I can be frustrated, bored, depressed, all kinds of irritable traits a person can have. But not anxious. I think it is hard to be anxious when you are in a constant "not gonna take this seriously" mood. If I would write a book on anxiety, I would put this advice on top: "No one cares about your [underlying cause that raises anxiety, for example, presentation, interview, etc.]" It works!

I read it because so many people suffer from anxiety and when they get their panic attacks I just sit there with no clue how to help (I can offer food but what else can I do?). Although I am not going to offer my second-hand advice to people who suffer from anxiety because I have heard people telling me "just be happy" when I was depressed and it didn't end well ("it didn't end well" - what a cliche. What do you mean by "it didn't end well"? How did it end? Can you give an example? You don't even remember how it ended, and how bad it can be? Probably you just ignored the person politely, why are you being pretentious now?)

But now, when I see a person is having a panic attack I can get this book out of my pocket, put it on a silver plate and present it to the suffering person.

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book combines CBT, ACT, and Mindfulness to treat anxiety. Great read, good handouts. Best thing I've seen recently on this subject. I'll be buying a copy for my office and encouraging clients to read and practice it!

[Roxane · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good reminder but not information I haven't heard before.

[Lily · Rating 5 out of 5]

I didn't realize I wanted a book where someone knowledgeable reviewed the academic literature (as of 2018) for effective anxiety interventions and then summarized the findings for a layperson, but this book does that and I love it.
Now has someone done the same for depression??

I just upped my planned 4-star rating to 5 after I went back to read the beginning. This book is explicitly, delightfully clear about what it is, what it's for, and how to use it. It's not something to read cover-to-cover (for most of us), but pick and choose sections that sound relevant to you and *try the strategies*.

[Jordan Cruz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Informative and instructional. I will have to come back to this and listen again while doing to journaling encouraged.

[Mary Klopfenstein · Rating 5 out of 5]

Helpful and to the point. I listened to it, but I think it would be better to read a physical copy to be able to follow along and do the worksheets

[Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

All human beings are born with an anxiety trigger, but some of us tend to hyper stimulate that trigger, and our trigger goes off a lot more often, or our trigger is a lot more sensitive than others.

Be Calm is the perfect little book for those who struggle with anxiety. It goes through the need to take control and discusses why we do and say the things we do that stem from a place of fear. The layout of the book is beautiful and contains well laid out sections to understand your anxiety better and provide you with strategies to help guide you through it.

Section 1: Feelings
This section covers strong emotional or physical symptoms of anxiety including any of the following: anger, irritability, sadness, hopelessness, despair, insomnia, mood swings, racing heart, shortness of breath, dizziness, stomach upset

Section 2: Behaviour
This section is if your anxiety is making you behave in ways you don't like or is causing you problems. This part is helpful for when your anxiety causes you to do any of to following:
‣ Avoid activities you used to enjoy
‣ Avoid certain people
‣ Frequently cancel plans
‣ Call in sick to avoid stressful events
‣ Feel unable to do routine things like drive or go to the store
‣ Behave uncharacteristically in anxiety-provoking situations, for example, you don't approach or talk to your friends when you're at a party

Section 3: Thoughts
This section provides strategies to help diminish the inaccurate and unhelpful thoughts that preoccupy the mind when you're caught up in anxiety. These thoughtful strategies will help if you're experiencing:
‣ Chronic worry
‣ Repetitive or racing thoughts
‣ Catastrophic worst-case scenario thinking
‣ Self-defeating thoughts
‣ Irrational beliefs

The book is one that I will surely come back to and highly recommend if you struggle with anxiety. It was nice to find a book that provided situations and examples that are exactly you, and you've sometimes not understood, or other people didn't understand. The writing-style has a "no pressure" feel, but still reads in a motivational way, and even the cover is calming.

[Justa Guy]

Note: it throws a lot of shit against the wall in hopes that something will stick. It's heavy on "mindfulness", which means nothing. But it may be worthwhile to try such strategies to help with positive thought patterns in regards to controllable anxiety--if and when you have the health to be in such situations that are the same as past incidents of strong anxiety/panic. Half of the strategies rely on mental stamina, physical stamina, and memory.

In later chapters, the idea of knowing you are not your thoughts and they do not control you, and that you are a full person capable of controlling both negative and positive thoughts, but are currently caught in a negative loop/pattern, is worth revisiting.

This is a book you will have to come back to continually for the sections that relate to you, until you form actual beneficial ways of coping with anxiety, anger, and panic. These precise strategies might not work for you, but by doing them you may be able to find something else that does. Either way, it's worth a shot. The advice is not difficult to follow, or anything new, but you have to remember them, remember how to use them, and be consistent in using them, in order to apply them naturally as a reaction and without thinking in the future, which will lead to overall better mental health.

All of these things require energy and memory, so you will need to be healthy before attempting any of the bigger strategies. One step at a time is better than no step.

[Sharon · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book for review is “Be Calm: Proven Techniques to Stop Anxiety Now” by Jill P. Weber, PhD. It falls in the genre psychology and anxieties/phobias according to the publisher.

Do you suffer from anxiety? If so are you dealing with it or pushing it to the side? You are not alone. Millions of Americans alone suffer from anxiety. It can hit anytime, to a variety of degrees and how one deals with it can effect every aspect of your life.

Be Calm includes right at the beginning what they call a “Quick-Start Guide” that breaks down the book which includes a section that shows you how to use the book properly.


The aspect of one’s life such as feelings, behavior, thoughts and staying on track is the outline of the book. At the end of each chapter are exercises to work on the material you just read about. For example you will see Strategy: Check-In Strategy: Express Yourself and Go Deeper just to name a few which will see how you are feeling as you dive into the topic where you are concern.

There are charts within the pages that informative to help you on your way to healing.

To me this is a very in-depth book. You can’t just read it while winging it not if you are trying to find ways to help your anxiety. Not all may apply to you but certain sections and exercises may be of help.
I received this book for free from Callisto Publishing for an honest review.

[Brian Sachetta · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this book to be a very helpful take on living with anxiety — one that’s based in the principles of acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), exposure therapy, and mindfulness. From the get-go, the author puts the power back in your hands, stating that emotions, behaviors, and thoughts all work together to influence how much (or how little) anxiety we experience.

The author is careful not to suggest that medication cannot help, yet spends most of her time focusing on what the reader can do him or herself, with or without the assistance of medication. I found that to be refreshing and encouraging.

In the end, all the tactics the author provides give the reader hope; hope that he or she can improve his or her condition on his/her own, or, at the very least, that things will get better in one way or another.

It’s time to stop avoiding what we fear and start listening to our anxiety to inspire action in our lives. This book cleverly shows us how.

-Brian Sachetta
Author of “Get Out of Your Head”

[Ashley McMullen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I bought this book after a trip to the doctor's office showed that I had a lot of issues with controlling my anxiety. It ended up being easy to read and approachable - a book you could skim or read the end-of-chapter summaries for, or continue reading the content if you wanted to know more.

Like any self-help book, you get a good pep talk in each chapter, a general blanket statement that can apply to your situation, and the things you may have heard before but need to hear again. It's not a replacement for therapy or medication if you anxiety is serious enough to warrant those things, but it does provide a good baseline for anyone looking to get their anxiety under more control and/or become more cognizant of when it pops up in daily life, and how to handle it accordingly. This book also provides some good strategies and plans to help implement these new behaviors.

If you're looking for an easy guide to provide techniques for how to manage anxiety, this is a good place to start!

[KingSolomon · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars.

Straight to the point, informative, practical.


I found this one a bit farther down on a search through kindle store. It was a free kindle library loan and rather short, and had solid reviews, so I thought I’d buckle up. And i’m glad I did.

I dont care if it consists of trite or otherwise basic advice. I dont care if it’s repetitive. Both those qualities are prevalent for a reason. Ideas become platitudes because they work/are true. Things are repeated because they are worth engraining and important.

I have already implemented methods from the stratagems within and right away found success. Another added benefit is the feeling that one has a coach who is cheering them on the whole time in this edition.
I recommend for anyone suffering with anxiety, take a look at my highlights and decide if its worth the read based off what you find there.

[Juan Rivera · Rating 3 out of 5]

Anxiety and stress are situations in life that slowly kill us. Personally, I consider myself someone with little stress, because I handle it very well.

However, I went to see an Acupuncturist due to persistent tinnitus and he told me that he was "very tense" and he told me where.

Partly that's why I read "Be Calm: Proven Techniques to Stop Anxiety Now" by Jill P. Weber PhD, which is nothing new but is a review of the basic techniques we all know: visualization, meditation, relaxation, present moment, etc. .

The basis of the book is that anxiety can be shown in three ways: in the body, in what we do and in what we think. And if any of those three pillars change, the other two change. Try techniques to improve on each of those pillars.

Good book, for beginners on the subject.

[Sarahy mr · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am a masters level graduate student in a counseling psychology program and I’m currently in my internship where I am seeing clients for psychotherapy. A lot of my clients have anxiety and the tips and techniques this books provides has helped me better understand anxiety and I have used these techniques with my clients. I have seen a real change in how my clients are able to live with their anxiety, some have even reported to me that the techniques have helped reduce daily anxiety. I recommend this book to anyone wanting to purse a counseling career or anyone that wants to work on their anxiety!

[Julia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it! This book is a great step by step resource. I have struggled with some anxieties over my life. What I love about this book is that it’s practical problem-solving, and really provides a guide to work episodes through. It’s empowering and has given me some real strategies to push through tough moments. I’m appreciative of the positive bent as well, even as it helps you work through the challenges that can stand in the way. Great resource.

[Dave Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

This has helped me so much.

I picked this up looking for some strategies to help with my ever increasing anxieties. Covid-19 has exacerbated these immensely and I saw this out on Kindle unlimited and decided to take the plunge. It was so good I bought the audible narration and now I am going to purchase the book for a reference. I can't thank Jill Weber enough, for making this information so accessible and easy to follow. Worth the read and worth owning.

[Luann Ferrell · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book had lots of good tips for anxiety and for different types of meditations. It's short and to the point. My only critique would be that I think the solutions outlined are for more less severe forms of anxiety and do not address those who have extreme anxiety. Such as, "If you are scared you will panic while driving, just do it and realize you can breathe through it." That's a paraphrase, but it just didn't feel very realistic to me as a person with SEVERE driving anxiety.

[Cass · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a solid 4.5 stars. Is it a cure all? No, and going into it thinking that way will lead to disappointment. It is an honest book from an experienced professional. In turn, you need to be honest and at least attempt vulnerability while reading and taking the small assessments.

This book is a short read, and I digested the material via audiobook. TL;DR: not a miracle cure, be honest with yourself, and enjoy.

[AM · Rating 5 out of 5]

The author does a great job defining the connection between thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. The book is very reader friendly and allows you to focus on the areas that pertain to you if you don’t have time to read the whole book. It continues to provide encouragement and hope throughout the book to keep it personal. I highly recommend it!

[BKarli · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is not a cure all but I did find it to be a helpful resource and good starting point for beginning to deal with anxiety. I found some of the practices helpful... many not, but the fact that there were lots of practices, specific advises and goals and it was all broken into sections was really easy to navigate.

[Ellen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think this book was incredibly thoughtful. The author has a clear passion and education for this. I gave this book a “fast read” without going through all of the tips and exercises in detail, but I fully expect to be going back soon and putting some of these ideas into practice. I would recommend to others.