"How to Stop Worrying and Start Living" by Dale Carnegie; A Book Review

I stumbled upon this book within the piles at the local Salvation Army thrift store. It's price-a quarter. It is a revised edition by the author of the renowned "How to Win Friends and Influence People," and was edited in this edition by Dorothy Carnegie, copyright 1984. The original book was actually published in 1944.

What is this Book About?

The book title explains it all: How to Stop Worrying and Start Living. This book is filled with tips, tricks, steps and true stories about conquering worry.

Worry and stress can be fatal. Simple ailments can intensify and multiply, making us miserable, ill and can eventually kill us if we don't learn how to deal with the stressors all of us encounter.

This book covers the simple yet very effective. Making lists of what worries us, facing the worst that can happen, brainstorming alternatives, accepting things that we cannot change-all of this and more can be found within the pages complete with real-life experiences from those who have used these steps to conquer worry in their own lives.

"How to Stop Worrying and Start Living" by Dale Carnegie; a Book Review

What is the Best Part of this Book?

The best part of this book is the fact that these tips actually work. This isn't some namby-pamby feel-good page turner that would be better left on the shelf; these are actually tips that work!

One of the tips within mentions instructing various body parts to relax; honestly I thought this was a bit silly but it was recommended to relieve tense muscles and to aid sleep. This reviewer was skeptical but decided to try it as she has had trouble sleeping as of late.

I lay down, then instruct the muscles around my twitching eye to "relax, let go" before moving on to my tense back muscles. Slowly I mentally told my back, my face, my eyes, my legs to relax as I focused on my breathing.

I ended up with the best night's sleep I have had in ages!

Since then I am trying the other tips in this book: writing down my worries, acknowledging the worst that can happen if my worries actually come to pass, reminding myself of the odds against my fears coming true-and it seems to be helping. I cannot say that this book is a miracle, but I can say that this book is effective.

"How to Stop Worrying and Start Living" by Dale Carnegie; a Book Review

Where Can I find this Book, and How Much Will it Cost?

I found a used copy of this book in a thrift store, but you can find it here on Amazon if your local used book store does not have a copy available. The price on Amazon for a Kindle version is $7.99, but used physical copies sell for less on the site.

I have read Mr. Carnegie's other book "How to Win Friends and Influence People" and found this book to be a worthy companion to the other. If you live and breathe you have worries, and this book will help you to deal with the stress that can shape your life and possibly damage it.

I recommend this book for anyone, whether you feel that you have serious worries or not; the tips within will help anyone to overcome those shadowy demons that may actually be wrecking your health behind the scenes.

This is not a book to be read in a single sitting; I recommend that you read a single chapter at a time, then start over once you have read the book in its' entirety to absorb as much of the content as possible. Get a copy of this book, if only to read between what you normally read; this book is a priceless resource in our incredibly busy society.

Source:

"How to Stop Worrying and Start Living;" Dale Carnegie; 1984 edition.