Making Friends with Anxiety: 10 creative crafts book by Sarah Rayner

Out now
Published by: The Creative Pumpkin Ltd
Purchase from Amazon here


The blurb:

From the international bestselling author, Sarah Rayner, and illustrator Jules Miller comes a beautiful little ebook for people into colouring and other crafts, exploring how simple hands-on creative activities can help us de-stress from the day-to-day grind.

Written with warmth and humour, Making Friends with Anxiety: 10 simple creative activities that anyone can do to reduce stress explains why some of us are particularly prone to feeling panicked or overwhelmed how ‘making friends with anxiety’ can reduce worry.

The author examines how certain creative pursuits like colouring, needlework, whittling wood, painting pebbles, gardening and more have a positive effect on the mind and body, helping to calm and centre us, and boost mood. She also explains that how we don’t need to participate directly in a creative endeavour for it to transform our thinking: just looking at art can be therapeutic, as Jules Miller’s full colour illustrations reveal. There are inspiring patterns and cheery animals, gorgeous flowers and quirky landscapes, and each picture also incorporates a ‘mantra’ – words specially chosen to raise the spirits.

Whether you’re a convert to colouring or a complete creative novice with no experience of crafts, this little book of art therapy will inspire and encourage you, providing an array of cheap, easy and uplifting solutions to nurture mindfulness and positivity.

* Colouring * Making a Collage * Needlework * Whittling wood * Making jewellery * Gardening * Baking * * Looking at art * Listening to music … and more

A follow-up to the 5* word-of-mouth success, Making Friends with Anxiety: A warm, supportive little book to ease worry and panic and the bestselling paperback, Making Friends with Anxiety: A Calming Colouring Book, with illustrations in full colour to stimulate and inspire


My Review:

I had to share this fantastic craft book with you as I think it is brilliant! I first heard of Sarah Rayner when reading her book One Moment, One Morning. I am a big fan of her novels and was amazed to come across her book Making Friends with Anxiety last year. As someone who has had a lifelong battle with anxiety this book was brilliant and really helpful in understanding my anxiety and learning to cope with it without thinking I am nuts!! Since then I have also found her support group on Facebook as well as her colouring book that she has created along with Jules Miller. I have found it really therapeutic and have loved having a distraction both from my CFS as well as anxiety.

This craft book is fantastic too. It is jam packed with lots of ideas such as gardening (which I am learning to love), baking, collage, needlework and other more original ideas such as whittling and pebble painting. But this is more than just a book of ideas, it is also crammed full of information, hints and tips on living with and overcoming anxiety. It is worded in a way that anyone can understand and relate to, and the tips are not only from Sarah but also real people who have shared their experiences and what has worked for them and can help reassure us all.

I highly recommend this book for both ideas on crafty stuff, even for those who don't have anxiety. But to me it is an invaluable support in battling anxiety and having a life I love.