Staff Recommendations

This is Your Brain on Anxiety; What Happens and What Helps

Dr. Faith Harper describes the reality of living with anxiety and debunks myths that have become popular misconceptions. In this self-help book, Dr. Harper reveals what causes anxiety symptoms and offers strategies to help deal with them. This book is for everyone—those suffering from anxiety daily, as well as those who just want better coping skills when life gets complicated. This is Your Brain on Anxiety tackles a serious subject and deconstructs it in a humorous way, leaving readers with realistic expectations of their anxiety rather than a pessimistic one.

Fabi says, “The audiobook was great! It was super quick, informative, and had an amazing tone that was inspirational.”

Voices for Virginia’s Children Presents Uplifting Voices: Young, Gifted, & Black

This webinar hosted by Cat Atkinson from Voices for Virginia’s Children highlights three young advocates–Jaynae Wright, Levi James, Ava Holloway–within Virginia. All three describe their journeys, as well as their inspiration to complete projects like running a community garden for food desolate areas, writing advocacy books, and creating a nonprofit for underrepresented cultures.

Darcy says, “It is so important to listen to the next generation, and to hear what they say. These young people are inspiring and changing the world.”

Quit Like a Woman

Author Holly Whitaker writes candidly about alcohol and its path of destruction that can lead to addiction. Having struggled with feeling insufficient in her day-to-day life because of alcohol, Whitaker begins to seek alternatives, including the influential Alcoholics Anonymous (AA). What follows is a study of women and their tendency to be marketed to when it comes to alcohol, the effects of the patriarchy on women and their addictions, and a new form of sobriety catered toward women and minority groups.

Lindsay says, “She comes at battling sobriety with a sense of empowerment from being a woman rather than battling it with qualities and values that are typically seen in men, making it accessible for women to find a source of sobriety that works for them.”