Be Mighty: A Woman's Guide to Liberation from Anxiety, Worry, and Stress Using Mindfulness and Acceptance

Description

You are stronger than your anxiety--you are mighty. In this empowering guide, you'll find practical tools to help you shed the shackles of worry and fear and embrace a more vibrant life. In a culture where women are still paid less for doing the same jobs, expected to juggle family and career effortlessly, and faced with the harsh realities of misogyny and sexism daily, it's no wonder you're also twice as likely to experience issues related to anxiety and trauma. But there are real tools you can use now tobuild personal resilience in a difficult world, move past anxious thoughts, and conquer your worries and fears. This book will help guide the way. Be Mighty leads you on a bold quest to gain a deeper understanding of your anxiety by exploring your own origin story --how your early experiences led to thoughts and behaviors that may have offered comfort and protection at one time, but are now keeping you from living your best life. Using practical tools and experiential exercises based in mindfulness and acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), you'll learn to respond to present-day triggers in a new way, making choices from a more conscious, values-driven place. So, drop that outdated armor and dive headlong into this book. You'll emerge fresh and fierce, with the confidence to stand up for the life you want to live and the power to face life's complexities as your best, most authentic self. It's time to be who you truly want to be. It's time for you to be mighty!

Jill A. Stoddard, PhD, is founder and director of The Center for Stress and Anxiety Management, an outpatient clinic in San Diego, CA. She specializes in evidence-based treatments for anxiety and related disorders, and is associate professor of psychology at Alliant International University, where she teaches, conducts research, and mentors students in topics related to anxiety disorders; trauma; emotion regulation; acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT); and cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). Stoddard received her PhD in clinical psychology from Boston University in 2007. She is a member of the Association for Contextual and Behavioral Sciences (ACBS), the Anxiety and Depression Association of America (ADAA), the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies (ABCT), the San Diego Psychological Association, and the San Diego Cognitive Behavioral TherapyConsortium.

"Be Mighty by Jill Stoddard is mindfulness and acceptance for the post-#metoo woman. It's chock-full of anecdotes written in an informal language that grabs your attention right from the start. It validates current gender disparities through intelligent and witty repartee--all of which aim to help the reader live a full, vital, and self-compassionate life, without the need for bulletproof bracelets a la Wonder Woman. It's acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) in a nutshell, made easy and yet not oversimplified, adapted to the currently evolving gender identity context. It's just the right length and tone for those of us juggling self-care, work, family, and life!" --Jacqueline Pistorello, PhD, licensed psychologist; director at University of Nevada, Reno Counseling Services; and coauthor of Finding Life Beyond Trauma--Jacqueline Pistorello, PhD "Be Mighty is a call to arms for all women! Reading this brilliant book was like sitting down to a glass of wine with your best friend. Jill is all at once every woman's longtime companion, biggest cheerleader, and tell-it-to-you-straight champion. This is much more than a self-help book for anxiety--it's a compassionate manual for how to navigate the ever-evolving challenges of being a woman in the modern age." --Jamie R. Forsyth, PhD, licensed psychologist, and international ACT workshop leader--Jamie R. Forsyth, PhD "Be Mighty is an empowering guide to living with more joy and courage. Stoddard writes with a refreshing mix of compassion and humor. Every chapter is peppered with ideas and strategies that have the potential to change readers' lives." --Kelly McGonigal, PhD, author of The Joy of Movement, The Upside of Stress, and The Willpower Instinct--Kelly McGonigal, PhD "Be Mighty is packed full of wisdom and practical exercises to help you understand your anxiety, worry, and stress, and find a way to courageously connect to and become who you've always dreamt of being." --Aisling Leonard-Curtin, MSc, CPsychol, PsSI, chartered psychologist with the Psychological Society of Ireland; codirector of Act Now Purposeful Living; and coauthor of the Irish Times #1 bestseller, The Power of Small--Aisling Leonard-Curtin, MSc, CPsychol, PsSI "Constantly battling worry, anxiety, insecurity, and self-criticism is physically exhausting and emotionally draining. Even worse, the attention and effort we invest in keeping up the fight leaves us with little time and energy for the relationships and activities that matter most. Be Mighty is an inspiring and empowering guide that offers women a way to disengage from their ongoing battles with fear and anxiety, and bring purpose and meaning to their daily lives. Drawing from evidence-based methods for treating anxiety, Stoddard offers women the practical advice and support they need to harness their inner courage and live boldly and fully." --Susan M. Orsillo, professor of psychology at Suffolk University, and coauthor of Worry Less, Live More--Susan M. Orsillo "Discover your inner superpowers and become a real-life superhero with this empowering, step-by-step guide. Learn how to manage your obstacles, create your armor of super skills, and unveil your true strength. You are mighty. You are worth it. You are a superhero." --Janina Scarlet, PhD, award-winning author of Superhero Therapy--Janina Scarlet, PhD "If you want a book that reads like the author is in the room with you, exuding warmth, compassion, and humor while tackling the complexities of anxiety, then Be Mighty is for you. Jill Stoddard offers lots of down-to-earth, practical ideas to give us hope and relief amidst a very troubled world. Be Mighty offers simple yet powerful ways to help us identify what matters most, and experiential acceptance and mindfulness practices to help us take anxiety out of the drivers' seat. Be Mighty is an empowering, practical, and essential book for women of all ages." --Sheri Turrell, CPsych, clinical psychologist, and owner of Life in Balance Therapy in Toronto, ON, Canada; adjunct lecturer in the department of psychiatry at the University of Toronto; Association for Contextual Behavioral Science (ACBS) peer-reviewed ACT trainer; and coauthor of ACT for Adolescents--Sheri Turrell, CPsych "In Be Mighty, Stoddard offers a bold and compassionate approach to understanding the gendered impacts of anxiety, worry, and stress--and navigating those struggles with vulnerability, strength, and vitality in ways that are fiercely female. I highly recommend this book to anyone who identifies with the pressure to have and do it all, or else." --Emily K. Sandoz, Emma Louise LeBlanc/BORSF Endowed Professor of Social Sciences at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, and coauthor of Living with Your Body and Other Things You Hate--Emily K. Sandoz "Jill Stoddard offers women a true gift in Be Mighty--an accessible set of strategies we can employ to manage the overwhelm of worry and stress inherent in our modern age. Jill's humor, compassion, authenticity, and wise insights offer a guide that is practical and accessible, and which open us up to new opportunities for living well. It's just what every woman needs to become her mightiest self." --Yael Schonbrun, PhD, assistant professor at Brown University and cohost of the Psychologists Off The Clock podcast--Yael Schonbrun, PhD "Whimsical and wise in equal measure, this fresh perspective on ACT identifies and addresses the unique hurdles women face while experiencing worries, fears, stress, and anxiety. I highly recommend this to both practitioners and clients alike." --M. Joann Wright, PhD, founder of ACT One; peer-reviewed ACT trainer; ACBS fellow; and coauthor of Learning ACT for Group Treatment and Experiencing ACT from the Inside Out--M. Joann Wright, PhD