Feel the Fear . . . and Do It Anyway Paperback – December 26, 2006

I listen to books on my kindle (I turn on "text to speak") as I get ready in the morning for work. I've listened to this book twice now. I swear, I will probably listen to it countless more times. It's amazing how powerful this book is for me. I've struggled with depression most of my life, I am currently going through a divorce, & living alone for the first time in my life. I was, & at times I still feel like a lost puppy...I had a pretty unique life, I lived with my mother, we moved a lot, I was sexually abused by one of very few male figures in my life...I never had many friends (we moved too much for me to get close to people), & my mother was emotionally unavailable. To this day she is not emotionally available, but I accept her as she is, & that took years to learn how to do...the point of me putting my life story out there is because no one in my life cared about me, in any way shape or form. My mom couldn't wait for me to get married, she just about signed for me to marry my then 21 year old boyfriend when I was 15, because I think she could not wait to get rid of me, her "burden" off of her chest. So, when I did finally get married a few years ago, I thought my life's mission was accomplished, I was married, that was what I was supposed to do in my life, if I ever wanted my mother to be proud of me...I was never around anyone in my life that told me "feel the fear, & do it anyway", no one said "you can do this, keep going forward"...I didn't have that. I feel like I was raising myself, I raised myself emotionally, I gave myself pep-talks to be able to make it through new schools a few new ones every year, stomach aches of worry when my mom would be freaking out, concerned about bills or whatever else she had going on in her life... Severe neglect, that's what I'd say my life was. I had maybe 2 friends through my entire school career, real friends, that is. And, we moved so much, I never even kept in touch. Anyway, the point is, that when you grow up without someone there telling you that you can do whatever you want, you can be whatever you want, you are great, you are amazing, even amazing people get scared...you don't assume those things. I have had irrational fears, sooooooooooooo many, I was scared of the dark, scared of Michael Myers (as if this fictional character was going to come after me...seriously, I was afraid he was, I know it probably sounds so ridiculous to the average person, but I've been to therapy, these fears come from trauma & basically the things I went through growing up)...sometimes I never thought I'd be able to get past all of the fears that crippled me. I've been wanting to go back to school, & get my degree, but school was very hard for me, I am anti-social, & going to school was traumatizing in itself for me, with all that was going on in the background of my life, school was just as torturous to me...I never had any friends, I wasn't the cool kid, I ate lunch alone a lot...it was awful.I signed up to go to school a few years ago, I made it to the parking lot that first day, burst into tears...turned around & went home...cried for hours, nearly committed suicide...these feelings run very deep, & it's hard to move forward when there is so many painful memories of the past.Anyway, with this book, I feel like I'm very close to being able to have the courage to go back. I think a few more times of listening to this book, & I'll actually be able to do it. But overall, this book makes me less afraid of life. That again is probably not what most people want this book for, but me not being afraid of life, that is monumental, I was afraid that I was not a real person/woman without being married or a wife, the one thing I'd idolized my whole life (I was taught to), to be married. I survived, & everyday is a new day & journey, & you never know where life might take you. I feel great when I read this book, I'll keep reading, whenever I have something I want to achieve, I will read it again - this is a timeless book, & I'm thankful I found it.

I loved this book and found it so relatable. I feel more relaxed and fearless. Read it today!

I'm no fan of self-help books, of which this (I suppose) is a specimen. That said, Dr. Jeffers is a common-sense counselor with some good ideas. Even her less-than-good ideas may spur you to devise better ones of your own. Its biggest strength is the high value it places on positivity, of which, in our deeply cynical and angry age, we are in greater need with every passing month (week? day?).

I have read many self help books and they have been great, but the author of this book does a great job making the content clear and easy for the reader to understand. Susan Jeffers does a great job motivating the reader to face their fears no matter what it is in order to grow in life. I had to buy a hard copy of this book to always have with me.

Great book. It gave me a lot to think about. Highly recommended.

Great book! Recommend. Feel the fear and do it anyway is going to be my favorite phrase from now on.

As someone who lives in fear of being a disappointment to anyone, I found this book to be impactful. I am a people pleaser and have found that the course I am currently on does not please me. I almost needed the permission from this book to do a course correction.I hope this book and the activities in it continue to transform my life.

Susan Jeffers wrote this book in the 80s but it reads like a book written in 2013. The ideas are not at all dated and actually seem somewhat New Age.Susan Jeffers starts out explaining fear on its most primal level. She shows how some thinking patterns program you for failure. Instead she encourages the reader to think of life more as an exciting adventure than a fearful journey. There is a section on building up your self-confidence and learning to be more positive. Some ideas about visualization and affirmations are helpful. Susan Jeffers believes we create our own reality but also says we are not responsible for everything that happens in our lives. Which is it?While I found most of the book interesting and entertaining I was slightly troubled by some of the ideas woven through the whole book. One idea was that if your partner is not meeting your needs you should get a divorce. Susan Jeffers makes it sound far too easy to leave a partner. Since she is divorced and remarried she sees this as a good option. For people who are trying to remain married I think this will be disturbing. Not once does she recommend counseling or even reading a good book or two about marriage. If you are having trouble in your marriage the best thing to do is to educate yourself by reading many books on marriage and divorce. Basically the author seems to imply that you have to choose between your relationship and success. In other words, your own life is more important than your marriage. I'm not sure this is good advice and I found it disturbing.While there is a lot of information on fear in this book the title pretty much tells you the secret to overcoming your fears. The author believes that you will always feel fear as long as you are being challenged by life. I thought the book could have been improved by describing some calming breathing exercises.One section I did enjoy was the section on how to be more giving. It made complete sense.Now as far as New Age beliefs go this book ends with an explanation of The Universe and your Higher Self. I have no problem with the Higher Self but I am concerned about people believing that The Universe is a real force. I believe God is pulling all the strings so this section went against my own religious beliefs. I did however like this quote:"If we do not consciously and consistently focus on the spiritual part of ourselves, we will never experience the kind of joy, satisfaction, safety, and connectedness we are all seeking."So take what you need from this book and leave the rest. This book also doesn't talk about medications that may be needed to feel better and not so fearful. Intense fear may be a sign of a serious mental condition. If after reading this book you are still fearful of everything in life I encourage you to see a doctor.~The Rebecca Review