Mama’s Got Anxiety: But It’s Not Going to Steal Her Joy

Devich encourages worried Christian moms to “take back your joy in motherhood” in her heartfelt debut. An anxious mom herself, Devich recalls how her stress skyrocketed in March 2020 when the pandemic hit, as she became “consumed with fear of [the] virus taking my babies,” quit her job, and hunkered down in her house with her family—and still felt her anxiety climbing, until a panic attack drove her to get help. Aiming to help readers dealing with similar difficulties tackle anxiety from a Christian perspective, Devich covers psychiatric medications (readers shouldn’t shy away from them, as ”God uses doctors and medicine to heal us”), the importance of talking to a professional, and how to avoid transferring personal fears to one’s children (“Is the thing you’re about to tell them or teach them... a rational thing?”). She also makes clear that while prayer is useful, emotional peace isn’t handed down from above—readers must “put in the work” using God’s “tools,” which include “His Word, therapists [and] doctors.” Despite a few contradictions—she cites a biblical passage which suggests that “Anxiety leads to depression,” though elsewhere she asserts “there is no evidence that one causes you to develop the other”—readers will appreciate Devich’s honest renderings of her struggles and steadfast reassurances that anxiety isn’t a sign of weak faith. It’s a welcome resource for Christian moms. (Sept.)