This book was a helping and healing balm to me. Too many of us carry around feelings of 'wrongness' - specifically, that WE are wrong rather than we did wrong (which I believe IS something we should feel when appropriate). I felt a sigh a few times, a pressure relieved and the author's openess about her experiences were not salacious, they were freeing. My wife and I counsel people and we know the power of a shared example spoken in truth.
I can't exactly put my finger on it but this is one of the best reads I've come across for helping you learn to live with, welcome and express old 'secrets' stories etc.

I would to say one thing though. I don't agree with the idea that what is right for you is always right. I'm not saying the author says this, just that the human mind and body will always try to justify itself no matter what the belief etc. To that end, we do need a source of right and wrong and that can be found in our creator God. Otherwise, we end up with Tik Tok...

However, this isn't a religious book. I do reccomend it for the effect it is having in freeing those knotty bits of wrongness you may carry.

I requested this book on a whim, because who doesn't want to improve their mental health and well-being?

Do you like to talk to your inner child, inner bully / critic, inner perfectionist, your anxiety, even your body parts? Show them love and acceptance as you detach these parts from yourself and rubber-ducky debug your life?

Do you like to practice mindfulness, here called "micro-moments"?

Do you want to believe in God / higher power and that whatever happens to you is because you can handle it and it will lead you towards a better life once you understand the teachings of your fate?

If yes, this book can provide you validation and a reminder to keep doing what you're doing.

Other than that, unfortunately the book doesn't bring anything new. It's very short (178 pages in the ARC version), it's very repetitive in the constant talk about micro-moments and showing sympathy and love to the parts of yourself you hated (I understand some people need the point hammered home, but I'd like to move past the first lesson repeated 20 times, okay?). It doesn't really answer what if "love yourself, listen to your gut and pause & mindfully observe when a negative emotion / reaction appears in your body" isn't enough.

Well, there was 1 more advice. When you feel angry, punch a pillow or go for a run. Guess that's valid. Physical exertion burns excess adrenaline and cortisol.

The biggest drawback is that similar information is freely available and the book never delves beyond the surface level. I expect a book to tell me something I didn't already know from reading pop-psychology journalism or watching youtube.

I'd take the author's advice to stop myself in the tracks when I feel the urge to people please, so I'd be honest with the rating rather than overly flattering. 3 stars for being lukewarm and milquetoast, like a waffle you'd eat and then wonder have you even eaten anything because you're still hungry?

TW: Subjects of CSA and parental alcoholism. Non-graphic.

Thank you Atmosphere Press and NetGalley for the ARC.

"What If You're Right? by Emily Colwell is a profound exploration of shifting our perspective from one of constant self-improvement to one of self-acceptance and empowerment. Colwell skillfully dismantles the pervasive societal lens of wrongness that convinces us our anxieties and challenges are inherently flawed and need fixing from external sources.

Drawing from her personal experiences navigating chronic illness, shifting sexual orientation, and childhood trauma, Colwell shares her journey of unexpectedly falling in love with her cancerous thyroid. Through this transformative experience, she learned to embrace her anxieties and other unwanted emotions with curiosity rather than trying to suppress or escape from them.

The book offers practical insights and tools for readers to update their relationship with various aspects of their lives, including anxiety, health challenges, parenting insecurities, and body image. Colwell encourages readers to pause and tap into their inner wisdom, recognizing that relief and healing become possible when we embrace our inherent rightness.

5 stars from my side. I recommend!

Colwell writes with empathy and integrity about her exploration of sickness and need, beliefs and worldviews. While you may not agree with her current state of faith or her conclusions, the journey is an interesting one.

Scripture tells us that each person is uniquely shaped in the image of God with purpose and meaning. Often the people around us try to shame and shape us into their own image. I was blessed with parents who affirmed that God was amazing and able to handle questions and doubts. Human life was a great adventure and there was a reason for the way I was made.

"Don't let anyone put you in a box," was my dad's reoccurring warning.

In this book, Colwell chronicles her journey as a doctor and adviser from the viewpoint that she gets to decide who she is and who she is becoming. I'm heartsick at the direction she's going (the universal god-squad) but interested to see how her life will be shaped by honest enquiry in the future.