My War with Worry

Sickness, failure, problems with our children--who doesn’t occasionally worry about things like this? But for Tay Thomas, wife of Alaska’s former lieutenant-governor, Lowell Thomas, Jr., such worries had become an incapacitating way of life, robbing her of the ability to enjoy the present because something ＂might happen＂ in the future. Here is the intimate story of a notable woman’s 20-year battle with worry habits formed in childhood. Her first efforts were bootstrap ones. Believing that if she acted in a confident manner, confidence itself would follow, she joined her explorer husband in the globe-circling odysseys for which they are famous. But while the world hailed her courage, Tay alone knew the agonies she suffered in secret. She had not only the worries of any housewife and mother, but additional ones while: - Crossing a flimsy rope bridge covered with ice high above a chasm in the Himalayas - Terrified of flying yet living in Alaska where frequent air trips are unavoidable - Watching the earth open between herself and her small daughter in the worst earthquake ever to hit this continent - Paralyzed at the thought of public speaking but finding herself chairman of many public organizations. As her fears and worries became unmanageable, Tay sought help. Pills, counseling, escape into nature--none of these worked for long. What did work is described in this fast-paced narrative. Raised in a setting where God was confined to one stuffy hour on Sunday mornings, Tay hadn’t been to church since her wedding day, but here and there she kept meeting people who obviously knew something she didn’t know. ＂Where do you get your energy?＂ she asked one such person. ＂I don’t use it up in worry＂ was the answer--and Tay knew she was on the trail of a powerful secret. Her journey from anxiety-ridden ＂just existing＂ to joyous freedom is lined with practical guideposts: - What to take at bedtime instead of a sleeping pill - How to ＂let go＂ of the people you love - What to do with painful memories how to find your own ＂Secret Garden＂ Above all, Tay’s story is an irresistible invitation to every chronic worrier to trust God with every moment of every day.

Tay Pryor Thomas (1927-2014) began to write poetry as a child, with her first prose poem published in a New York City newspaper when she was seventeen. Since then she has gone on to author five books: Follow the North Star, Only In Alaska, My War With Worry, Cry in the Wilderness, and AnAngel On His Wing. With her husband, Lowell Thomas Jr., she co-authored Our Flight to Adventure. Tay moved with her husband and children to Alaska in 1960 and lived there for the rest of her life, writing, gardening, becoming a beloved member of her church community and the wider community as she worked for many nonprofit organizations