Book Review: Peggy Weber’s “Enough as You Are”

I’m so pleased to dust off my sadly-neglected blog (more on that in a later post!) in order to participate in the blog tour for “Enough as You Are” by Peggy Weber, published by Loyola Press.

Weber has written a lovely book on overcoming self doubt and appreciating the gifts God has given you.

What I liked best about this book is the calm, conversational tone and the ease of reading. I really felt like the author and I were sitting in front of a simmering fire, sipping tea and talking about our struggles with self-worth and being “enough” for our families, our culture, and our world.

It’s hard to be a mom in this age of social media. It’s easy to feel like you are never good enough, and like everybody is doing better than you are as a wife, as a mom, as a woman. Innocuous posts from friends or family can feel like an attack, especially when you are always seeing the best of everyone else but the worst of yourself. Often, you’re left feeling like you’re not good enough in any area.

As she writes in Chapter 5,

Addressing these feelings of insecurity is necessary if you want to embrace the truth that you are good enough. You have to figure out who you are and then love who you are. Part of my reaction to worrying about being a good enough parent was to say, “Get over yourself. Everyone is fine, focus on what matters.” But another part of me allowed the seeds of doubt to take root, and this sometimes meant I focused on the wrong things.

Weber offers questions and food for though to gently challenge this mindset, as well as tips and techniques for realigning the thought processes that can cause spirals of self-doubt.

For example, the last page of the chapter (my favorite!) quoted from above, “Good Enough,” about the dangers of comparing your family with other families:

If you find yourself struggling with self-doubt and constant feelings of inadequacy, I really recommend picking up “Enough as You Are”! I think you’ll find it a delightful, insightful, refreshing read.