Book Review: "Everything is OK" by Debbie Tung

5/5 stars

*Spoiler alert!*

What a beautiful art style that Debbie Tung has! Everything is OK was a fantastic reminder of that, as well as the poignant and relatable stories she tells in her works. This one tackles the difficult subject of mental health, particularly dealing with depression and anxiety. I laughed, I cried, and I smiled as I read Everything is OK. I think it’s one of her best yet, as she shares her story to try and help others feel not as alone, as depression and anxiety are wont to do.

“Even if the world around me is silent, it's always loud inside my head.”

This is where trouble can begin. Like Tung, I have an active imagination, fueled by my own creativity, relationships, and the books I’ve read. However, the clumps of neurons and their connections that make me who I am spits out negative thoughts. The trouble is that sometimes these negative thoughts can glom onto each other until you feel overwhelmed and despairing. After a while, you start to believe these thoughts and give up on what makes you happy, because you believe you aren’t worthy of being happy.

“Some days I feel like I’m ready to take on the world. Other days, I struggle to get out of bed.”

 

I appreciated Tung’s openness about her struggle with anxiety and depression, her uncertainty as she navigates mental healthcare and cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). Part of it was her trying to navigate her way to fulltime freelance art while still making a living or feeling like she was neglecting her parents and her own relationship with her husband, Jason. Feeling like a burden, like she wasn’t pulling her weight or being productive enough.

To me, it is clear that art is Tung’s passion and an activity she does because she enjoys. While not artsy in that sense, I personally enjoy writing—book reviews, short stories, poetry, etc. When she describes and illustrates the void she found herself in, where she found herself separated from what made her happy and unable to connect with her innate creativity, I found myself the most emotional. In the thick of the worst depression I have ever felt, I felt like I could never write again, that I could never find my way to that spark again.

But I did, and I have, thanks to both medication and therapy. (Shout-out to my therapist! A true hero.)

Like Tung, I have realized I will probably never be completely rid of the anxiety or depression, but I have learned valuable coping mechanisms and have more compassion for myself. That was one of the hardest things to learn and to continually put in practice—I still stumble many days. I find myself at the mercy of the ongoing stigma surrounding mental health, my internal dialogue leaning back towards a “just pull yourself together” mentality. I probably will never be completely rid of this ingrained stigma, but I can push back against it.

I have seen reviews that say how repetitive some aspects of Everything is OK is, but I think that’s the part of the point. Not everyone’s healing journey is the same and practicing self-compassion and coping skills is hard to do. It involves repetition and building your own routine, embedding it with healthier ways of coping and thinking about your life and situation.

I would recommend Everything is OK to everyone, but especially to those who suffer from mental illness. You are not alone. You are seen.

Happy reading!

--BookOwl