Great Review from www.teensreadtoo.com
Rating: 5 Stars

Millions of people suffer from anxiety disorder (panic attacks) on a daily basis. Most suffer needlessly, either due to lack of medical treatment, misdiagnosis, or ignorance of the condition. I DON’T WANT TO BE CRAZY is one woman’s brave confession of her struggles with the debilitating disorder.

Samantha Schutz was first diagnosed with anxiety disorder at age seventeen, after years of suffering with the problem. She uses this memoir to describe the devastating effects of the condition on her life and her relationships. The book chronicles the ups and downs of Samantha’s life from age seventeen until she graduates from college and gets her first job in the publishing industry.

Told in verse, the story reveals everything from the gripping terror of the attacks to the many therapists she consulted for help. Samantha titles her entries with the current drugs (Klonopin, Serzone, Xanax, Paxil, etc.) and the dosages she was
prescribed to treat her condition. She also explains her attempts to stop the medications, and her belief that things would get better, only to relapse with increasing frequency.

Samantha's honesty is evident throughout. She doesn't promise miracle cures, and she truly marvels at the support she received from her family and most of her friends. This is an inspiring book for anyone living with or connected to someone
living with anxiety disorder.

So I promised I would update about the new book, so here I am. Thanks to all who emailed me girl names...I finally decided on Annaleah.

I've been working on the outline a lot recently and even enlisted my friend Judy to help me brainstorm. So far, the story is that Annaleah, a sixteen year old girl, lives next to a cemetery--which is sort of ironic since she's never actually known anyone who's died. She's visited the cemetery since she was a little kid, but she's not at all dark or goth. She just thought that it was fun to make up stories about the names and dates on the headstones. But Annaleah's life is suddenly turned upside down the summer after her junior year when her boyfriend unexpectedly dies. Don't worry. That doesn't give anything away. I'm pretty sure the book begins at his funeral.

To prepare for writing this book I've spent some time at a little cemetery near where I grew up. I'll be basing the cemetery in my story on it.

I've also been reading some really great books. I definitely recommend Good Grief by Lolly Winston (it's funny and poignant at the same time) and The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion (I'm only about 50 pages in, but it's already really intense). I also read parts of Stiff: The Curious Life of Human Cadavers by Mary Roach. It's really interesting and kind of gross and scary at the same time.

Ok, hopefully more to come soon...