Michelle Obama announces new book to help ‘during times of high anxiety’

Michelle Obama is releasing a new book that she says aims to serve as a kind of self-help guide for people “during times of high anxiety and stress.”

Announcing the November release of “The Light We Carry: Overcoming in Uncertain Times” on Thursday, the former first lady said the COVID-19 pandemic, last year’s deadly Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol, and a “rising tide of hate and intolerance” has often left her “feeling out of balance.”

“I felt vulnerable and, at times, I felt afraid,” Obama said in a video posted on Facebook. “How do we overcome? How do we overcome our fears? How can we channel our frustration into something positive? And how do we rekindle that flame that’s inside each of us?”

The book, Obama said, is a result of lots of reflection since the 2018 release of her best-selling memoir, “Becoming.”

“I think of it as a kind of a toolbox, a collection of some of the perspectives and practices I’ve gathered over the years to help keep me centered,” Obama, 58, said.

“My hope is that we can equip ourselves with new tools and attitudes so that together, maybe we’ll be a little steadier, with the understanding that none of us has to go through any of this alone,” Obama said.

Penguin Random House, the book’s publisher, said “The Light We Carry” will include “fresh stories and insightful reflections on change, challenge, and power.”

“Drawing from her experiences as a mother, daughter, spouse, friend, and first lady, [Obama] shares the habits and principles she has developed to successfully adapt to change and overcome various obstacles — the earned wisdom that helps her continue to ‘become,’” the publisher said.

“I’ve learned it’s okay to recognize that self-worth comes wrapped in vulnerability, and that what we share as humans on this earth is the impulse to strive for better, always and no matter what,” Obama said in a passage from the $32 book’s introduction.

Penguin Random House announced the first printing of 2.75 million copies of Obama’s book.

“The Light We Carry” is poised to be released on Nov. 15.