How to Stop Worrying and Start Living

Content Warning: This section of the book references suicidal ideation and a parent contemplating killing a child.

Carnegie presents spirituality as an antidote to worry. He claims that religious faith creates a sense of purpose and prevents anxiety and that many mental illnesses and deaths could be prevented by faith.

Carnegie illustrates his point with the story of his parents, who faced great hardship. Their crops were often destroyed by floodwater, their pigs died of cholera, and despite working 16-hour days, they accumulated large debts. Nevertheless, Carnegie’s mother remained cheerful due to her profound Christian faith. Every night, she read from the Bible and prayed for God’s protection.

The author also shares a second story from the “How I Conquered Worry” competition. Mary Cushman’s family suffered extreme hardship during the Great Depression, losing their home and falling into debt at the grocery store. Cushman reached her lowest point when the grocer unjustly accused her son of stealing. She shut herself in the bedroom with her young daughter, intending to kill them both with the fumes from the gas heater. However, she changed her mind when she heard a hymn on the radio downstairs. The hymn suggested relieving life’s burdens through prayer. Realizing she had failed to share her worries with God, Cushman prayed for the rest of the day.