It’s a normal part of life to experience occasional anxiety, it’s part of being human... welcome to “life school”.

But when you experience anxiety that is persistent, feels uncontrollable, excessive and overwhelming, it can be disabling. I know this because I am one of the nearly 20% of American’s who experience some level, and type, of anxiety. 

If you’re like me, when anxiety hits it’s not only incredibly stressful, it’s incredibly frustrating. 

And my journey from debilitating anxiety to where I am today has been eye opening and healing.  I have far less experiences and “episodes” of panic attacks and it’s been a long time since I’ve been paralyzed for hours on end. 

Which is why I wanted to do this episode; if there’s even just a little bit in my conversation with Dr. Melba Stetz that helps just one person, we will have made a difference. 

According to ADAA, “anxiety disorders are real, serious medical conditions - just as real and serious as physical disorders such as heart disease or diabetes”.

And this episode is by no means a replacement for medical consultation, diagnosis or treatment. It’s simply a conversation I’m having with my practitioner who has been helping me understand my anxiety as well as sharing some suggestions and insights that might be of some help to others. 

I had a couple of take-aways from today’s episode, the biggest one being this: I can change the way I interpret anxiety and call it worry instead. 

Because when I use the word anxiety it feels like something outside of me, some trigger beyond my control and that feels disempowering. 

However, the word “worry” is something that is happening within me. I am worried about this or that. Hmmm, I can manage my worry. I can manage my worried thoughts and shift them. This feels so much more do-able!

If you’re like me, you’ll have take-away’s too. 

And thank you to the listeners who wrote in and asked questions that helped to guide today’s conversation. 

Here’s a sneak peak at some of the discussion:

 “I seem to have a lot of physical effects, particularly my back. What can be done to keep our bodies feeling better when dealing with stress and anxiety?”

“What are some effective strategies to come down from high anxiety at the end of the work day? Is there a way to neutralize it even if it's just a little bit?”

These questions, plus a few others, guided this conversation. 

So if you experience a form of anxiety, I hope today’s episode will give you some sigh of relief, even to know that you’re not alone and that there are some simple, effective and pro-active things you can think about doing for yourself. 

So stay tuned...

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Dr. Melba Stetz 

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