Disordered: Anxiety Help

We're back in business this week with both Josh and Drew in studio again chatting about the role of food and eating in the anxiety recovery process. Everyone eats, and for people struggling with anxiety disorders, food and the process of eating can become deeply connected to recovery and/or attempting to manage anxiety, symptoms, thoughts, or emotions.

As usual the guys share from their own experiences while covering some of the key points to consider when identifying how food and eating can be part of your recovery plans. A few important points:

• Eating to be healthy is never a bad idea. But eating as a way to try to manage anxiety symptoms, prevent panic, or to micromanage physical processes that were never designed to be micromanaged can backfire on us.
• Eating can become a safety or avoidance behavior when we tie our diets and eating habits to our anxious fears.
• Be mindful of less than well-informed advice found on the Internet and in other places that promises to cure your anxiety with special diets - especially extreme or highly restrictive diets.
• Don't make the mistake of eating like your body is fragile and can only exist inside a narrow dietary range. In the absence of medical/physical issues that demand dietary limitations, a varied diet has physical benefits while also teaching vital lessons about psychological flexibility that matters so much in the recovery process.
• Contrary to popular belief, it is possible (though we would not suggest this if you can help it) so fully recover from an anxiety disorder - being afraid of being afraid - being anxious about being anxious - while consuming only junk food. Treating your body well is a better idea of course and certainly supportive, but it is not generally helpful to place food and diet on a pedestal as a cornerstone of recovery.
• Food can change how your body feels. This is 100% true. But remember that being afraid of your body is an entirely different situation. This matters in the recovery process.

This episode was sparked by a question from a listener. Thanks, Nick! Want to participate in a future episode of Disordered by sending in a did it anyway or asking a question? Visit disordered.fm and let's hear what's on your mind!

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Disordered Roundtable is coming! Think of it as "Disordered Live", a way for members of our audience to spend time with us in an intimate virtual setting (attendance is limited) to engage in real time sharing and discussion on specific anxiety disorder and recovery topics. To be notified when new Disordered Roundtable sessions are scheduled, ⁠visit our homepage and get on our mailing list⁠.

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Struggling with worry and rumination that you feel you can't stop or control? Check out ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Worry and Rumination Explained⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, a two hour pre-recorded workshop produced by Josh and Drew. The workshop takes a deep dive into the mechanics of worrying and ruminating, offering some helpful ways to approach the seemingly unsolvable problem of trying to solve seemingly unsolveable problems.

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://bit.ly/worryrumination⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

The principles of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) are heard in every episode of disordered. Whenever you hear Drew or Josh talk about acceptance or allowing or surrendering and moving THROUGH anxiety rather than resisting it ... you are hearing elements of ACT.

This week we're a bit banged up - Josh is traveling and Drew has the flu, but fear not. Not only are we going to talk about ACT today, but we're talking about it with the guy that literally invented it - Dr. Steven C Hayes. If you want to explore the foundations of ACT and what it's all about, you can't pick a better person to talk to than Dr. Hayes so we are thrilled about this one.

Surprises in this episode include Dr. Hayes talking about how he's a former sufferer of panic disorder, and framing anxiety as part of the "gift of emotion". Does that seem ridiculous to you? Keep listening. It makes sense when you work it through and aligns perfectly with what we're always talking about here.

To learn more about Dr Hayes, ACT, and the work he's done, check out his website at

https://stevenchayes.com

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Struggling with worry and rumination that you feel you can't stop or control? Check out ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Worry and Rumination Explained⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, a two hour pre-recorded workshop produced by Josh and Drew. The workshop takes a deep dive into the mechanics of worrying and ruminating, offering some helpful ways to approach the seemingly unsolvable problem of trying to solve seemingly unsolveable problems.

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://bit.ly/worryrumination⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Mindfulness is good for anxiety, right? Isn't this what everyone says? Mindfulness fixes anxiety and makes you happier? Isn't that it?

Well ... not really. This week Drew and Josh are taking a look at the practical applications of things like meditation and mindfulness practice in the context of anxiety disorders and anxiety recovery. A few key points:

• Mindfulness is paying attention to what you want to pay attention to without judgment or evaluation of your ability to pay attention.
• PRACTICE is the key. The practice of training one's attention is where the win is. This is something we do. A process. It's not a state we achieve or a skill to perfect. Expecting calmness, happiness, or perfection in meditation or mindfulness is not a good approach.
• Mindfulness and meditation are NOT calming tools or anxiety shields in this context. Please do your best to steer clear of trying to use these concepts to escape from your anxious state. That usually leads to frustration and a much more fragile state of recovery.
• Mindfulness and meditation apps are great! General wellness advice on how to use mindfulness and meditation is great. Just be careful about trying to apply general advice to the specific context of disordered anxiety and recovery.

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The book we talked about in this episode is Drew's "Seven Percent Slower" which is a short, friendly read on how to use the principle of slowing down to help navigate more mindfully through anxiety, fear and stress. Learn more here.

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Struggling with worry and rumination that you feel you can't stop or control? Check out ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Worry and Rumination Explained⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, a two hour pre-recorded workshop produced by Josh and Drew. The workshop takes a deep dive into the mechanics of worrying and ruminating, offering some helpful ways to approach the seemingly unsolvable problem of trying to solve seemingly unsolveable problems.

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://bit.ly/worryrumination⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Everyone talks about the fight or flight response. But what about the freeze and fawn responses, which are also found in the anxiety disorder community?

This week Josh and Drew dig into the freeze response to anxiety, panic, and perceived threat. What is the freeze response? What does it look like? Does the freeze response mean being literally frozen and completely immobilized? Do we need special instructions or rules for how to "fix" the freeze state when anxious or experiencing panic?

Along the way, the guys also touch on the fawn response, which also doesn't get enough discussion in this community. We'll be doing a dedicated fawn response episode next week.

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Struggling with worry and rumination that you feel you can't stop or control? Check out ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Worry and Rumination Explained⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, a two hour pre-recorded workshop produced by Josh and Drew. The workshop takes a deep dive into the mechanics of worrying and ruminating, offering some helpful ways to approach the seemingly unsolvable problem of trying to solve seemingly unsolveable problems.

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://bit.ly/worryrumination⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

When working through the process of chronic or disordered anxiety recovery many will find that at some point they are fixated on or have become a bit obsessed with monitoring and evaluating their mood.

This week on Disordered Drew and Josh take a look at why recovering and anxious people tend to get stuck in "mood monitoring mode". Generally speaking, the issue here is the belief that mood is an important indicator of recovery progress or status, or that mod is a predictor of doom or certain downward spiral. Little room is allowed for the natural ebb and flow of mood that all humans experience organically every day.

If you find that you're always monitoring your mood to check to see if you're feeling "right" or if you're OK, this episode may shed some useful light on the topic for you, so tune in.

As always, some successes are shared by members of the community, and the guys answer a question about compulsively consuming anxiety and mental health content and seeking the "miracle cure" for an extended period of time.

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Struggling with worry and rumination that you feel you can't stop or control? Check out ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Worry and Rumination Explained⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, a two hour pre-recorded workshop produced by Josh and Drew. The workshop takes a deep dive into the mechanics of worrying and ruminating, offering some helpful ways to approach the seemingly unsolvable problem of trying to solve seemingly unsolveable problems.

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://bit.ly/worryrumination⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

-----

Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

How does one approach recovery from chronic or disordered anxiety when grief is part of the picture? Do the same principles apply? Do we use concepts like acceptance, surrender, or willful tolerance when handling grief?

Grief is a powerful thing that will almost certainly impact not just anxiety recovery but all aspects of life and even daily functioning at times. In this episode Josh and Drew explore the relationship between anxiety, anxiety recovery, grief, and the grieving process.

This can get complicated and as always there are subtle details and nuances so tune in. We hope you find this episode helpful.

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Struggling with worry and rumination that you feel you can't stop or control? Check out ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Worry and Rumination Explained⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, a two hour pre-recorded workshop produced by Josh and Drew. The workshop takes a deep dive into the mechanics of worrying and ruminating, offering some helpful ways to approach the seemingly unsolvable problem of trying to solve seemingly unsolveable problems.

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://bit.ly/worryrumination⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

This week on Disordered we're looking at anxiety focused on relationships, specifically a form of OCD known as Relationship OCD (ROCD).

ROCD - like all forms of OCD - will glue itself to things that really matter to us. In this case, being in loving, secure, successful relationships with people we love and who love us. Someone with ROCD even when involved in what by all accounts may be a very healthy and satisfying relationship experiences doubt about various aspects of those relationships. Far beyond the usual questions and doubt that all people might experience now and then, ROCD doubt will trigger extreme discomfort and a sense of distress, demanding that one engage in rituals and compulsions designed to alleviate that sense of distress.

The thing is ... as usual ... that relief never lasts. ROCD will toss whatever assurance, solution, or peace our compulsions bring us, demanding that the cycle of doubt and rituals be repeated again and again.

The episode does include discussion of attachment theory/styles and self-esteem issues that may in fact play a role for people with ROCD, however the focus remains on treating the OCD itself before digging into what may be associated issues.

As always, the guys share some success stories from the listener community and answer a question about the difference between distraction and productive focusing of attention.

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Struggling with worry and rumination that you feel you can't stop or control? Check out ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Worry and Rumination Explained⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, a two hour pre-recorded workshop produced by Josh and Drew. The workshop takes a deep dive into the mechanics of worrying and ruminating, offering some helpful ways to approach the seemingly unsolvable problem of trying to solve seemingly unsolveable problems.

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://bit.ly/worryrumination⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

WHAT ABOUT NOCTURNAL PANIC ATTACKS? HOW DO WE DEAL WITH THOSE?

Nocturnal panic attacks are scary, disturbing, disruptive, and often feel like they are different from any other kind of panic attack. Anxious people will often insist that they are special, they can't possibly be approached with an attitude of tolerance or surrender, and that there must be special instructions or techniques for preventing them, stopping them, or getting over them.

But nocturnal panic attacks, as difficult as they are to experience, are not special nor different. This week on Disordered Josh and Drew are digging into what nocturnal panic attacks are all about and why they seem different or in need of a particular or special approach.

The guys also touch on how nocturnal panic attacks can impact people struggling with OCD or recurring or intrusive thoughts. There's also a discussion of scary or vivid dreams and how they are also often interpreted as dangerous or very important.

As always we have some excellent "did it anyways" from the community and an excellent question about what happens when living according to one's values becomes a bit extreme and results in overwhelm and burnout.

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Struggling with worry and rumination that you feel you can't stop or control? Check out ⁠⁠⁠⁠Worry and Rumination Explained⁠⁠⁠⁠, a two hour pre-recorded workshop produced by Josh and Drew. The workshop takes a deep dive into the mechanics of worrying and ruminating, offering some helpful ways to approach the seemingly unsolvable problem of trying to solve seemingly unsolveable problems.

⁠⁠⁠⁠https://bit.ly/worryrumination⁠⁠⁠⁠

-----

Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

WHAT DOES "VALUES DRIVEN RECOVERY" MEAN?

Anxiety recovery can be seen as one long journey away from fear driven behavior and toward behaviors that support the things we really value in life. This week Josh and Drew are talking about what values driven recovery mean and how your values - the things that matter to you and make you who you are and want to be - play a role in the recovery process.

A few key points from this episode:

• Identifying and exploring your values is worthwhile because knowing WHY you are choosing to do scary, difficult things can support your recovery efforts.
• Not really remembering what non-anxious you looks like is a common experience in our community. Focusing on values and can help us re-connect to who we really are rather than who anxiety tells us to be.
• Connecting to your values and working on values driven recovery is a great plan, but be careful about assuming that your values will instantly override your fear. Sometimes but look to your values as a source of motivation, not as a way to smash anxiety and run it over.
• Sometimes life gives us no choice and waves our values in our faces, demanding that we either follow them or retreat in a given moment. See if you can recognize those moments and use them in a positive way rather than defaulting to feeling defeated when you can't easily "rise up" to meet those challenges on demand.

As usual we're celebrating some "Did It Anyway" submissions from members of the community, and we answer a question about how social anxiety and agoraphobia can be connected in some cases.

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Struggling with worry and rumination that you feel you can't stop or control? Check out ⁠⁠⁠Worry and Rumination Explained⁠⁠⁠, a two hour pre-recorded workshop produced by Josh and Drew. The workshop takes a deep dive into the mechanics of worrying and ruminating, offering some helpful ways to approach the seemingly unsolvable problem of trying to solve seemingly unsolveable problems.

⁠⁠⁠https://bit.ly/worryrumination⁠⁠⁠

-----

Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

BUT WHAT ABOUT WHEN YOU'RE TENSE AND SORE? HOW CAN YOU HANDLE THAT?

This is one of those questions we get asked all the time. In this episode of Disordered, we're taking a look at how tension, soreness, twitches, and feelings of muscle weakness fit into the anxiety and recover picture.

Anxious, scared bodies are going to anxious, scared body things. That's how we're designed. There's nothing wrong with being medically checked, and once you've been cleared your job becomes acknowledging that tension and related issues are going to be part of this equation.

It's not the tension, the soreness, or the twitching that matters most. These are certainly impactful and unpleasant, but the part we care most about is the continued choice to focus on these sensations, ruminate on them, and attempt to frantically escape from them or force them to stop. That just makes things worse.

Once again, we find ourselves confronted with the difficult task of acknowledging in a compassionate way, then exercising the skills of letting go and willfully tolerating an unpleasant experience. Why? So we can learn that unpleasant doesn't automatically equal dangerous or catastrophic.

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Struggling with worry and rumination that you feel you can't stop or control? Check out ⁠⁠Worry and Rumination Explained⁠⁠, a two hour pre-recorded workshop produced by Josh and Drew. The workshop takes a deep dive into the mechanics of worrying and ruminating, offering some helpful ways to approach the seemingly unsolvable problem of trying to solve seemingly unsolveable problems.

⁠⁠https://bit.ly/worryrumination⁠⁠

-----

Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

"I know I'm not supposed to focus inward or engage with my anxious or intrusive thoughts, but what am I supposed to think about?!"

This week Josh and Drew answer an excellent question from a listener that hasn't really been asked before. What do you do when your anxious thoughts keep coming even when you don't want them to come, and when you insist that you MUST only focus outward because that's how recovery is done?

Spoiler alert ... if you're in the business of trying to stop your thoughts or never hear or notice them so you can perfectly focus outward to recover, you can get out of that business right now. Anxious thoughts focused on your internal state - thoughts about you and how you feel - are going to come no matter what we do. This is normal and expected for all humans.

The secret sauce here is in the continued practice of noticing those thoughts when they happen, seeing that they exist, and not launching into thought stopping or thought control responses. Its OK to have whatever thoughts your brain creates. See them, acknowledge that you are thinking like all humans do, refrain from judging and evaluating the thoughts as proper or improper, then do your best to bring them with you as you do life.

Is this frustrating at times? You bet it is. Be nice to yourself when you get frustrated and impatient with this process, and always remember that you simply cannot demand to not have a thought. Insisting that you must only think outward thoughts is a dead end and never works, so soften that stance, let your brain do its thing, and try not to treat your thoughts like they require control, management, or engineering.

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Struggling with worry and rumination that you feel you can't stop or control? Check out ⁠Worry and Rumination Explained⁠, a two hour pre-recorded workshop produced by Josh and Drew. The workshop takes a deep dive into the mechanics of worrying and ruminating, offering some helpful ways to approach the seemingly unsolvable problem of trying to solve seemingly unsolveable problems.

⁠https://bit.ly/worryrumination⁠

-----

Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

WHAT RECOVERY LENS ARE YOU LOOKING THROUGH?

This week Drew and Josh take a bit of an unexpected turn to explore ways that CBT and exposure-based approaches to recovery can fall short. Recovery can't always be about facing, accepting, exposures, and Claire Weekes. While we might not look to other models to unearth deeply hidden root causes for an anxiety disorder, other theoretical frameworks can be quite useful - or even necessary - to conceptualize why one might encounter obstacles in the recovery process itself.

In this episode, the guys so a little Transactional Analysis role play, drag the venerable Carl Rogers into the recovery forum, and generally provide different ways of looking at how you see yourself and what recovery lenses you might be looking through.

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Struggling with worry and rumination that you feel you can't stop or control? Check out Worry and Rumination Explained, a two hour pre-recorded workshop produced by Josh and Drew. The workshop takes a deep dive into the mechanics of worrying and ruminating, offering some helpful ways to approach the seemingly unsolvable problem of trying to solve seemingly unsolveable problems.

https://bit.ly/worryrumination

-----

Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

MY NERVOUS SYSTEM IS DYSREGULATED!

This week Drew and Josh get up close and personal with "nervous system dysregulation". This is a term that might have some benefit when dealing with issues like stress management or general wellness, but goes straight off the rails into the unhelpful zone when it comes to anxiety disorders.

Declaring an anxious state to be a state of dysregulation might be defended from a semantics standpoint. Operationally however, when we insist that our internal states must be labeled as problems that must be fixed, this can and most times does backfire by activating the threat detection and response system that we're trying so hard to deactivate. The attempt to regulate winds up having the opposite result. Welcome to anxiety paradox number 10,641.

Imagine stepping on the accelerator pedal in your car (insisting that you must find ways to extinguish your internal experience) then immediately looking for ways to slow the car down because going fast doesn't feel right. Now imagine what might be possible if you saw your nervous system as responding as designed to a perceived threat.

Is it the nerves that must be addressed, or that off-kilter threat scanning and response routine?

If you've been trying to find ways to hack your nervous system or force it into some kind of acceptable "regulated" state, and that's proving to be frustrating or disheartening for you in your recovery, this episode is for you.

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If you love Disordered and think you might benefit from spending 30 full days in an everyday intensive small group recovery support group led by Josh and Drew,⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ check out Disordered Boost at https://disordered.fm/boost⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

This week on Disordered we're taking a grand tour around the OCD loop! Josh and Drew talk about pure-O, somatic, and "traditional" obsessive compulsive disorder subtypes.

While not every possible theme and subtype can be covered in a short podcast episode, the guys touched on some of the more common themes found in the community, taking care to address how regardless of the specific obsession, there are common characteristics that we can rely on when approaching recovery.

Keep in mind that OCD subtypes and themes often morph and overlap, and that related anxiety disorders often look a whole lot like OCD because there really is quite a bit of common ground between these mental health issues.

Coming soon ... follow-up episodes covering treatment for OCD, including guest appearances by some well known and respected OCD specialists.

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If you love Disordered and think you might benefit from spending 30 full days in an everyday intensive small group recovery support group led by Josh and Drew,⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ check out Disordered Boost at https://disordered.fm/boost⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

-----

Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

What Is Your Therapist Thinking While You're Talking?

Therapists are people too. They have feelings, opinions, insecurities, fears, and personality quirks. And they - like you - sometimes have an inner dialogue. If you ever wanted to know what goes on inside the mind of an anxiety therapist, this week Josh and Drew dig into this a bit, including a few moments where the guys exercise their drama and acting skills. Absolutely Oscar-worthy, so tune in.

As usual ... it's quite a scene.

---

Interested in Josh's new book, “And How Does That Make You Feel?” 

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://geni.us/JoshFletcher⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

----

If you love Disordered and think you might benefit from spending 30 full days in an everyday intensive small group recovery support group led by Josh and Drew,⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ check out Disordered Boost at https://disordered.fm/boost⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

-----

Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

This is the one-year anniversary episode of Disordered! We've been at this now for a full year, and we cannot be more grateful for all the support you guys have provided along the way.

What better way to mark a year of Disordered than with an episode dedicated entirely to celebrating the community surrounding this podcast? If you need some encouragement or inspiration in your recovery, listen in as we play and read "did it anyway" stories from our listeners and your peers.

Thanks to everyone who shares their stories with us. We appreciate them, and we're happy to share them when we can.

Now let's get on with year two, shall we?

---

Interested in Josh's new book, “And How Does That Make You Feel?” 

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://geni.us/JoshFletcher⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

----

If you love Disordered and think you might benefit from spending 30 full days in an everyday intensive small group recovery support group led by Josh and Drew,⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ check out Disordered Boost at https://disordered.fm/boost⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

-----

Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

What about all this "neuropathways" talk? What does it mean in anxiety recovery?

Funny that you asked! This week on Disordered Josh and Drew are talking about neuropathways, anxious habits, and how the concept of "building new neuropathways" applies in the context of anxiety disorders and anxiety recovery. Let's start by acknowledging that even counterproductive anxious habits are built atop pathways in the brain designed to make things easier for us. We can learn good habits and develop responses and behaviors that almost feel automatic because that's metabolically efficient and frees our thinking brains up to concentrate on more important things. But sometimes, this amazing mechanism is accidentally used to create anxious or avoidant responses and habits based on a misfiring of our threat detection systems. Are there neuropathways beneath habits designed to avoid or escape anxiety triggers? Yes, there are.

But the good news is that we can play an active role in building new neuropathways. New behavioral choices and new experiences can re-wire our brains, even in the case where we might be terrified of our own bodies and minds. The guys use a bunch of analogies (some clever, some not so clever) to illustrate how making new choices in responding to anxious thoughts and anxious sensations triggers the process of creating new neuropathways. The conversation also touches on the need for commitment and repetition in building these new pathways that support new behaviors, new habits, and a new relationship with anxiety and fear.

Tune in for this, the usual "did it anyways", questions from the community, and maybe even a surprise for Josh and his now trademark screaming American eagle sound effect. ;-)

---

Interested in Josh's new book, “And How Does That Make You Feel?” 

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://geni.us/JoshFletcher⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

----

If you love Disordered and think you might benefit from spending 30 full days in an everyday intensive small group recovery support group led by Josh and Drew,⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ check out Disordered Boost at https://disordered.fm/boost⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

-----

Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

OH NO! IT'S COME BACK!

The habits we develop and the neuropathways that get created by a disordered state of anxiety mean that even long into recovery, an anxious person might be re-triggered by life events, stress, memories, or any number of expected issues. This is normal. If this happens, we can feel things again ... anxiety, anxiety symptoms, and scary thoughts. This is not failure, or returning to square one, or "doing it wrong". This is being human and alive.

But exactly what has been re-triggered when this happens? How does a recovered person or nearly recovered person become re-sensitized to anxious sensations and thoughts? This week we're talking about how external events can re-trigger INTERNAL sensitization - the state where we treat how we feel and what we think as urgently important or even dangerous.

When suddenly re-sensitized, what then? As you might expect, this episode goes into detail about the process of de-sensitizing oneself to your internal state, which isn't a process at all. It's OK to be re-triggered. The trick here is to steer clear of the usual traps - looking for steps, tools, and techniques for making the feelings go away.

When re-sensitized, the object of the game is to de-sensitize as you did before by allowing, accepting, tolerating, and surrendering. Bring it all with you, do not launch into evasive action or retreat rituals, and you will likely find that de-sensitization happens much more quickly than you expect it to.

---

Want to pre-order Josh’s book, “And How Does That Make You Feel?” 

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://geni.us/JoshFletcher⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

----

If you love Disordered and think you might benefit from spending 30 full days in an everyday intensive small group recovery support group led by Josh and Drew,⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ check out Disordered Boost at https://disordered.fm/boost⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

-----

Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

BURNOUT!

Running out of gas and being emotionally, physically, and/or mentally drained can happen to any human. This week on Disordered Drew and Josh explore how an anxious mind can twist and distort the concept of burnout. In many ways, the fear of burning out, and the catastrophic interpretation of what that might mean, can be worse than burnout itself!

The guys explore different signs of burnout, how burnout comes in different shapes and sizes depending on context, and how obsession with and fear of burnout can mimic fear of depression or fear of the lack of enough or proper sleep.

Finally, Josh and Drew share some tips for avoiding burnout and taking care of oneself. As always, there are a couple of great questions and "Did It Anyways" from the community in this episode, so tune in!

---

Want to pre-order Josh’s book, “And How Does That Make You Feel?” 

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://geni.us/JoshFletcher⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

----

If you love Disordered and think you might benefit from spending 30 full days in an everyday intensive small group recovery support group led by Josh and Drew,⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ check out Disordered Boost at https://disordered.fm/boost⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

-----

Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

Are you using wellness concepts, techniques, programs, and principles as a way to resist feelings of anxiety?

There's absolutely nothing wrong with taking care of oneself and wanting to be healthy physically, mentally, emotionally, and even spiritually. But in a large community of people struggling with disordered and chronic states of anxiety, compulsively seeking, chasing, and engaging in wellness rituals as a way to desperately stomp out any possibility of feeling anxious or uncomfortable can become a problem.

This week on Disordered we're looking at compulsive wellness, characterized by the assertion that one must be perfectly healthy, manage or micro-manage bodily functions and systems, and always be perfectly stable, optimized, and fully prepared to minimize the chances of being triggered into an anxious state. Especially in a social media climate jam-packed with body-centric and often less-than-reputable anxiety management or cure programs, it can be easy to be drawn into the compulsive wellness cycle.

If you find yourself there and trying to break out, know that you're not doing anything wrong, its OK to want to feel better, and even if you stop desperately chasing every wellness hack you come across, you can still be OK.

---

Want to pre-order Josh’s book, “And How Does That Make You Feel?” 

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://geni.us/JoshFletcher⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

----

If you love Disordered and think you might benefit from spending 30 full days in an everyday intensive small group recovery support group led by Josh and Drew,⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ check out Disordered Boost at https://disordered.fm/boost⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

-----

Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

The default state for most humans - to varying degrees - is for the brain to launch into inward thinking and inner dialogue when there's nothing else to pay attention to. If you're struggling with chronic or disordered anxiety, this can become a real issue and a major struggle.

This week we're looking at the inward compulsion. That fear-driven habit of not only having thoughts, but answering them, engaging with them, checking in on them, and inviting them in for lengthy conversations that go on endlessly and drive anxiety and more discomfort.

Can you stop the inward compulsion? Well, that's complicated. You can't stop your brain from making thoughts. That's just what brains do. But you can work on building a new relationship with those thoughts and refusing to engage with them or feel them with the attention they so crave when your brain thinks it needs to keep you safe.

Over time, the inward compulsion stops being a compulsion and your regular, non-anxious relationship with your thoughts and inner dialogue (which will vary from person to person) goes back to a "regular" state where even a highly active inner dialogue simply exists without posing an obstacle in your life or causing significant struggle or disruption.

---

Want to pre-order Josh’s book, “And How Does That Make You Feel?” 

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://geni.us/JoshFletcher⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

----

If you love Disordered and think you might benefit from spending 30 full days in an everyday intensive small group recovery support group led by Josh and Drew,⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ check out Disordered Boost at https://disordered.fm/boost⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

-----

Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

"Is it normal for my symptoms, or thoughts, or my anxiety to get worse when I start engaging in recovery?"

Even Dr. Claire Weekes acknowledged this experience when writing about recovery many years ago. This week on Disordered we're talking about feeling MORE when you stop hiding from anxiety. This is often misinterpreted as "getting worse" but feeling more doesn't mean your anxiety, your symptoms, or your thoughts are getting worse.

It's OK to feel things. The recovery process is about learning how to get better at feeling things. You can feel all the things and still be safe. xx

---

Want to pre-order Josh’s book, “And How Does That Make You Feel?” 

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://geni.us/JoshFletcher⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

----

If you love Disordered and think you might benefit from spending 30 full days in an everyday intensive small group recovery support group led by Josh and Drew,⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ check out Disordered Boost at https://disordered.fm/boost⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

-----

Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

"What does anxiety therapy look like?"

"What goes on in a session with an anxiety specialist?"

"How can I find the right therapist for me?"

This week Drew and Josh address these questions, including a really interesting 12-minute mock therapy session to start the episode. Josh plays the therapist while Drew is the client struggling with panic and extreme levels of anxiety. It's role play, but it does give a reasonable idea of what a first session with an anxiety specialist might look and sound like.

The guys also talk about different modalities in therapy (treatment styles or methods), the value of being able to bring different therapy concepts to bear on different problems, and the need to have at least some level of connection and relationship with a therapist to get the most from the endeavor.

---

Want to pre-order Josh’s book, “And How Does That Make You Feel?” 

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://geni.us/JoshFletcher⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

----

If you love Disordered and think you might benefit from spending 30 full days in an everyday intensive small group recovery support group led by Josh and Drew,⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ check out Disordered Boost at https://disordered.fm/boost⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

-----

Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

But what about hormonal issues, perimenopause, and menopause???!!!

This is a question that we are asked all the time, and rightfully so. This week we're joined by Helen Bennett, a qualified UK psychotherapist specializing in supporting people who are dealing with fertility challenges and struggling with the menopause transition.

This episode is chock full of excellent information about the experience of menopause and how it can so closely mirror chronic anxiety and the symptoms of an anxiety disorder. We also chat about how these things can and often do overlap, strategies for getting a handle on how or if hormonal changes are impacting your mental health, and ways to approach this natural but often highly challenging part of life.

Thanks so much to Helen for taking the time to chat with us about this important issue. We needed some expert help on this one, and Helen was kind enough to come through for us. We'll have her back on for more in the future for sure.

To find Helen online, visit her website:

https://www.themenopausetherapist.com/

Check her out on Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/MenopauseTherapy/

Follow her on Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/themenopausetherapist/

To find The Counsellor's Staff Room (mentioned in the episode as a resource for therapists and counselors in the UK):

https://www.counsellors-staffroom.co.uk/

https://www.facebook.com/groups/counsellors.staffroom

Other links mentioned in this episode:

• Balance website for information on menopause and HRT: https://www.balance-menopause.com/
• Balance app for recording symptoms: https://www.balance-menopause.com/balance-app/
• Current NICE Guidelines:  https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng23
• New NICE Guidelines currently under consultation (anyone can review and comment):  https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/indevelopment/gid-ng10241/consultation/html-content-2
• NHS information on menopause:  https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/menopause/

---

Want to pre-order Josh’s book, “And How Does That Make You Feel?” 

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://geni.us/JoshFletcher⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

----

If you love Disordered and think you might benefit from spending 30 full days in an everyday intensive small group recovery support group led by Josh and Drew,⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ check out Disordered Boost at https://disordered.fm/boost⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

-----

Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

Do you ever get anxious ... because you're not feeling anxious?

This is a real thing in our community! Anxious people who begin to experience moments where anxiety and agitation fade into the background will often find themselves becoming anxious because they're not feeling anxious!

This week Drew and Josh explore this confusing but all too common anxiety recovery issue. The discussion includes:

• How old anxious brain habits die hard.
• Why it is normal to immediately worry that feelings of calm will not last.
• Treating yourself as fragile to keep the anxiety from "coming back".
• The importance of recognizing non-anxious moments as indicators of recovery rather than harbingers of doom.

As usual, the episode includes a combination of professional experience, training, knowledge, and personal experience alongside a dash of good humor and a few reminders about the need to be patient and kind with yourself to keep "Craig the critic" at bay.

---

Want to pre-order Josh’s book, “And How Does That Make You Feel?” 

⁠⁠⁠⁠https://geni.us/JoshFletcher⁠⁠⁠⁠

----

If you love Disordered and think you might benefit from spending 30 full days in an everyday intensive small group recovery support group led by Josh and Drew,⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ check out Disordered Boost at https://disordered.fm/boost⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

-----

Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

"Healing" is a VERY popular word in self-help, mental health, and wellness circles. For many, this word resonates. For our friends struggling to overcome chronic and disordered anxiety, it can sure feel like there's healing to do.

But what if recovery wasn't all about healing? What if there was as much learning as there is healing in the process? Or what if the healing part doesn't always look the way you think healing looks and feels?

This week Josh and Drew are deconstructing the idea of "healing" in anxiety recovery. Are we saying that healing isn't a thing? Of course not! Everyone gets to pick the syntax and the words that resonate most for them. Surely there is some healing happening in some way. But when healing fuels and drives compulsive or ritualized recovery, or drives one into an endless loop of demanding to feel "properly healed", things can go off the rails quickly. This episode is designed to make you think a bit about the roles of healing and learning in recovery, and how you might be glued to words that aren't always serving you well.

As always, a healthy dose of flexibility and patience is required as part of this discussion and as part of the recovery process as a whole. Never forget that these questions can be confusing, there isn't always a definite answer to be had, and in the absence of patience and self-compassion this kind of thing can accidentally make you feel like you're doing it wrong or that you have to work harder to achieve "perfect" recovery. Beware of that trap at all times!

---

Want to pre-order Josh’s book, “And How Does That Make You Feel?” 

⁠⁠⁠https://geni.us/JoshFletcher⁠⁠⁠

----

If you love Disordered and think you might benefit from spending 30 full days in an everyday intensive small group recovery support group led by Josh and Drew,⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ check out Disordered Boost at https://disordered.fm/boost⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

-----

Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

Anxiety triggered by exercise, exertion, or being in the gym is a common struggle for anyone dealing with issues like panic attacks, agoraphobia, or any anxiety disorder that places a focus on physical anxiety symptoms or feelings of shame, inadequacy, or embarrassment.

This week Drew and Josh share not only a professional take on this aspect of anxiety, but their own lived experience struggling with exercise, exertion, feelings they didn't want to feel, and sometimes wanting to run and hide while in the gym with others. As usual, the guys offer some familiar advice when it comes to how to navigate through these anxious moments, assurance about why anxiety doesn't make exercise dangerous for you, and a healthy reminder about being kind and compassionate to yourself as you work through all of this.

The challenge is real, but you can do it!

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Want to pre-order Josh’s book, “And How Does That Make You Feel?” 

⁠⁠https://geni.us/JoshFletcher⁠⁠

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If you love Disordered and think you might benefit from spending 30 full days in an everyday intensive small group recovery support group led by Josh and Drew,⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ check out Disordered Boost at https://disordered.fm/boost⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

Productivity anxiety is an often overlooked subject in our community, so this week Drew and Josh are taking a look at anxiety triggered by an obsession with productivity and the fear of "failure" as defined by not meeting extreme productivity or output goals.

This can show itself almost anywhere in life. Work and career. School and academics. Parenting. Building perfect relationships. Even recovery from an anxiety disorder can be impacted by the drive to do recovery perfectly or to be highly productive in recovery by maximizing every moment to recover properly or as quickly as possible.

Productivity anxiety can also show itself as a need to be constantly busy and pre-occupied in an effort to remain distracted from anxious thoughts or sensations.

Join us to explore this less common but nonethess important topic.

---

Want to pre-order Josh’s book, “And How Does That Make You Feel?” 

⁠https://geni.us/JoshFletcher⁠

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If you love Disordered and think you might benefit from spending 30 full days in an everyday intensive small group recovery support group led by Josh and Drew,⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ check out Disordered Boost at https://disordered.fm/boost⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

This week Josh and Drew are talking about anxiety related to the holiday season.  This time of year presents extra challenges for people in our community, regardless of which holidays you celebrate, and even if you don't celebrate any holidays! Let's take a look at the added pressures of the holiday season, how that's likely to show up for an anxious person, the need to remain aware of this impact, and why sometimes faking it until you make it can make a difference!

As always, we're talking about being kind to yourself and being patient with yourself. Craig The Critic loves getting loud during this time of year, so resisting the urge to join in with his nonsense is something you can work on doing for yourself. This time of year can be challenging, but you can handle it. You always do.

Want to pre-order Josh’s book, “And How Does That Make You Feel?” 

https://geni.us/JoshFletcher

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If you love Disordered and think you might benefit from spending 30 full days in an everyday intensive small group recovery support group led by Josh and Drew,⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ check out Disordered Boost at https://disordered.fm/boost⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

This week we're discussing GAD - Generalized Anxiety Disorder. GAD generates the most confusion in the community around Disordered, so we took some time to address a few important issues:

• What is GAD and what isn't it?
• Does being anxious all day mean you have GAD?
• What are some of the underlying processes that drive GAD?
• What about worry and rumination?

In the end, much of GAD is driven by excessive worry and rumination that creates an anxious state when it is directed at problems that can't be solved or don't need to be solved. GAD will demand that you ask questions that don't need to be asked, or engage in overplanning, worrying, and ruminating that you might think you shouldn't or can't walk away from.

Overcoming GAD is about recognizing some of these thinking and behavioral habits, then taking "risks" by leaving worries unanswered, questions unasked, things unfinished or open-ended, and problems unsolved. Sound hard? It is! But hard and impossible are not the same things.

Special thanks to Batman and Bane for pitching in on our opening, and to our friend Elizabeth Lyons for making a cameo appearance as the "Someone call the Ruminator!" woman. Top-notch acting right there.

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If you love Disordered and think you might benefit from spending 30 full days in an everyday intensive small group recovery support group led by Josh and Drew,⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ check out Disordered Boost at https://disordered.fm/boost⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

ANXIETY QUESTIONS FROM OUR LISTENERS

This week Josh and Drew are answering questions sent in by the listeners.  The community around this podcast is amazing! Your feedback, questions, and “did it anyway” stories are a bit part of making Disordered what it is.  On this episode, the guys answer these questions:

• What do you do when a busy job triggers anxiety and drags you back into doing compulsions again
• What advice do you have for irritability as a result of anxiety?
• What can you do when big life events create anxiety?
• Do you have advice for health anxiety where you fear manifesting the diseases you fear?
• Can you recover regardless of age?
• What triggers the amygdala?
• What can you do when the social media scroll/algorithm is targeting your triggers and making you anxious?

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If you love Disordered and think you might benefit from spending 30 full days in an everyday intensive small group recovery support group led by Josh and Drew,⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ check out Disordered Boost at https://disordered.fm/boost⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

-----

Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

BRAIN FOG!?!?!

One of the most common symptoms of anxiety reported in the community surrounding this podcast is "brain fog". That thing where your brain just isn't working the way you'd expect it to work. Maybe you're slow, have memory issues, or struggle to find proper words or names. Maybe you just feel "out of it" or like you're in a dissociated state. Brain fog is very common, very subjective, difficult to describe, and often disruptive.

But as with any anxiety symptom, brain fog is not dangerous, not indicative of some horrible brain injury, and not worthy of special tips, tricks, or methods to make it go away or stop it from happening. The way out of brain fog ... as usual ... is through it. Today Josh and Drew talk about how being patient with yourself, kind to yourself, and resisting the urge to hit the panic button when you feel foggy, is the best way to learn how to tolerate and function even when feeling this way.

Yes, this means that the way out is learning through practice and experience that you might not be functioning in an optimal state, but you're still functioning and that's OK.

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If you love Disordered and think you might benefit from spending 30 full days in an everyday intensive small group recovery support group led by Josh and Drew,⁠⁠⁠⁠ check out Disordered Boost at https://disordered.fm/boost⁠⁠⁠⁠

-----

Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

Fear of losing control - and suffering some horrible consequence - is one of the top five core fears found in anxiety disorders. This week Drew and Josh delve into the fear that you may lose control and why this fear seems important and very real but isn't any different than any other expression of a misguided and misfiring threat response.

We look at different OCD themes that focus on the loss of control, how fear of losing control fuels monophobia (fear of being alone), and what horrible disasters anxious brains attach to losing control. Of particular note is a discussion about how even when you are sure you are out of control or are about to lose all control, you still have agency and the ability to make choices.

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If you love Disordered and think you might benefit from spending 30 full days in an everyday intensive small group recovery support group led by Josh and Drew,⁠⁠⁠ check out Disordered Boost at https://disordered.fm/boost⁠⁠⁠

-----

Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

When anxious, stressed, or afraid, the gut and GI tract are almost instantly impacted. This is true for a huge number of people, anxious or not. This week Josh and Drew are joined by health psychologist Dr. Sula Windgassen to talk about anxiety and IBS. Dr. Sula specializes in a cognitive behavioral approach to supporting people struggling with IBS, Crohn's, colitis, other GI issues, and other chronic illnesses.

In this episode we're talking about:

• The real nature of the gut-brain connection
• Validating the fact that anxiety can and often does have a real physical impact on the GI tract
• How anxiety can not only trigger these issues but can also make them worse than they have to be based on magnified fears surrounding these physical responses
• How a cognitive-behavioral approach is beneficial when struggling to get a grip on the intersection of anxiety and IBS/gut issues.

Find Dr. Sula online:

Instagram (@the_health_psychologist_)

All Dr. Sula's Links

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If you love Disordered and think you might benefit from spending 30 full days in an everyday intensive small group recovery support group led by Josh and Drew,⁠⁠ check out Disordered Boost at https://disordered.fm/boost⁠⁠

-----

Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

Extreme sensitivity to sound and misophonia (yes, it has a name) is a topic that doesn't get nearly enough attention in the mental health community so this week on Disordered we were lucky enough to have Dr. Jane Gregory stop by to talk about this often under-represented challenge.

Dr. Jane has struggled with misophonia since childhood so not only is she academically and professionally well-versed in the topic, she's lived this experience herself. Dr. Jane has immersed herself in misophonia research which is revealing some amazing insights into this issue and how it can be addressed by clinicians, and has even written a book on the topic ("Sounds Like Misophonia").

Today's discussion touches on not just anxiety triggered by sound, but also on the emotional, social, familial, and cultural impacts of this issue. People struggling with misophonia can often find themselves feeling isolated, and questioning themselves when triggered. Misophonia sufferers may find themselves confused as to why it feels like there are misophonia and non-misophonia versions of themselves.

Even if you do not struggle with misophonia or extreme sound sensitivity, this episode is worth a listen because it is chock-full of great information applicable across many of the topics we cover on Disordered.

Oh, and apologies for the fact that Josh was out rubbing elbows on celebrity podcasts rather than recording, and for the absence of the now traditional screaming American eagle sound effect in this one. I'm sure he'll bring it back next week. ;-)

Find Dr. Jane Gregory online:

https://instagram.com/drjanegregory

https://instagram.com/soundslikemiso

https://soundslikemisophonia.com

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If you love Disordered and think you might benefit from spending 30 full days in an everyday intensive small group recovery support group led by Josh and Drew,⁠⁠ check out Disordered Boost at https://disordered.fm/boost⁠⁠

-----

Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

"How can I maintain momentum in recovery when I have a setback or I don't feel motivated?"

This is a very common question asked in our community so this week on Disordered we're addressing the topic of momentum in the anxiety recovery process. We relay some of our own experiences with recovery momentum and what it looked like for us, and we touch on some common issues related to momentum and motivation in recovery:

• There is no linear "perfect" recovery. It's OK to make mistakes. We need to make those mistakes in order to learn!
• Momentum is often about fully embracing a commitment to challenging anxiety and the thoughts, doubts, sensations, and inner criticism that come with it.
• REST is part of maintaining momentum! You're not going to break your recovery if you take time to rest and recharge when needed.
• Motivation is not required before acting. It's OK to feel unmotivated. Sometimes we have to act even when we feel that way. A feeling of motivation sometimes comes after the action.
• Being afraid to "lose progress" is a common reason why some people stop or stall in recovery.
• Thoughts about never getting better are still just thoughts. When we have those thoughts we must be mindful to not glue ourselves to them and let them dictate our actions.

As always we have a couple of "did it anyways" and we answer a question about anxiety that comes in "waves".

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If you love Disordered and think you might benefit from spending 30 full days in an everyday intensive small group recovery support group led by Josh and Drew,⁠ check out Disordered Boost at https://disordered.fm/boost⁠

-----

Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

This week we're taking a look at social anxiety, which is the anxiety disorder that belongs in that classification, but also kinda doesn't because it can often be more complex than related forms of chronic and disordered anxiety.

Social anxiety is often misunderstood as "extreme shyness" or "fear of being judged", but there can be much more to it so join us as we explore some of the more common broad-brush themes associated with social anxiety. We can't crack the code of everyone's social anxiety in a podcast episode, but if you struggle in situations where you have to be around others or interact with others, this episode can be helpful in explaining what may be happening "under the hood" of your anxious response.

This episode also references two episodes of Drew's podcast, "The Anxious Truth". You can find them here:

• Episode 153 - Examining Your Inner Critic
• Episode 159 - Examining Social Anxiety w/Sadie Hall

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If you love Disordered and think you might benefit from spending 30 full days in an everyday intensive small group recovery support group led by Josh and Drew, check out Disordered Boost at https://disordered.fm/boost

-----

Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

This week on Disordered we examine the somatic trauma narrative in relation to anxiety disorders.

This is a tricky topic. We ALWAYS want to validate and support our friends who are struggling to work through trauma. That struggle is real and cannot be minimized or dismissed. In the right context for someone working through trauma, somatic conceptualizations can be highly impactful in a really positive way. No doubt!

At the same time, we must also acknowledge that while somatic conceptualizations of trauma applied to anxiety disorders can be informative and empowering, they just shouldn't be seen as universally applicable, especially when interacting with highly suggestible and vulnerable individuals in a sensitized state for whom those narratives simply may not apply.

Trauma survivors are deserving of representation and advocacy in the mental health community, but so are members of the anxiety disorder community who are sometimes harmed by misapplied and overgeneralized somatics narratives. This week we've done our best to provide a balanced look at this issue that we hope sheds some light on the topic for anyone confused by this issue.

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If you love Disordered and think you might benefit from spending 30 full days in an everyday intensive small group recovery support group led by Josh and Drew, check out Disordered Boost at https://disordered.fm/boost

-----

Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

This week Josh and Drew tackle "monophobia" - the fear of being alone. This is VERY common among people with panic disorder and agoraphobia. It presents most often as an intense fear and avoidance of being left home alone without safe people nearby or as always needing safe people with you before you can do exposures or go into areas where your anxiety might be triggered.

This fear is not a special or "another" fear that you have to overcome. Monophobia is what we call it when you are sure that you cannot tolerate or handle the experience of anxiety while alone and will need to be rescued or saved from that experience. It's another expression of the same fear .... the fear of fear.

In this episode, we talk about the fear of being alone (monophobia) and discuss ways to address it as part of your overall recovery strategy.

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If you love Disordered and think you might benefit from spending 30 full days in an everyday intensive small group recovery support group led by Josh and Drew, check out Disordered Boost at https://disordered.fm/boost

-----

Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

I'm having problems with my sleep and I'm super anxious about it. HELP!

Anxiety focused on sleep and sleep problems is one of the most common complaints in the Disordered community. Often, anxious people experience sleep disturbances or even periods of insomnia and wind up extremely anxious and afraid over this issue. Lack of sleep gets attached to fears about being even more anxious, never being able to recover, not being strong enough to resist anxious thoughts, or doing some actual physical or mental damage.

This week on Disordered, Josh and Drew explore sleep and sleep-focused anxiety to ease some common misconceptions about sleep anxiety. The guys examine the usual suspects (resistance, avoidance, and compulsive problem-solving) as keys when approaching sleep-related anxiety.

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If you love Disordered and think you might benefit from spending 30 full days in an everyday intensive small group recovery support group led by Josh and Drew, check out Disordered Boost at https://disordered.fm/boost

-----

Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

This week we have our first official guest on Disordered! Our friend and highly respected anxiety/OCD expert Kimberley Quinlan is here to help us explore and understand the role of self-compassion in the anxiety recovery process.

Kim literally wrote the book on self-compassion when it comes to OCD recovery. There's nobody we know that speaks more knowledgeably and eloquently on this topic. Give this one a listen. There's a ton of good stuff in here you can use in your journey.

Find Kimberley online at:

https://kimberleyquinlan-lmft.com

https://cbtschool.com

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If you love Disordered and think you might benefit from spending 30 full days in an everyday intensive small group recovery support group led by Josh and Drew, check out Disordered Boost at https://disordered.fm/boost

-----

Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

Are you a worrier? Overthinker? Can't stop ruminating? Do you use thinking as your go-to problem-solving and protection tool, then hate that you can't stop thinking? This week Josh and Drew tackle worry, overthinking, and rumination. This is a topic near and dear to many anxious people in our community so it's high time we talk about it.

We'll talk about what overthinking, worry and rumination really are, why it seems like you should overthink or worry, and why this is just an anxious, frightened mind demanding that you problem-solve to stay safe. In the end, does thinking actually do anything but fool us into thinking that we're doing something? Tune in to find out!

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If you love Disordered and think you might benefit from spending 30 full days in an everyday intensive small group recovery support group led by Josh and Drew, check out Disordered Boost at https://disordered.fm/boost

-----

Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

This week Josh and Drew do a deep dive into this million dollar question:

"What would non-anxious you do?"

The concept of "non-anxious you" and connecting to the way you would live your life if you were not accommodating the fear of fear is powerful. Josh talks about this all the time, and for good reason! Today we take a look at why acting like non-anxious you might act (even when you're clearly anxious) is so helpful.

The guys also chat about how the idea of "non-anxious you" can lead you down the path that re-connects you with yourself, even when you feel like you're not even sure who you are and what you like any more.

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If you love Disordered and think you might benefit from spending 30 full days in an everyday intensive small group recovery support group led by Josh and Drew,⁠ check out Disordered Boost:

https://disordered.fm/boost⁠

-----

Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

This week on Disordered we kick off a new feature. From time to time we'll do episodes that are entirely community-based, showcasing "did it anyway" stories from listeners. In this episode we take a closer look at a few of these stories, examining exactly what made them into big wins. We had a great time with this one and we hope you find it inspirational and encouraging to hear from your peers.

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If you love Disordered and think you might benefit from spending 30 full days in an everyday intensive small group recovery support group led by Josh and Drew,⁠⁠ check out Disordered Boost:⁠

⁠https://disordered.fm/boost⁠⁠

-----

Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

White knuckling. What is it? Why do we use that phrase all the time in the context of anxiety recovery? This week Drew and Josh talk about what "white knuckling" means in recovery, why it's a natural and expected part of the process for almost everyone, and how to kindly and compassionately take small incremental steps toward letting go of your tight grip.

How do you stop white-knuckling and holding on so tightly when anxious and afraid? A little bit at a time. :-)

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Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

This week on Disordered Josh and Drew address the topic of setback or relapse. What is it? Does it even exist, or is a "setback" just another experience along the way to recovery? Of special note is the concept of "reversion" which frames this issue not as failure or return of some anxiety monster, but as a return to hold habits. Did you get triggered and fall back into old habits? No problem! You're human like everyone else and this can happen to all of us. When you see that you're back in those old habits, now you can make new choices and "get back on that horse".

Being triggered or feeling intense anxiety after having a long break is certainly discouraging and disappointing. You're allowed to have emotions about that. Just don't set up permanent residence in "It's back, I'm powerless, and I've failed" land. That's not fair to you.

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Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

This week on Disordered Josh and Drew tackle the topic of distraction. Trying to find ways to distract yourself when anxious is a common and popular strategy, but is it a good strategy? The answer is no ... and yes!

In this episode, we look at how distraction is almost always going to be part of the equation no matter what we do, why intent matters, and how using distraction as a way to focus on something other than how you feel teaches us important recovery lessons.

Bonus: Listen to Josh and Drew do an epic role-play where Josh plays the triggered amygdala and Drew plays the wise mind guiding us through acknowledgment and intentional focus. Distraction ... used in a positive way!

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Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

Depersonalization and Derealization - AKA "DP/DR"

This week Drew and Josh get into the nuts and bolts of this most common anxiety and stress response. This is the sense that you're not real, that you're detached from yourself, or that the world around you suddenly feels unreal or out of reach. As scary as this experience is, and as much as it is difficult to face, it is not permanent or dangerous and can't actually harm you. Adopting a more accepting and tolerant approach to DP/DR - allowing it to be there without fighting so hard or trying to figure it out - helps your brain learn that it's OK to leave it alone.

Over time this means you're not really frightened of the sensation any longer which makes it far less likely to hang around like it does now.

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Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at ⁠⁠https://disordered.fm⁠⁠

Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

I'm obsessed with anxiety and anxiety recovery!

This week on Disordered Josh and Drew examine what happens when we become obsessed with anxiety and then obsessed with anxiety recovery. This is a thing that happens to many in this community, so it's worth examining. As usual, we share our own personal experiences with anxiety and recovery, then we throw in our professional knowledge and experience alongside the usual dose of humor and compassion. It's a good listen!

Oh, and this one has more yummy quotes per minute than any other podcast episode ever recorded, so check it out.

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Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast? Visit us on the web at ⁠https://disordered.fm⁠

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Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

DRIVING ANXIETY!

This week on Disordered, Josh and Drew take a look at a very common concern in the anxiety disorder community - driving anxiety. Many many people that suffer from panic disorder, agoraphobia, OCD, and other anxiety disorders often experience intense anxiety or even full-scale panic attacks when driving or when driving under certain circumstances or conditions.

We'll talk about what driving anxiety is, a slightly more productive and less overwhelming way to frame it as not a special form of anxiety, some of the most common fears associated with driving anxiety, and how to best address this issue. As usual, the episode combines professional experience, clinical knowledge, our own lived experiences, a bit of humor, and plenty of understanding and compassion.

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Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast? Visit us on the web at ⁠https://disordered.fm⁠

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Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

This week on Disordered, Drew and Josh tackle the topic of health anxiety. Health anxiety is an obsession with one's physical or mental health that drives a continuous series of compulsions designed to soothe the fear, uncertainty, and worry about well-being and safety.

The episode covers intolerance of uncertainty, repetitive compulsive checking and seeking of reassurance, and how leaning into probability and reality rather than fear is the way out. As usual, the guys share some of their own personal struggles with health anxiety, along with a healthy serving of compassion, humor, and professional expertise.

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Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast? Visit us on the web at ⁠https://disordered.fm⁠

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Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

Accepting anxiety and acceptance are two of the most difficult to grasp and misapplied concepts in the entire anxiety recovery sphere. This week on Disordered, Josh and Drew dig into the idea of acceptance.

What is accepting? How do I accept anxiety? What happens when I accept? What things are most certainly NOT acceptance?

As usual, this episode combines professional knowledge and training, professional experience, personal lived experience, and big helpings of both compassion and humor to shed some light on an important part of the anxiety recovery process. We hope you find it useful in some way.

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Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast? Visit us on the web at ⁠https://disordered.fm⁠

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Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

My Loved Ones Don't Understand My Anxiety

This week on Disordered Drew and Josh talk about how anxiety disorders have impact not just on the person struggling to recover, but on the people close to them. When your loved ones want to help you, but just don't understand or "get it", this can cause frustration, conflict, and even anger and resentment. The guys talk about how our loved ones can be helpful, and how we can help them to help us in recovery. This is a great episode to share with someone close to you that might be frustrated by your anxiety struggles and looking for guidance.

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Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast? Visit us on the web at ⁠https://disordered.fm⁠

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Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

This week on Disordered Drew and Josh look at the ways that anxiety and depression are tied together. The guys examine depression, how it is and isn't connected to anxiety, and the very important difference between being depressed and developing a fear of becoming depressed (this is very common in our community). We talked about rumination and the inner critic as they relate to depression. We touched on the role of medication in treating depression and anxiety, and we examined how negative self-beliefs can fuel both anxious and depressive states.

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Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast? Visit us on the web at https://disordered.fm

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Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

What if I'm anxious all day long?

This is a question we get asked almost daily. This week on Disordered let's take a look at being anxious all day long. In this episode, we'll address misconceptions about anxiety that hangs around all day long. We'll also share our own experiences with persistent anxiety. Finally, we get into a discussion about accidentally fueling the cycle of all-day anxiety and why trying to fix it is generally a bad plan. Grab a coffee or tea and join us!

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Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at https://disordered.fm

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Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

This week on Disordered, Drew and Josh dive into two very popular topics in the anxiety community. The dreaded morning anxiety and the equally dreaded night anxiety.

Many people struggling with anxiety disorders will lament the fact that they experience elevated levels of anxiety in the morning or at night (or sometimes both) and will insist that this is special or different and there must be specific interventions for that "kind" of anxiety. This is understandable although generally misguided. This episode talks about the ins and outs of morning and night anxiety, looking at basic concepts that govern how each is approached. As usual, the guys both share some of their own experiences with anxiety, both in the morning and in the evening.

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Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at https://disordered.fm

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Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

This week on Disordered, Josh and Drew discuss scary, unwanted, recurring, intrusive thoughts that can frighten us and trigger high levels of anxiety and discomfort. The guys talk about the many different themes that intrusive thoughts cover including thoughts about harm, sexuality and sexual orientation, relationships, health, death, and existential issues. While intrusive thoughts are usually associated with OCD, they are generally present for almost anyone that struggles with any anxiety disorder.

This episode also examines the idea that "thoughts are just thoughts", which is true, but doesn't really accurately validate the intense anxiety and threat response that so many unwanted intrusive thoughts can trigger. Josh and Drew also discuss the idea that you cannot decide to not have thoughts, and that having disturbing or scary thoughts does not mean you are broken or a horrible person, even when the thoughts themselves are telling you that.

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Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at https://disordered.fm

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Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

This week on Disordered, Josh and Drew talk about the all-important attitude shift that has to happen as part of recovery from an anxiety disorder. Recovery is spearheaded by behavioral change but that behavioral change also has to foster an attitudinal shift that moves you from trying to eliminate your anxiety to a consistent intentional tolerance of discomfort that will teach you that you can handle anxiety and don't have to fear it any longer. That's a key step toward decreasing your anxiety levels over time and a shift in attitude is important in this respect.

You'll also hear both Josh and Drew have realizations about the missing attitudinal shift that kept both of them stuck in the early stages of recovery. The guys both come to the conclusion that the "relapses" they experienced were based primarily on relying on technique without allowing that important shift in attitude.

If you're feeling like you're constantly being pulled back to "square one" this might resonate with you.

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Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at https://disordered.fm

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Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

In this episode of Disordered, Josh and Drew discuss why recovery is so dependent on learning that when you handle anxiety, fear, and uncertainty, YOU GET THE CREDIT FOR DOING THAT. Recovery hinges on seeing, then dropping all the safety devices and rituals so you can see through actual experience that YOU handled the discomfort without needing anything or anyone to save you.

The guys talk about the idea of unconditional OK-ness, and learning that in all the time that you've been searching for tools and techniques and methods for managing your anxiety, it's always just been you getting the job done. All those other things deserve no credit because in the end, you are all you need and you are capable even without all the magic things that you think protect you.

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Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at https://disordered.fm

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Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

This week on Disordered, Drew and Josh look at the relationship between body and mind when it comes to anxiety. Anxiety is absolutely something that one experiences physically, in the body, but the guys discuss how disordered states of anxiety are driven by interpretation and cognition. Highlights include a chat about how so many people experience things like scary thoughts and panic attacks without ever developing anxiety disorders, and an examination of how its the reaction to those experiences drive the disordered state.

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Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at https://disordered.fm

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Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

WHAT SHOULD I SAY DURING A PANIC ATTACK?

"What is the best thing for me to say to myself during a panic attack?"

This week on Disordered, Josh and Drew talk about strategies for self-talk, framing statements, action prompts, and non-compulsive ways to talk to yourself during a panic attack or high anxiety spike. The guys spend some time addressing the myth that one needs to be "talked down" from a panic attack and also cover how these concepts can be useful when supporting a friend or loved one that's experiencing panic or high anxiety.

Remember that you're supposed to be scared during a panic attack - that's just the mechanism working as designed. Don't judge yourself harshly or negatively for that, and steer clear of trying to find magic words or phrases that will make it go away. That's more harmful than helpful in the long run.

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Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at https://disordered.fm

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Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

IT SURE FEELS LIKE AN ATTACK ... BUT IS IT?

This week on Disordered Drew and Josh deconstruct the idea of a panic attack. It sure feels like you're being attacked, but are you? Is there a more useful and accurate way to frame what's happening? Do we find power when we stop looking at panic as a force that swoops in to attack us?

The guys chat about how a panic "attack" is really an adrenaline surge based on natural, expected, bodily functions. It's not dangerous and not indicative of an actual problem, just a misguided threat detection system in your brain. The conversation goes through why panic attacks are all the same from a physiology perspective and how its the context and the interpretation that makes them feel different or sometimes "worse".

This can be a really useful reframe for anyone struggling to overcome recurring panic attacks or panic disorder so grab a beverage and a comfortable chair and have a listen.

Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?

Visit us on the web at https://disordered.fm

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Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

The Symptoms of Anxiety

Anxious people often get completely fixated and consumed by the physical, mental, and emotional symptoms and sensations that come along with anxiety. It's natural to want to talk about them all the time and to keep asking "if anyone else gets" the symptom you are experiencing that scares you at the moment. This week on Disordered, Josh and Drew discuss anxiety symptoms, explaining that they are scary and uncomfortable, but not dangerous and not something to be avoided.

The guys, as usual, share their own experiences with scary and disruptive anxiety symptoms and they even end the episode with a little friendly rapid-fire competition to see who can name the most symptoms. Spoiler alert ... that segment comes complete with cheesy video game background music.

For more information about Josh, Drew and the Disordered podcast, visit us on the web at https://disordered.fm

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Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

This week on Disordered Drew and Josh walk you through the biological threat response and how it drives states of disordered anxiety.  The guys cover the following important concepts that all anxiety sufferers should understand as part of the recovery process:

• Anxiety is normal and needed in life. All humans experience anxiety.
• The threat response system in your brain was designed to keep you alive at all costs. It served - and still serves - an important purpose.
• Disordered anxiety states are generally driven by an over-sensitive threat response that fires and sounds alarms when it doesn’t have to - there is no danger.
• Recovery is essentially about re-modulating that overactive threat response to bring it back into a healthy, normal state.
• You can’t talk to the part of your brain in charge of the threat response.  It doesn’t understand words.  Only behavior and experience.
• You have to SHOW your brain that you are safe, even when it is convinced that you are not.
• It is a common mistake to interpret the sensations and experiences of the threat response as a sign that something is broken or wrong.  You are not broken and nothing is wrong that needs to be fixed.

Josh and Drew both shared some of their own experiences with respect to how they interacted with the threat response to turn it down over time while they were both working on recovery from anxiety disorders.  They did not heal their threat responses … they were teaching them.

As always, the guys answer questions from the community and share a few wins and success stories from listeners.  Always inspiring!

Bonus content: Strudel and Copper both chime in today.  Clearly, even dogs have opinions about the threat response and anxiety.

For more information about Josh, Drew and the Disordered podcast, visit us on the web at https://disordered.fm

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Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

Join Josh and Drew as they share their own experiences of anxiety recovery and what it means to get better when you're struggling with an anxiety disorder. Common themes in this episode include:

• Eliminating avoidance
• Choosing to willfully tolerate anxiety and the sensations/thoughts that come with it
• Learning that you are capable of handling how you feel - even when highly anxious
• Defining what it means to "get better" from an anxiety disorder

The guys also share listener victories and answer a question or two from the audience.

For more information about Josh, Drew and the Disordered podcast, visit us on the web at https://disordered.fm

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Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

Drew and Josh take a whistle-stop tour of some of the most common forms of anxiety disorder. The guys take time to explain the difference between regular anxiety that all humans experience, and disordered anxiety which becomes a major life-impacting mental health issue. In this episode Josh and Drew talk about:

• Panic Disorder
• Generalized Anxiety Disorder
• Agoraphobia/Monophobia
• OCD
• Health Anxiety
• Social Anxiety

This episode also answers the question, "Is it normal to be afraid when thinking about or planning anxiety recovery?"

For more on Drew, Josh, and the Disordered podcast, visit us on the web at https://disordered.fm

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Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

Join us for the maiden voyage of Disordered! Josh and Drew talk about what it feels like to be an anxious person and offer a number of suggestions for signs that your anxiety might be more than just "regular" anxiety.

• You know you're anxious when you're fixated on how you feel and what you think all day long.
• You know you're anxious when you're suddenly afraid to do things you've been doing your whole life without thinking about them.
• You know you're anxious when you troll Google for eight hours looking for anxiety cures.
• You know you're anxious when you compulsively check your heart rate all day long.
• You know you're anxious when ....

For more on Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast, find us on the web at https://disordered.fm

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Disclaimer: Disordered is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to Disordered does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the hosts of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.

DISORDERED Is The Podcast With Anxiety Help From Two Anxiety Experts

Josh Fletcher and Drew Linsalata are both known for providing real, evidence-based, actionable information about anxiety and anxiety recovery. They’re friendly, they’re funny, and they each have a knack for combining lived experience, formal training, and professional experience into an encouraging, inspiring, kind, and compassionate mental health message.

What happens when they get together and turn on the microphones?

This happens. And we think you’re gonna really dig it.

Find us on the web at https://disordered.fm