Take Out Therapy: “Do Thoughts Cause Anxiety? A Therapy Lesson For Anxious Overthinkers”

Host: Rebecca Hunter, MSW
Date: January 16, 2026

Episode Overview

Rebecca Hunter, MSW—a therapist who specializes in guiding empathic high achievers through anxiety and overwhelm—dives into the roots of anxious overthinking. In this solo episode, she explores the two core thoughts driving most anxiety spirals and offers practical insights and reassuring strategies to break their hold. With the warmth and candor of a friend, Rebecca normalizes the anxious mind’s patterns, shares lessons from her own journey, and provides a calming framework anyone can begin to use right away.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Anxiety Is Universal and Human

• Normalization: Anxiety is a normal emotional state, especially in today’s “crazy ass world.”
• Symptoms: Overwhelm, overthinking, physical tension, avoidance, and self-doubt are natural responses, not personal failings.
  “Most people are not lazy or broken. They’re overwhelmed and avoiding starting.” (00:00)

2. The Two Core Thoughts Behind Anxiety

Rebecca introduces the heart of the episode:

• Thought #1: “Something bad is going to happen”
  • This underlying fear keeps the brain scanning for threats, replaying possible negative scenarios, and over-planning.
  • It is driven by the brain’s protective instincts and survival mode—not irrationality or a personal flaw.
  • “The brain has kept you alive all this time by telling you about all the stuff that could kill you.” (06:15)
• Thought #2: “I can’t handle this”
  • This core doubt triggers internal spirals, eroding self-trust and fueling avoidance.
  • Shows up as “What if I fall apart?” or “What if I can’t recover?”
  • “When these two thoughts combine, that’s a big problem. Something bad is coming and I’m not gonna be able to handle it, my friend. This is the source of anxiety.” (09:23)

3. Why Overthinking Makes Anxiety Worse

• The struggle to control or eliminate anxious thoughts actually intensifies them.
• Perfectionism, people-pleasing, and avoidance often sneak in as desperate (but ineffective) self-protection strategies.
• “The more you think, the worse you feel.” (04:36)

4. Rebecca’s Personal Journey with Anxiety

• Candidly shares her own long history with anxiety, therapy, medication, and self-medicating behaviors, none of which provided the stability she craved.
  • “What I wanted was simple. I wanted to understand why my mind was so bananas. I wanted the spirals and the tension and the exhaustion to stop.” (05:26)
• Her “aha” moment: anxiety is rooted in fear or faith—the former focused on preventing danger, the latter about trusting her own capacity.

5. Interrupting the Spiral: Reassurance over Reasoning

• The goal is not to “win” arguments against these anxious thoughts, but to reduce their emotional load with reassurance:
  • Remind yourself: “I’ve literally handled every flipping thing that has come my way in life. I can handle what comes up.” (11:30)
  • This “self-parenting” reassures the nervous system, paving the way for self-trust.
• Letting Go of Certainty: “When you tell your brain that you’re capable, your brain thinks you’re capable. You just told it you were.” (12:45)

6. Building Self-Trust and Present-Moment Presence

• Anxiety abates not by predicting or controlling the future, but by practicing safety and presence in uncertainty.
• “Anxiety eases when the future is allowed to remain unknown.” (13:11)
• Naming the patterns (“name it to tame it”) is transformative.

7. Removing Self-Blame

• “This is not an internal flaw. This is survival patterns that formed in response to life’s uncertainty, to stress, to any chaos that you’ve been through.” (14:12)
• Formerly protective, now-automatic habits can be gently recognized and shifted.

8. Action, Not Self-Blame or Waiting for Motivation

• Progress happens with small steps, not waiting for the “right feeling” to begin.
  • “If you’re waiting to feel motivated before you take care of your mental health, you’re going to be waiting a long time. Feeling better comes from action, not vibes.” (17:08)

Memorable Quotes & Moments

• On the roots of anxiety:
  “Most anxious spirals are powered by two core thoughts. They’re quiet thoughts. They sit underneath the surface for a lot of people. They never even know the thought is there.” (07:51)
• On overthinking:
  “Anxiety is a pressure to get everything right. And it feels endless and exhausting.” (03:51)
• On letting go of perfectionism:
  “What most people are really wanting is not like perfect thinking. They want to feel safe inside of themselves.” (07:00)
• On shifting from fear to self-trust:
  “Anxiety became something that I could work with, instead of fight.” (15:47)

Practical Takeaways

• Recognize the Pattern: Notice when “something bad will happen” or “I can’t handle this” thinking arises.
• Interrupt with Reassurance: Speak kindly to yourself in those moments; you’ve handled things before and can handle what’s next.
• Let Go of Certainty: You don’t need to predict or control every outcome to be okay.
• Practice Name It to Tame It: Labeling these core thoughts takes away their power and builds presence.
• Seek Support if Needed: Rebecca offers coaching for listeners who want more structure or support.

Important Timestamps

• 00:00 Introduction—normalizing overwhelm and anxiety
• 03:51 How anxiety shows up in the body and mind
• 05:26 Rebecca shares her personal experience with anxiety
• 06:15 The protective function of the brain and the first core anxious thought
• 07:51 The two core thoughts behind most anxiety
• 09:23 What happens when “something bad will happen” and “I can’t handle this” combine
• 11:30 The power of reassurance and interrupting the spiral
• 12:45 Building self-trust
• 13:11 Anxiety abates when we allow the future to remain unknown
• 14:12 Removing self-blame and recognizing survival patterns
• 15:47 Working with anxiety instead of fighting it
• 17:08 Action over motivation—small steps for progress

Closing Thoughts

Rebecca wraps up with encouragement to be gentle with yourself, to recognize and interrupt the anxious patterns with warmth, and to seek help if needed. She emphasizes that the most important lesson is having a bit of self-faith:
“You can learn to just shift into strength and presence and honestly have a little faith in yourself to get through life's difficulty.” (16:18)

[For more resources, coaching, or to connect with Rebecca, visit takeouttherapy.com.]