Podcast
The Anxiety Coaches Podcast
Hosted by Gina Ryan · EN
The Anxiety Coaches Podcast brings you a relaxing and inspiring show sharing lifestyle changes to calm your nervous system and help you heal Anxiety, Panic, Stress, and PTSD for life!
We Bring you two episodes every week. There is no need to walk this path alone. Subscribe for a relaxing, informative, and inspiring time and start your journey into more peace and calm today.
Find meditations, info about stress, anxiety, healthy living, and more at https://www.theanxietycoachespodcast.com
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57episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
1263: Claire Weekes Was Right: What We Know About Anxiety Recovery Today
1w ago00:19:10Tap to summarizeIn today;s episode, Gina introduces a new series she is doing on the Anxiety Coaches Podcast, devoted to helping update Claire Weekes' anxiety recovery methods to our contemporary vocabulary and world. Specifically in this episode, the point that anxiety recovery is not about eliminating fear but adapting how we come to meet fear, is emphasized. Listen in for more discussion about Claire Weekes' work and what to expect in upcoming episodes!Stillpoint Fridays is my once-a-week Friday note — a slower, more personal reflection that’s different from what I share on the podcast.If you’d like a quiet place to land as the week winds down, you can join here: http://eepurl.com/bR2F9P or on our website anxietycoachespodcast.com and sign up for the newsletter.Please visit our Sponsor Page to find all the links and codes for our awesome sponsors! https://www.theanxietycoachespodcast.com/sponsors/Website https://www.theanxietycoachespodcast.comJoin our community Group Coaching Join our Group Coaching Full or Mini Membership Program1:1 Coaching Learn more about our One-on-One CoachingIf you prefer to listen AD-FREE, try our Supercast premium access membership:Learn more about anxiety What is anxiety?Free Guided Meditation for Calming Your Anxious Mind 10-Minute Body-Scan Meditation for AnxietyQuote:Recovery lies in the way we meet fear, not in the absence of fear.-Claire WeekesChapters0:27 Claire Weeks RediscoveredSummaryIn this episode, we begin a new series revisiting the work of Dr. Claire Weekes and her ideas about anxiety recovery. We discuss why her books have been influential over the years and how her observations continue to fit with later language about nervous system regulation, neuroplasticity, and trauma-informed care.We focus on the idea that recovery is not about eliminating fear, but about how we meet it. We introduce some of Weekes’ terms in modern language, including “nervous illness” as a broad description for anxiety, panic, health anxiety, and chronic stress-related symptoms.We also address a common misunderstanding of Weekes’ advice. Rather than treating “face, accept, float, and let time pass” as a checklist or technique, we frame them as a different relationship to experience. The emphasis is on stopping the fight with anxiety and learning not to treat every symptom as an emergency.We connect this to modern neuroscience by explaining that repeated alarm teaches the nervous system to keep noticing the same sensations and thoughts. We then outline topics we will explore in future episodes, including first fear and second fear, acceptance, floating, letting time pass, and why reassurance and self-monitoring can keep anxiety going.The episode closes with a reflection on asking, “How do I want to relate to this moment?” instead of “What technique should I use?” We return to the idea that recovery unfolds gradually as we become less afraid of our own experience.#AnxietyRecovery #ClaireWeeks #NervousSystemRegulation #AnxietyCoachesPodcast #HopeAndHelpForYourNerves #FloatAndLetTimePass #MentalHealthMatters #Mindfulness #PanicDisorder #GeneralizedAnxiety #OvercomingAnxiety #NervousSystemHealing #Neuroplasticity #PanicAttackRelief #ChronicAnxiety #InnerPeace #StressManagement #TraumaInformedCare #HealingJourney #MentalHealthPodcast #CalmYourMind #MindBodyConnection #AnxietySupport #EmotionalWellbeing #GinaRyanSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcribe →1262: Classic ACP Listener Q And A: How To Relax In A Social Situation
2w ago00:19:51Tap to summarizeToday's episode we have a listener question from the Send Voicemail Tab on our website. Kellie asks about how to deal with building anxiety when in a social setting.Stillpoint Fridays is my once-a-week Friday note — a slower, more personal reflection that’s different from what I share on the podcast.If you’d like a quiet place to land as the week winds down, you can join here: http://eepurl.com/bR2F9P or on our website anxietycoachespodcast.com and sign up for the newsletter.Please visit our Sponsor Page to find all the links and codes for our awesome sponsors! https://www.theanxietycoachespodcast.com/sponsors/Website https://www.theanxietycoachespodcast.comJoin our community Group Coaching Join our Group Coaching Full or Mini Membership Program1:1 Coaching Learn more about our One-on-One CoachingIf you prefer to listen AD-FREE, try our Supercast premium access membership:Learn more about anxiety What is anxiety?Free Guided Meditation for Calming Your Anxious Mind 10-Minute Body-Scan Meditation for AnxietyQuote:We don't receive wisdom; we must discover it for ourselves after a journey that no one can take for us or spare us. -Marcel ProustChapters0:27 SpeakPipe Question3:31 Social Anxiety Tools7:22 Relax the Body12:46 Stop Adding Fuel16:20 Shake It Out19:06 Proust’s WisdomSummaryIn this episode, we speak about a listener question from Kelly, who describes living with long-term anxiety that has affected work, driving, being alone, and social situations. We focus on what to do when anxiety rises in the middle of everyday settings where it is not practical to step away and process it privately.We explain that the main practice is to prepare in quieter moments, especially during meditation or other practice time, so acceptance and “floating” become more familiar. When anxiety shows up in the moment, we suggest noticing the body’s signals and using physical relaxation as a cue of safety.We describe simple techniques such as tensing and releasing muscles, relaxing the shoulders, jaw, hands, feet, and legs, and using small movements or shaking out tension when appropriate. The point is to send the brain a message that there is no immediate danger, rather than trying to force away thoughts.We also address the tendency to add a second layer of distress by worrying about how we look, whether others notice, or whether we can get through the situation. We encourage noticing that extra self-criticism and not feeding it, since that can intensify the anxiety.Finally, we emphasize that repeated practice makes these responses easier to access in daily life. The episode closes with a quote about discovering wisdom through our own journey.#Anxiety #AnxietyRelief #SocialAnxiety #AnxietyCoachesPodcast #GinaRyan #StressManagement #MentalHealth #Meditation #Mindfulness #CopingStrategies #RelaxationTechniques #ProgressiveMuscleRelaxation #PettingTheLizard #Amygdala #FightOrFlight #SelfCare #EmotionalWellness #SecondArrow #AnxiousThoughts #CopingWithAnxiety #SocialAnxietyTips #PhysicalRelaxation #Calm #Peace #NervousSystemRegulation #SomaticTracking #PublicAnxiety #GroundingTechniques #MentalHealthAwareness #AnxietySupport #CopingMechanisms #SelfCompassionSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcribe →1261: Gentle Affirmations For Anxiety: Urgency And Feeling Behind In Life
2w ago00:17:11Tap to summarizeIn today's episode, Gina shares a number of affirmations designed especially for when we are feeling anxiety around time pressure, urgency and the feeling of being behind in our lives. Repeating these affirmations to ourselves throughout the day can take advantage of a shaping and adaptation process our body and mind undergo based on what we give our attention. Use these affirmations throughout the day and begin to adapt your mind and body to a better, more peaceful life today!Stillpoint Fridays is my once-a-week Friday note — a slower, more personal reflection that’s different from what I share on the podcast.If you’d like a quiet place to land as the week winds down, you can join here: http://eepurl.com/bR2F9P or on our website anxietycoachespodcast.com and sign up for the newsletter.Please visit our Sponsor Page to find all the links and codes for our awesome sponsors! https://www.theanxietycoachespodcast.com/sponsors/Website https://www.theanxietycoachespodcast.comJoin our community Group Coaching Join our Group Coaching Full or Mini Membership Program1:1 Coaching Learn more about our One-on-One CoachingIf you prefer to listen AD-FREE, try our Supercast premium access membership:Learn more about anxiety What is anxiety?Free Guided Meditation for Calming Your Anxious Mind 10-Minute Body-Scan Meditation for AnxietyQuote:The trouble is, you think you have time.-Jack Kornfield Chapters0:27 Affirmations and Anxiety4:48 Bridge Thoughts for Calm8:05 Gentle Phrases to Try10:58 Summer Slows the Pace14:09 Repeat to ReassureSummaryIn this episode we talk about affirmations and how we can use them in a more grounded way, especially when we feel time pressure, urgency, and a constant sense of being behind. We explain that our mind is already repeating messages all day, and that many of those messages increase tension in the body.We discuss why affirmations are not meant to deny reality or force overly positive statements. Instead, we use them to gently shift attention toward thoughts that the nervous system can actually स्वीकार or tolerate, because repeated attention can shape perception and the body’s response.We focus on starting with believable phrases that feel possible rather than overwhelming. Examples include taking things one moment at a time, being with a feeling and still breathing, or learning to slow down. We describe these as bridge thoughts that soften internal pressure instead of creating more resistance.We also talk about practicing this in daily life without treating it like another task. The aim is to notice urgency when it shows up, introduce steadier thoughts, and create a little more space between reactions. We close with a set of gentle affirmations and encourage noticing how they feel in the body.#anxiety, #mindfulness, #affirmations, #podcast, #mentalhealth, #calm, #selfcare, #personalgrowth, #stressrelief, #relaxation, #healing, #meditation, #peace, #wellness, #mentalwellness, #innerpeace, #anxietyrelief, #selflove, #gentleliving, #slowdown, #mindfulliving, #nervoussystem, #timepressure, #urgency, #breath, #practices, #support, #coaching, #aloha, #jackkornfield, #anxietycoachespodcast, #ginaryan, #bridgethoughts, #safetypatterns, #nervoussystemregulation, #stoprushing, #presentmoment, #summercalm, #mentalspace, #overcomingurgency #ACPSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcribe →1260: You Are Not Behind: Healing Time Anxiety From Within
3w ago00:19:21Tap to summarizeIn today's episode, Gina discusses the role of time in our anxiety healing journey, and specifically, our thoughts and perceptions of time. Urgency and the role of technology, constant notifications and information overload in exacerbating our anxiety are important factors discussed in this show. Listen in for tools and strategies you can use to reduce the effects of these factors that seem to rob us of our time and space. Start feeling better today!Stillpoint Fridays is my once-a-week Friday note — a slower, more personal reflection that’s different from what I share on the podcast.If you’d like a quiet place to land as the week winds down, you can join here: http://eepurl.com/bR2F9P or on our website anxietycoachespodcast.com and sign up for the newsletter.Please visit our Sponsor Page to find all the links and codes for our awesome sponsors! https://www.theanxietycoachespodcast.com/sponsors/Website https://www.theanxietycoachespodcast.comJoin our community Group Coaching Join our Group Coaching Full or Mini Membership Program1:1 Coaching Learn more about our One-on-One CoachingIf you prefer to listen AD-FREE, try our Supercast premium access membership:Learn more about anxiety What is anxiety?Free Guided Meditation for Calming Your Anxious Mind 10-Minute Body-Scan Meditation for AnxietyQuote:Life is available only in the present moment.-Thích Nhat Hạnh Chapters0:27 Time and Urgency3:29 Anxiety Warps Time8:59 Chronic Urgency Harms Body11:32 Rhythm Over Rush14:06 Four Doors Away From Now15:38 A Practice for Presence17:23 You Haven't Missed LifeSummaryIn this episode we talk about urgency and how it sits beneath much of our anxiety. We reflect on how time pressure has changed over the years, with constant notifications, information overload, and the expectation of being always available making many of us feel perpetually behind.We explore how anxiety changes our relationship to time. We describe how the mind turns ordinary time into a threat, making us feel that we are running out of time, late in life, or behind in healing. We also note how language such as “I don’t have time” or “I’m killing time” reflects a strained view of time.We consider the impact of chronic urgency on the body. We say that long-term time stress can affect sleep, digestion, concentration, irritability, inflammation, and overall nervous system activation. We also point out that people often mistake hurry for productivity and live in constant preparation rather than participation.We offer a different approach based on rhythm and presence. We distinguish healthy planning from rehearsing disaster or replaying regret, and we identify four ways we leave the present: regret, guilt, fear, and urgency. We close with a simple practice of pausing, taking one slow breath, and focusing on what needs attention right now, with the reminder that healing begins when we stop racing toward a future version of ourselves.#TimeUrgency, #AnxietyCoachesPodcast, #GinaRyan, #NervousSystem, #SlowingDown, #PresentMoment, #AnxietyRelief, #MentalHealth, #Overwhelm, #AlwaysAvailable, #DigitalDetox, #SocialMediaStress, #ComparisonCulture, #HealingJourney, #TimePressure, #Mindfulness, #InnerPeace, #StressManagement, #ChronicStress, #ProductivityTrap, #NatureRhythms, #ThichNhatHanh, #Presence, #MentalWellbeing, #SelfCompassion, #NervousSystemRegulation, #PresentMomentAwareness, #MentalHealthEducation, #DigitalOverwhelm, #ACPSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcribe →1259: Feeling Stuck In Anxiety: Why It Doesnt Mean Youre Not Healing
3w ago00:22:36Tap to summarizeIn today's episode, Gina discusses how feeling stuck in our anxiety recovery journey is inevitable and that it does not mean we are not successfully on the path towards clearing our anxiety. The nervous system learns and changes through repetition and it can be particularly helpful to experience safety repeatedly. Listen in to learn how to teach your nervous system it is safe and start dialing down your anxiety today!Stillpoint Fridays is my once-a-week Friday note — a slower, more personal reflection that’s different from what I share on the podcast.If you’d like a quiet place to land as the week winds down, you can join here: http://eepurl.com/bR2F9P or on our website anxietycoachespodcast.com and sign up for the newsletter.Please visit our Sponsor Page to find all the links and codes for our awesome sponsors! https://www.theanxietycoachespodcast.com/sponsors/Website https://www.theanxietycoachespodcast.comJoin our community Group Coaching Join our Group Coaching Full or Mini Membership Program1:1 Coaching Learn more about our One-on-One CoachingIf you prefer to listen AD-FREE, try our Supercast premium access membership:Learn more about anxiety What is anxiety?Free Guided Meditation for Calming Your Anxious Mind 10-Minute Body-Scan Meditation for AnxietyQuote:The curious paradox is that when I accept myself just as I am, then I can change.-Carl RogersChapters0:27 Feeling Stuck Isn’t Failure2:48 Healing Rarely Moves Straight6:10 Ask What Your Nervous System Needs9:32 Gentle Ways to Shake Loose14:38 Borrowing Hope and Measuring Growth18:05 Remember Your Future Self19:27 Write Your Own PrescriptionSummaryIn this episode we talk about feeling stuck in anxiety and why that does not mean we are not healing. We discuss how recovery from anxiety and nervous system stress often happens in uneven, non-linear ways, and how difficult days can make progress feel invisible even when change is still happening.We look at how the nervous system learns through repetition and can also unlearn patterns through repeated experiences of safety. We explore the idea that resistance often reflects protection rather than laziness, and we consider questions such as whether there is actual danger or only familiar discomfort.We also share practical ways to support the nervous system gently, including slow walking, stretching, humming, rocking, placing a hand over the heart, feeling the feet on the floor, and using longer exhalations. We discuss small changes like taking a different route, sitting somewhere new, or listening to unfamiliar music as ways to teach the brain that uncertainty is not automatically dangerous.Finally, we focus on hope, perspective, and self-trust. We suggest borrowing hope from others, reviewing past journal entries, and measuring healing over seasons rather than day by day. We encourage curiosity instead of criticism, noticing signs of progress, and remembering that anxiety is familiar but not identity.#AnxietyRecovery #AnxietyRelief #AnxietyCoachesPodcast #GinaRyan #FeelingStuck #HealingJourney #NervousSystem #NervousSystemRegulation #MentalHealth #Mindfulness #SelfCompassion #GroundingTechniques #StressManagement #Neuroplasticity #EmotionalHealing #PersonalGrowth #SelfCare #Breathwork #LongExhalations #BodyAwareness #WiseMind #AnxiousMind #JournalingForAnxiety #GentleNovelty #BorrowingHope #ProgressInHindsight #MentalWellness #OvercomingAnxiety #SomaticHealing #CopingMechanisms #CalmAndPeace #InternalSafety #CarlRogers #AcceptanceAndChange #NervousSystemSafety #Resilience #MentalHealthAwareness #EmotionalRegulation #PatienceInHealing #SomaticTracking #InnerPeace #AnxietyManagement #MentalHealthSupport #SelfAcceptanceSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcribe →1258: Classic ACP What Is Depression?
4w ago00:13:12Tap to summarizeIn today's episode, Gina discusses depression, both as a condition in its own right and in the context of anxiety. Anxiety can both accompany depression and also lead to depression. Some suggestions for how to handle depression are offered.Stillpoint Fridays is my once-a-week Friday note — a slower, more personal reflection that’s different from what I share on the podcast.If you’d like a quiet place to land as the week winds down, you can join here: http://eepurl.com/bR2F9P or on our website anxietycoachespodcast.com and sign up for the newsletter.Please visit our Sponsor Page to find all the links and codes for our awesome sponsors! https://www.theanxietycoachespodcast.com/sponsors/Website https://www.theanxietycoachespodcast.comJoin our community Group Coaching Join our Group Coaching Full or Mini Membership Program1:1 Coaching Learn more about our One-on-One CoachingIf you prefer to listen AD-FREE, try our Supercast premium access membership:Learn more about anxiety What is anxiety?Free Guided Meditation for Calming Your Anxious Mind 10-Minute Body-Scan Meditation for AnxietyQuote:In the middle of winter I at last discovered that there was in me an invincible summer.-Albert CamusChapters0:27 What Depression Feels Like2:53 Physical Signs Emerge6:02 Recognizing Depression Symptoms8:52 Hope and Help AheadSummaryIn this episode we talk about what depression is and how it differs from anxiety and ordinary sadness. We describe depression as a deeply personal experience that can feel overwhelming, with despair affecting thoughts, feelings, and daily functioning.We explain that depression can reduce energy, focus, motivation, and interest in people or activities. We also note that it can become so constant that other emotions feel unfamiliar, and that it can affect both emotional and physical health.We cover common physical signs, including changes in appetite, weight loss or overeating, insomnia, poor nutrition, aches and pains, and hygiene difficulties. We also discuss that long-term anxiety can lead to exhaustion and overlapping depression symptoms.We list symptoms such as severe sadness, hopelessness, irritability, trouble concentrating, worthlessness, guilt, fatigue, and loss of interest. We also stress that depression is serious, treatable, and something we should not face alone.We talk about how depression can worsen over time, like a snowball, and mention possible triggers such as life events, seasonal change, loss, and illness. We close by encouraging support from therapists, healthcare providers, clergy, family, and friends, and by emphasizing that help and hope are available.#depression #anxiety #mentalhealth #mentalhealthawareness #anxietycoachespodcast #wellness #selfcare #hope #healing #therapy #youarenotalone #endthestigma #mindset #health #psychology #insomnia #chronicpain #motivation #aloha #albertcamus #innerstrength #recovery #mentalhealthmatters #depressionawareness #anxietyrelief #overcomingdepression #mentalhealthsupport #breakthesilence #copingmechanisms #grief #sadness #hopelessness #emotionalexhaustion #wellnessjourney #selflove #holistichealth #mindbody #reachout #itsaytodnotbeay #supportsystems #ACP #GinaRyan #AnxietyCoachesPodcastSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcribe →1257: From Listening To Living The Tools: Diane's Anxiety Recovery Journey Part 2
Jun 2400:16:49Tap to summarizeIn today's episode, Gina shares the last part of her interview with listener Diane, who finishes her wisdom and experience from her own anxiety clearing journey and how ACP has helped her along the way. A key part of her message describes the differences between signals from the body and signals from the mind (and the external world). Being able to discern between the two have been very helpful for her. Diane shares a number of other practices that have help her in her anxiety clearing journey, listen in and try them out for yourself!Stillpoint Fridays is my once-a-week Friday note — a slower, more personal reflection that’s different from what I share on the podcast.If you’d like a quiet place to land as the week winds down, you can join here: http://eepurl.com/bR2F9P or on our website anxietycoachespodcast.com and sign up for the newsletter.Please visit our Sponsor Page to find all the links and codes for our awesome sponsors! https://www.theanxietycoachespodcast.com/sponsors/Website https://www.theanxietycoachespodcast.comJoin our community Group Coaching Join our Group Coaching Full or Mini Membership Program1:1 Coaching Learn more about our One-on-One CoachingIf you prefer to listen AD-FREE, try our Supercast premium access membership:Learn more about anxiety What is anxiety?Free Guided Meditation for Calming Your Anxious Mind 10-Minute Body-Scan Meditation for AnxietyQuote:It does not matter how slowly you go as long as you do not stop.-Confucius Chapters0:27 Recovery Starts with the Body3:10 Gentle Advice for Hard Days6:04 Diane’s Practical Strategies10:16 Driving Fear and Milestones11:53 Helpful Resources and Prayers13:44 Healing Takes Daily PracticeSummaryIn this episode, we continue the interview with Diane about her anxiety recovery journey. She describes how she would tell her earlier self to start with the body first, including seeing a doctor, reducing news exposure, and using medication to get enough physical rest to begin healing.We then hear the practical steps she used over time: resting in a dark room, getting outside every day, slowing down physically, and returning to short meditation sessions. She explains that repeated listening to calming podcast episodes helped her, and that daily meditation became an important part of managing stress.Diane also talks about responding to difficult days by taking a big break, rescheduling tasks, and treating anxiety like a physical illness that needs care. She says calmer feels like relaxed muscles and a quieter mind, and she emphasizes that anxiety can create tension in the body and trigger a cycle that must be interrupted through ongoing practice.She shares a longer list of strategies that supported her recovery, including managing blood sugar, keeping medical and dental appointments, ending contact with people and groups that were not helpful, counting to 90 when alarmed, and building predictable routines. She also reduced media exposure, quit drinking alcohol, established morning silence with tea, gradually changed her bedtime, walked daily, and slowly re-entered social situations and driving after an accident.Diane closes by naming resources that helped her, including Claire Weekes, the 12 Symptoms of Inner Peace, the Center for Nonviolent Communication emotions list, Thich Nhat Hanh, The Power of Now, and the Serenity Prayer. The episode ends with a reminder that healing usually happens through small daily practices, not sudden change.#AnxietyRecovery #MentalHealth #AnxietyRelief #Mindfulness #Meditation #SelfCare #NervousSystemRegulation #PanicAttack #HealingJourney #InnerPeace #StressManagement #SlowDown #MentalWellness #Boundaries #HealthyRoutines #EmotionalHealth #AnxietyCoachesPodcast #OvercomingAnxiety #SoberCurious #PersonalGrowth #BreathingExercises #HolisticHealing #WellnessJourney #ACP #GinaRyanSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcribe →1256: From Listening To Living The Tools: Diane's Anxiety Recovery Journey
Jun 2100:17:44Tap to summarizeIn today's episode, Gina shares part one of an interview she conducted with a long time group member and listener of The Anxiety Coaches Podcast. Diane shares her own wisdom and experience in overcoming the worst of her anxiety and how the show helped her do it. Listen in for some simple steps to help you maximize your benefit from listening to the show in your own anxiety clearing journey.Stillpoint Fridays is my once-a-week Friday note — a slower, more personal reflection that’s different from what I share on the podcast.If you’d like a quiet place to land as the week winds down, you can join here: http://eepurl.com/bR2F9P or on our website anxietycoachespodcast.com and sign up for the newsletter.Please visit our Sponsor Page to find all the links and codes for our awesome sponsors! https://www.theanxietycoachespodcast.com/sponsors/Website https://www.theanxietycoachespodcast.comJoin our community Group Coaching Join our Group Coaching Full or Mini Membership Program1:1 Coaching Learn more about our One-on-One CoachingIf you prefer to listen AD-FREE, try our Supercast premium access membership:Learn more about anxiety What is anxiety?Free Guided Meditation for Calming Your Anxious Mind 10-Minute Body-Scan Meditation for AnxietyChapters0:27 Journey to Calm5:22 Overload and Recovery6:55 Safe Haven Found11:13 Relearning the Tools14:01 Daily Practices Grow15:47 Advice for the OverwhelmedSummaryIn this episode, we share a listener interview about anxiety recovery and how it unfolded over time. We focus on a long-term listener named Diane, whose experience shows that healing can happen gradually through repeated listening, small practices, and persistence rather than through a quick fix.Diane describes a period in early 2020 when several major stressors happened at once, including COVID pneumonia, hospital care, airway problems, a new asthma diagnosis, a car accident, lockdown stress, pre-diabetes, and heavy exposure to news and other stressors. She says she eventually found the podcast while looking for help with anxiety and what she called a nervous breakdown.We discuss why she kept returning to the show and what made it feel supportive. Diane says the calm, reassuring tone helped her trust the guidance, and that she began with a few suggestions that worked before adding more. She describes the podcast as a safe haven and says she often listened to episodes more than once before fully understanding them.We also talk about the specific strategies she used. Diane says stopping TV news helped immediately, and that over time she learned to notice tension in her body and calm herself. She uses routines like walking, meditation, regular sleep times, reading, piano, crosswords, and short daily journaling. She also revisits episodes for affirmations, panic support, and ideas like Claire Weekes’ facing, accepting, floating, and letting time pass.Diane says her understanding of anxiety changed as she saw recovery was possible. She explains that she now sees anxiety as her mind preparing her body for an emergency, even when there is no real emergency. She says the work takes patience and consistency, and that she has become more calm, honest, compassionate, and less fearful.#AnxietyRecovery #MentalHealth #AnxietyCoachesPodcast #GinaRyan #PanicAttacks #NervousSystem #Mindfulness #HealingJourney #SelfCompassion #StressManagement #Breathwork #Affirmations #Resilience #MentalWellness #EmotionalHealing #ClaireWeekes #HolisticHealing #OvercomingAnxiety #DailyRoutine #Meditation #InnerPeace #SelfCare #PersonalGrowth #MentalHealthAwareness #CopingStrategies #StressRelief #EmotionalWellBeing #WellnessJourney #Calming #MindBodyConnection #ACPSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcribe →1255: When Breathwork Backfires: Why Trying To Calm Anxiety Can Make It Worse
Jun 1700:18:19Tap to summarizeIn today's episode, Gina discusses the important tool of breathwork for calming anxiety. Specifically, breathwork is addressed in the frame of when it goes wrong: sometimes, trying to use breathwork with the wrong idea in mind can make anxiety worse. Listen in for a better understanding of how using breathwork in the wrong ways or at the wrong times can make anxiety worse, and how to use breathwork in a gentler way to help get the most benefit out of it.Stillpoint Fridays is my once-a-week Friday note — a slower, more personal reflection that’s different from what I share on the podcast. If you’d like a quiet place to land as the week winds down, you can join here: http://eepurl.com/bR2F9P or on our website anxietycoachespodcast.com and sign up for the newsletter. Please visit our Sponsor Page to find all the links and codes for our awesome sponsors! https://www.theanxietycoachespodcast.com/sponsors/ Website https://www.theanxietycoachespodcast.comJoin our community Group Coaching Join our Group Coaching Full or Mini Membership Program1:1 Coaching Learn more about our One-on-One CoachingIf you prefer to listen AD-FREE, try our Supercast premium access membership: Learn more about anxiety What is anxiety? Free Guided Meditation for Calming Your Anxious Mind 10-Minute Body-Scan Meditation for AnxietyQuote:The soft overcomes the hard; the gentle overcomes the rigid.-Tao Te Ching Chapters0:27 Breathwork Backfires4:21 Why Breath Control Fails8:34 The Shame Loop9:35 Less Control, More Ease13:55 Clinical Wisdom on Anxiety14:58 Real-Life Breathing Shift16:53 Softening the ExhaleLong SummaryIn this episode we talk about when breathwork can backfire for anxious people and why controlled breathing sometimes increases stress instead of easing it. We explain that while breath awareness and structured techniques can be helpful for some, they can also become uncomfortable when they turn into a task that must be done correctly.We describe how practices such as box breathing, 4-7-8 breathing, guided breathing apps, and other counted methods can lead to monitoring, checking, and pressure to perform relaxation. For people with high anxiety and heightened bodily awareness, focusing closely on the breath can amplify sensations like air hunger, chest tightness, dizziness, and muscle tension.We also discuss the shame that can follow when a technique does not work as expected. Instead of feeling calmer, people may start thinking that something is wrong with them, which adds anxiety about anxiety and can make them give up on helpful practices altogether.As an alternative, we suggest less control and less effort. We focus on a gentle, slightly longer exhale without counting, tracking, or trying to force calm. The emphasis is on reducing struggle, allowing the breath to soften naturally, and avoiding the expectation that the practice should immediately erase anxiety.We close by noting that the goal is not perfect calm, but less self-judgment and less internal pressure. We encourage a simple experiment of noticing the next exhale and letting it be a little softer, with the reminder that sometimes the most regulating thing is to stop trying so hard to regulate.#Anxiety #Breathwork #Mindfulness #PanicAttack #BoxBreathing #NervousSystem #MentalHealth #SomaticHealing #ACTTherapy #StressRelief #SelfCare #OvercomingAnxiety #Interoception #AnxietyCoachesPodcast #GinaRyan #Calm #EmotionalHealth #SelfAcceptance #HealingJourney #HolisticHealth #AirHunger #NervousSystemRegulation #ClaireWeeks #SomaticTracking #HypervigilanceRecovery #AnxietyTips #BreathworkBackfires #Parasympathetic #StopTryingToFixYourself #PermissionToSoften #LessControlMorePeace #AnxietySupport #MentalHealthAwareness #GentleHealing #DropTheStruggle #EmotionalRegulation #ItsOkayToJustBe #MindfulBreathing #SensoryOverload #HealingIsNotLinear #ACPSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcribe →1254: When The Blood Pressure Cuff Becomes The Stress: White Coat Syndrome And Blood Pressure Anxiety
Jun 1400:21:14Tap to summarizeIn today's episode, Gina discusses health anxiety, especially in the context of the dreaded blood pressure reading at the doctor's office. It is important to remember that the blood pressure reading is simply information and the machine and entire process are not in themselves harmful, though they can be uncomfortable. Listen in for practical tips on how to disrupt the anxiety cycle that can form around blood pressure and other medical testing and start to feel more calm!Stillpoint Fridays is my once-a-week Friday note — a slower, more personal reflection that’s different from what I share on the podcast.If you’d like a quiet place to land as the week winds down, you can join here: http://eepurl.com/bR2F9P or on our website anxietycoachespodcast.com and sign up for the newsletter.Please visit our Sponsor Page to find all the links and codes for our awesome sponsors! https://www.theanxietycoachespodcast.com/sponsors/Website https://www.theanxietycoachespodcast.comJoin our community Group Coaching Join our Group Coaching Full or Mini Membership Program1:1 Coaching Learn more about our One-on-One CoachingIf you prefer to listen AD-FREE, try our Supercast premium access membership:Learn more about anxiety What is anxiety?Free Guided Meditation for Calming Your Anxious Mind 10-Minute Body-Scan Meditation for AnxietyQuote:Nothing in life is to be feared, it is only to be understood.-Marie CurieChapters0:27 White Coat Anxiety3:58 What It Really Means7:12 Breaking the Checking Loop9:01 Numbers Aren’t Judgments11:49 Calm Before the Reading14:50 Stop Chasing Perfect Numbers16:46 Anxiety Before Appointments18:54 Kindness Over FearSummaryIn this episode we talk about white coat syndrome and the anxiety many people feel around medical appointments, blood pressure checks, and now also home monitoring. We explain that the nervous system can react with dread, stress, or panic before a reading even begins, and that this response is common and not a sign of weakness.We look at how medical settings, the cuff, the numbers, and the waiting itself can become linked with danger through repeated fear and anticipation. We also discuss how home monitoring can sometimes extend the stress beyond the doctor’s office, turning what is meant to be useful information into an ongoing cycle of checking and distress.We then focus on the anxiety loop that can form around blood pressure readings. Repeated checking may feel reassuring for a moment, but it often strengthens fear over time. We note that some people also have true hypertension, and that the goal is not to ignore medical care, but to reduce the tendency to treat every reading as an emergency or a judgment.We offer practical ways to interrupt the cycle, including treating readings as information rather than a life-or-death event, preparing the nervous system before appointments with breathing, movement, prayer, or other calming practices, and avoiding repeated checks beyond what a physician recommends. We also encourage people to notice the meaning they attach to sensations, allow uncertainty, and return attention to the present moment instead of imagining worst-case outcomes.We close by reminding listeners that the body is not the enemy and that calm can be practiced gradually. The episode ends with a message of self-kindness and a quote about understanding rather than fearing life.#Anxiety #WhiteCoatSyndrome #BloodPressureAnxiety #HealthAnxiety #MedicalAnxiety #NervousSystem #StressCycle #PanicAttacks #ReassuranceSeeking #SelfAdvocacy #Mindfulness #BreathingExercises #Relaxation #CopingStrategies #ChronicAnxiety #AnticipationAnxiety #MedicalTrauma #HighBloodPressure #Hypertension #MentalHealth #EmotionalWellness #SelfCare #Compassion #GinaRyan #AnxietyCoachesPodcast #DoctorAppointments #MedicalPhobia #HealthMonitoring #FightOrFlight #HeartPalpitations #AdrenalineRush #SomaticSymptoms #CompulsiveChecking #UncertaintyTolerance #SelfSoothing #NervousSystemRegulation #MedicalGaslighting #PatientAdvocacy #SensoryProcessing #TraumaRespons #ACPSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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