Disordered: Anxiety Help

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Is distraction the same thing as running from your feelings? This week we answer a listener question about where that line actually is, and why the answer isn't as simple as always sit with it.

We talk about why attention plays such a big role in anxiety disorders, why getting caught up in your life is not automatically avoidance, and why the real question isn't am I distracting myself but what am I actually running from. We also get into why every emotion, not just anxiety, deserves room, and why treating fear as the only feeling that matters can quietly shut down curiosity about everything else you feel.

Plus Did It Anyway wins, including a tattoo appointment survived and a listener who fell asleep during a 90 minute MRI.

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Want to talk about this episode, interact with us, and communicate with others that are sharing your experience? We're hanging out in the Disordered Community Space

https://disordered.fm/community

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The Disordered Guide to Health Anxiety is available now:

⁠https://www.disordered.fm/the-disordered-guide-to-health-anxiety/⁠

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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. 

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Got questions or did it anyways to share? ⁠Send us an email or voicemail on our website⁠.

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 or guests of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, 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.

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Anxiety recovery attracts an entire industry, and not all of it is safe. This week we talk about popular but dangerous anxiety cures, the methods and trends that get recommended constantly but that our community says actually made things worse.

We cover the trauma narrative that convinces people their panic and OCD are rooted in trauma stored in the body, nervous system regulation and vagus nerve claims built on debunked science, tapping and EFT marketed as evidence based when it isn't, coaching programs that blame you when their method fails, and wellness grifts like parasite cleanses and heavy metal detoxes. We also talk about why well meaning therapists and coaches can cause real harm even when they believe they're helping.

Plus Did It Anyway wins from Sydney and Saudi Arabia.

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Want to talk about this episode, interact with us, and communicate with others that are sharing your experience? We're hanging out in the Disordered Community Space

https://disordered.fm/community

----

The Disordered Guide to Health Anxiety is available now:

⁠https://www.disordered.fm/the-disordered-guide-to-health-anxiety/⁠

---

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. 

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Got questions or did it anyways to share? ⁠Send us an email or voicemail on our website⁠.

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 or guests of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, 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.

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This is our anxiety latest questions and answers episode, where we go straight to the community and tackle real listener questions about panic disorder, OCD, GAD, and health anxiety.

We get into what to do when anxiety symptoms show up all day without fitting a specific diagnosis, why worrying about something you live with, like an aging house, does not count as exposure on its own, and how to tell the difference between doing real exposure work and quietly avoiding it. We also cover what to do when your own therapist contradicts what you hear on this podcast, and why food avoidance driven by fear, including emetophobia, usually needs a different approach than logic and willpower.

Plus several Did It Anyway wins from the community, including a three hour movie and a three night trip taken despite dread and derealization.

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Want to talk about this episode, interact with us, and communicate with others that are sharing your experience? We're hanging out in the Disordered Community Space

https://disordered.fm/community

----

The Disordered Guide to Health Anxiety is available now:

⁠https://www.disordered.fm/the-disordered-guide-to-health-anxiety/⁠

---

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. 

-----

Got questions or did it anyways to share? ⁠Send us an email or voicemail on our website⁠.

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 or guests of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, 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.

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Anxiety always seems to have a strategy for you, doesn't it?

• Check it, prepare for it, watch it closely so nothing bad happens
• Stay on top of things so you can be the fixer, the predictor, the protector, the engineer of experiences
• Do not take your eyes off the worry because worry is proof of how good you are and how loving you are.

This week we're picking that strategy apart and showing why it almost never holds up.

We're talking about:

• The nocebo effect and why anticipating symptoms can create them
• Why anxiety takes credit for bad things not happening even when the worry and avoidance did nothing
• Why so many strategies anxiety hands you, from monitoring intrusive thoughts to rehearsing what you'll say to a stranger, are solving a problem that was never actually there to begin with

We also get into why restarting exercise after a period of anxiety can bring on new physical stress, and what that means.

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Want to talk about this episode, interact with us, and communicate with others that are sharing your experience? We're hanging out in the Disordered Community Space

https://disordered.fm/community

----

The Disordered Guide to Health Anxiety is available now:

⁠https://www.disordered.fm/the-disordered-guide-to-health-anxiety/⁠

---

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. 

-----

Got questions or did it anyways to share? ⁠Send us an email or voicemail on our website⁠.

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 or guests of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, 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.

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Everyone tells you to release tension. But if you live with panic disorder, OCD, or health anxiety, that advice can backfire fast. This week we're digging into why chasing relaxation as a goal often makes tension worse, and what actually helps instead.

We're talking about why physical tension is a normal response to stress and fear, not a problem to fix. Why techniques like jaw stretches, massage, and meditation can turn into more monitoring and checking. And why sometimes the fastest way through tension is to stop trying to manage how you feel and put your attention somewhere else entirely.

Plus listener Did It Anyway stories from Florida, Estonia, and Germany, because sometimes the only way through is to just do the thing anyway.

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Want to talk about this episode, interact with us, and communicate with others that are sharing your experience? We're hanging out in the Disordered Community Space

https://disordered.fm/community

----

The Disordered Guide to Health Anxiety is available now:

⁠https://www.disordered.fm/the-disordered-guide-to-health-anxiety/⁠

---

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. 

-----

Got questions or did it anyways to share? ⁠Send us an email or voicemail on our website⁠.

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 or guests of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, 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.

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Anxiety has a favorite move. It doesn't argue that acceptance and exposure don't work. It just convinces you they don't apply to you specifically. This thought, this sensation, this situation, is the one exception to every rule you already understand.

This week we break down what fuels that exception: possibility, intensity, and importance, plus the urgency that makes an unlikely outcome feel like it's already happening. A 1 in 5,000 chance means nothing until anxiety puts your name on it. The same pattern shows up everywhere: the one OCD ritual someone insists they can't skip, the health scare that supposedly voids all the usual rules, the flight or the dentist visit where the real fear isn't the obvious one but some elaborate scenario your brain built from nothing.

We also get into the meta version of this: 

• I've had it longer than anyone
• I have more going on than anyone else
• no one is as scared as I am.

It's the same doubt wearing a different story, and it isn't true. You don't want to be special here. 

Plus listener wins from the community: a woman who pushed through agoraphobia and fresh grief to make it to her grandmother's funeral, and another who felt a wave of panic build in a crowded arcade and chose to stay instead of running.

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Want to talk about this episode, interact with us, and communicate with others that are sharing your experience? We're hanging out in the Disordered Community Space

https://disordered.fm/community

----

The Disordered Guide to Health Anxiety is available now:

⁠https://www.disordered.fm/the-disordered-guide-to-health-anxiety/⁠

---

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. 

-----

Got questions or did it anyways to share? ⁠Send us an email or voicemail on our website⁠.

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 or guests of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, 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.

Send a question or comment via text message

It's your heart. Or the dizziness. Or the one thought you can't get to leave you alone. If you could just solve that specific thing, you'd finally be okay. This week we push back on that.

The subject of your fear, the heartbeat, the health scare, the intrusive thought, the situation you're avoiding, is the content. What's actually running underneath it, the same threat response, the same doubt, the same physical symptoms no matter what story your brain attaches them to this week, is the process. Chase the content and it just moves. Solve one fear and another takes its place, because you were never fighting the fear itself. We also get into the exception clause, the "yeah, but what about" that convinces you your specific situation is somehow different from every other anxious thought you've ever had, and why treating it that way only teaches your brain the opposite of what you're trying to teach it.

None of this means the content doesn't matter. Your health matters. Your relationships matter. That's exactly why it's so easy to get pulled into trying to fix it directly instead of doing the harder, less obvious work underneath. Plus, listener updates from the community: 

* a mom who kept walking with her kids through a wave of panic in the heat

* someone who worked a full shift through dizziness instead of stopping to check it

* a listener who took a long-planned trip anyway, only to get a Meniere's diagnosis right after, and found she could hold both the diagnosis and the proof that she'd handled the trip.

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Want to talk about this episode, interact with us, and communicate with others that are sharing your experience? We're hanging out in the Disordered Community Space

https://disordered.fm/community

----

The Disordered Guide to Health Anxiety is available now:

⁠https://www.disordered.fm/the-disordered-guide-to-health-anxiety/⁠

---

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. 

-----

Got questions or did it anyways to share? ⁠Send us an email or voicemail on our website⁠.

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 or guests of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, 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.

Send a question or comment via text message

You want to do the acceptance thing. You've read the books, you've listened to the podcasts, you intellectually get it. And then you get triggered, and suddenly the version of you that's anxious, scared, or doubting gets the door slammed in its face. That version of you is broken. That version shouldn't be here. That version needs to go.

But that's the version of you that actually has to learn the lesson.

In this episode we dig into one of the most common ways people unknowingly block their own recovery - conditional self-acceptance. Accepting yourself when you're calm and feeling OK, but turning on yourself the moment anxiety shows up, is not acceptance. It's a condition. You cannot do genuine tolerance, surrender, or desensitization while simultaneously trying to kick the anxious part of you out of the room.

Come as you are - tired, scared, doubting, not optimal - because that's who has to do the work. We also take apart the "80 days to become the person you want to be" optimization culture that's quietly telling anxious people they're broken, and why understanding your anxiety intellectually is necessary but nowhere near sufficient on its own. Plus real listener wins from the community, including a mom with emetophobia who used her son getting sick in the car as an accidental (and very successful) exposure.

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Want to talk about this episode, interact with us, and communicate with others that are sharing your experience? We're hanging out in the Disordered Community Space

https://disordered.fm/community

----

The Disordered Guide to Health Anxiety is available now:

⁠https://www.disordered.fm/the-disordered-guide-to-health-anxiety/⁠

---

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. 

-----

Got questions or did it anyways to share? ⁠Send us an email or voicemail on our website⁠.

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 or guests of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, 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.

Send a question or comment via text message

This week we're talking about attention. Specifically, how where you place your focus directly impacts your anxiety and your recovery.

We discuss how an anxiety disorder naturally hijacks your attention, pulling it inward to scan for threats inside your own body and mind. While checking in on how you feel might seem like the safest thing to do, it actually feeds the sensitization process. We look at the role of the locus coeruleus and the cognitive attentional syndrome, explaining why trying to constantly monitor, soothe, or "fix" your internal state keeps you stuck in a loop.

Recovery isn't about clearing the room or making the anxiety disappear before you can live your life; it is about practicing attentional control even when you are triggered. We share real-life examples from our community, including a 16-hour road trip and navigating a stressful work meeting, to show what happens when you bring your anxiety along for the ride instead of waiting for it to vanish.

Tune in to learn why shifting your focus toward meaningful action is a skill you can build, and how changing your relationship with your attention changes your recovery.

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Want to talk about this episode, interact with us, and communicate with others that are sharing your experience? We're hanging out in the Disordered Community Space

https://disordered.fm/community

----

The Disordered Guide to Health Anxiety is available now:

⁠https://www.disordered.fm/the-disordered-guide-to-health-anxiety/⁠

---

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. 

-----

Got questions or did it anyways to share? ⁠Send us an email or voicemail on our website⁠.

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 or guests of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, 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.

Send a question or comment via text message

Improving vs. Optimizing in Anxiety Recovery

In this episode of Disordered, Drew and Josh tackle a topic suggested by the community: the hidden trap of the "optimization culture" and how it intersects with anxiety and OCD.

There is a distinct difference between wanting to improve your health and falling into compulsive, perfectionist territory where every metric must be flawlessly managed. For an anxious mind fixated on certainty, the modern wellness industry’s obsession with biohacking, strict routines, and endless supplements can quickly become a tool for emotional avoidance. If you are optimizing your life just to prevent feeling anxious, you are inadvertently teaching your brain that you cannot handle discomfort.

Drew and Josh break down why checking out of the optimization loop and building psychological flexibility is essential for long-term recovery. They also share a couple of incredible "Did It Anyway" audio wins from the listener community, highlighting real-world victories over agoraphobia and situational panic.

• Improvement vs. Optimization: Improving is about a flexible desire for growth; optimization often stems from a rigid need to control variables and avoid difficult feelings.
• The Routine Trap: When your wellness routine gets the credit for you feeling okay, you miss out on learning that you are capable of tolerating distress on your own.
• The Illusion of Control: Optimization culture survives by capturing your attention through fear, selling the false promise that you can micromonitor your way out of the human condition.
• Managing Actual Health Conditions: When dealing with legitimate medical issues, recovery means learning to distinguish between practical, non-anxious monitoring and urgent, compulsive checking.

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Want to talk about this episode, interact with us, and communicate with others that are sharing your experience? We're hanging out in the Disordered Community Space

https://disordered.fm/community

----

The Disordered Guide to Health Anxiety is available now:

⁠https://www.disordered.fm/the-disordered-guide-to-health-anxiety/⁠

---

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. 

-----

Got questions or did it anyways to share? ⁠Send us an email or voicemail on our website⁠.

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 or guests of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, 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.