It’s easy to get stuck in the loop of worry.Future-tripping. Doom-scrolling. Playing out worst-case scenarios before they ever happen.

In this episode of Filter Optional, Chico and Shannon West unpack anxiety and worry through a simple but powerful idea: worry needs a container.

Inspired by a study out of Finland that teaches children to journal their worries before bed, Chico and Shannon explore what it means to give anxiety a time and place rather than letting it run the show all day long. Instead of suppressing fear or pretending it doesn’t exist, they discuss how naming it, writing it down, and setting boundaries around it can help regulate the nervous system and break the anxiety loop.

Through personal stories from childhood nuclear war drills to parenting decisions about smartphones they reflect on:

- How previous generations handled (or didn’t handle) worry and regulation 

- The difference between healthy concern and chronic anxiety

- How unregulated fear can be passed down generationally

- Why journaling, prayer, and gratitude create space for peace

- The power of shifting your focus toward what is true, honorable, and worthy of praise 

Chico also connects the conversation to recovery language—calling out “future tripping” as one of the most common ways anxiety hijacks the present moment.

This episode isn’t about eliminating worry. It’s about regulating it. Giving it structure. Giving it boundaries. And modeling for the next generation how to acknowledge fear without being driven by it.

Takeaway:You don’t have to suppress anxiety and you don’t have to let it control you. Put it in a container. Investigate it. Then choose where your focus goes next.