I view anxiety as a habit. (To be fair, I view most things–including personality, identity, and moods–as habits too).

People who struggle with anxiety ask me about this all the time. They say “I can see how nail biting or binge eating or drinking is a habit. But how is anxiety a habit?”

“Where’s the habit in anxiety? I just get overwhelmed with a flood of fear and physical symptoms. It happens from out of nowhere. How is that a habit?”

It’s a good question, isn’t it? 

“Anxiety” is nothing until our mind labels it. Then it feels like something. Often, along with that label comes resistance and a slew of habitual responses attempting to make that energy called “anxiety” go away.

There is no “anxiety”, at least none that feels like a problem, without resistance. 

***

If anxiety, worry, or intrusive thoughts are something you struggle with, I’d really love for you to check out a course I just led called Freedom From Intrusive Thoughts: A No-Willpower Approach to Peace of Mind, at https://dramyjohnson.com/freedom-from-intrusive-thoughts/

In this course you’ll get to follow 4 amazing women who were struggling with intrusive thoughts and other forms of anxiety as I coach them for 8 hours, over a month. You’ll get to follow their journey, see their insights, and watch how really huge change happened for them.

If you’re struggling with anxiety in any way, watching the journey of these 4 women is so insightful. I absolutely know you’ll come out seeing things VERY differently, just like they did. 

The post EP154: Where’s the Habit in Anxiety? appeared first on Dr. Amy Johnson.