The Anxiety Encyclopedia

Lorien tells Katharine about the horror of having an uninvited guest inside your actual skull. Also, the Victorians are weird again. Sources: https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/29/science/live-brain-worm-australia.html#commentsContainer https://www.yahoo.com/news/neurosurgeon-investigating-patients-mystery-symptoms-054102309.html https://www.merckmanuals.com/home/brain,-spinal-cord,-and-nerve-disorde...

It's Katharine's turn to record with Covid. She tells Lorien about a poison that can mimic the symptoms of, well, Covid. Sources: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shannon_Richardson https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ricin   https://www.wfla.com/news/florida/florida-man-sentenced-for-trying-to-poison-ex-in-ricin-murder-plot/   https://emergency.cdc.gov/agent/ricin/facts.asp#:~:text=Ricin%20is%20a%...

Lorien warns Katharine about the sneaky ways water might be able to kill us. Sources: https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/drowning https://www.webmd.com/children/features/secondary-drowning-dry-drowning https://www.webmd.com/lung/the-facts-about-pulmonary-edema https://abcnews.go.com/Health/dry-drowning-year-olds-incident/story?id=54663459 https://www.foxnews.com/health/be-well-recogn...

All who scroll past this episode in their feed shall be doomed to a mirthless day. Sources: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curse_of_the_pharaohs   https://www.historytoday.com/archive/months-past/tutankhamuns-curse https://www.washingtonpost.com/history/2022/11/04/king-tut-tomb-curse/ https://www.nationalgeographic.com/history/article/curse-of-the-mummy https://www.ranker.com/list/ancient-egyptian-...

Lorien takes Katharine through a waking nightmare. Sources: https://abcnews.go.com/US/husband-blamed-cold-medicine-pleads-guilty-killing-wife/story?id=58306879#:~:text=Matthew Phelps, 29, will serve,Durham station WTVD-TV reported. https://people.com/crime/cold-medicine-killer-pastor-pleads-guilty-murdering-wife/ https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/news/story/family-woman-killed-cold-medicine-murde...

Katharine takes Lorien through the messy memory wars. CW: Brief mention of child abuse. Sources: https://www.thecut.com/article/false-memory-syndrome-controversy.html https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McMartin_preschool_trial https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=plEImKEIRm8 https://www.encyclopedia.com/law/law-magazines/george-franklin-trial-1990-91 https://www.nationalchildrensalliance.org/media-room/nati...

Lorien is a woman on a mission: to change Katharine's mind about otters. Sources: https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/she-steals-surfboards-by-the-seashore-shes-a-sea-otter/ https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-07-14/sea-otter-841-surfboard-california/102602038# https://www.vox.com/2014/4/24/5640890/otters-rape-baby-seals-monsters-bad https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5135530/ htt...

Katharine, despite her best efforts, cannot convince Lorien that anything bad would be allowed to happen on a Hallmark cruise. Sources: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MS_Estonia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Costa_Concordia_disaster https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_Breeze https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MS_Melody https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_of_Dianne_Brimble https://www.insider.com/man-fell...

Lorien wonders if the truth is out there; Katharine does not want to believe. Sources:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unidentified_flying_object https://airandspace.si.edu/stories/editorial/1947-year-flying-saucer https://www.ufofestival.com/about/ https://www.cnn.com/2023/04/03/politics/chinese-spy-balloon/index.html https://houstonherald.com/2023/04/pentagon-releases-video-of-ufos-over-conflict-...

Katharine tells Lorien about incels; she may be on a watchlist now. Sources: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Incel https://www.theguardian.com/society/2022/oct/30/global-incel-culture-terrorism-misogyny-violent-acti on-forums https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/mar/16/involuntary-celibates-incels-threat-us-secret-ser vice https://www.splcenter.org/news/2023/05/23/after-incel-attack-male-suprema...

Lorien shares her emotional baggage related to her suitcase and she and Katharine pitch the next Pixar hit. Sources: https://www.allgetaways.com/packing-airport-security/odds-losing-luggage.html https://thepointsguy.com/news/lost-baggage-report-2022/ https://www.bts.gov/topics/airlines-and-airports/number-30a-technical-directive-mishandled-baggage-amended-effective-jan https://money.usnews.com/mon...

Katharine and Lorien take this opportunity to share their own wild Airbnb experience. Content warning: Mention of rape, murder, and sexual assault https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2021-06-15/airbnb-spends-millions-making-nightmares-at-live-anywhere-rentals-go-away   https://publichealth.jhu.edu/2018/many-airbnb-venues-lack-basic-safety-protections-new-study-suggests   https://www.forbes.com...

Lorien tells Katharine one of the reasons it may not be safe to go back in the water. Sources: https://www.cdc.gov/meningitis/amebic.html# https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/68/wr/mm6836a3.htm#:~:text=The case fatality rate for,transmitted by swallowing contaminated water. https://www.cdc.gov/parasites/naegleria/treatment.html https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/j.1574-695X.2007.00232.x...

Katharine tells Lorien about an explosive anxiety, and Lorien calls Katharine the Grinch of summer. Sources https://www.foxla.com/news/lancaster-teens-hurts-fireworks https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11016825/Firework-disaster-kills-seven-year-old-boy-sister-24-Videos-rockets-firing-crowd.html https://nypost.com/2022/10/21/gender-reveal-party-goes-up-in-smoke-after-terrifying-firework-disa...

Lorien tells Katharine about detox teas, and they come down strongly on the side of not starving and/or actively dehydrating yourself. Sources: https://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/statistics-research-eating-disorders https://www.therecoveryvillage.com/mental-health/deadliest-psychiatric-disorder/ https://www.eatingdisorderhope.com/information/anorexia/anorexia-death-rate#:~:text=The anorexia d...

Katharine tells Lorien about a serial killer who makes her wish we could go back to talk about the people of Atlantis sinking ships. Content Warning: discussion of violence, animal cruelty, sexual assault, mention of suicide Sources: https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2019/10/are-serial-killers-more-common-than-we-think/596647/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israel_Keyes https://murderped...

Lorien tells Katharine about her fear of getting TAKEN and some early 80s history. Sources: GQ Oral History:  https://www.gq.com/story/iran-hostage-crisis-tehran-embassy-oral-history https://www.safetravel.govt.nz/hostage-taking-and-kidnapping https://panopticsolutions.com/blog/12-000-to-15-000-people-held-captive-every-year/#:~:text=12 000 to 15 000 People Are Held Captive Every Year&text=Are...

Katharine has A LOT to tell Lorien about Slenderman. Content warning: discussion of mental illness, violence, and suicide Sources: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slender_Man_stabbing Slenderman: Online Obsession, Mental Illness, and the Violent Crime of Two Midwestern Girls  by Kathleen Hale

Lorien (the real Lorien, definitely not a synthetic Lorien) convinces Katharine they should probably just drop off the grid. Sources https://www.opa.mil/research-analysis/personnel-security/insider-threat/deepfakes-and-unintentional-insider-threats/deepfakes-prepare-for-the-next-challenge-video https://www.dhra.mil/Portals/52/Documents/perserec/reports/20220413_PERS_Rpt_RN-21-14_Deepfakes.pdf http...

Katharine complicates Lorien's feelings about a cozy bear. Sources https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_S._Sadler https://thoughtcatalog.com/christine-stockton/2021/01/the-insane-true-story-of-the-racist-eugenics-book-your-inspirational-teabag-tag-might-be-based-on/ https://www.inverse.com/article/10731-cults-conspiracies-and-the-twisted-history-of-sleepytime-tea https://www.foodandwine.com/d...

Lorien walks Katharine through yet another reason it's better to just stay inside. Sources : https://amp.cnn.com/cnn/2023/02/20/us/alligator-kills-woman-florida/index.html https://nypost.com/2023/02/23/terrifying-video-shows-alligator-snatching-florida-woman/ https://apple.news/AHB3oy27MQkecCPBgU1Kq6Q https://www.npr.org/2023/03/07/1161570130/an-unprovoked-alligator-attack-is-extremely-rare-bu...

Katharine tells Lorien about a close-to-home abduction. Trigger warning: brief mention of physical and sexual abuse of children. Sources: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/kidnapped-shawn-hornbeck/ https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/caught-between-parents/2011 12/kidnapping-victims-and-the-psychological-ties-bind https://www.reuters.com/article/us-wisconsin-missinggirl-data/kidnappe d-children-mak...

Lorien tells Katharine about all the ways people can pretend to be you; it's not a joke, Jim. Sources: https://www.experian.com/blogs/ask-experian/what-is-identity-theft/ https://www.idtheftcenter.org/thank-you-2/ https://www.experian.com/blogs/ask-experian/identity-theft-statistics/ https://www.identitytheft.gov/#/ https://identitytheft.org/statistics/ https://www.experian.com/blogs/ask-exper...

Katharine teaches Lorien where Bermuda is. Sources: https://www.history.co.uk/articles/five-of-the-most-mysterious-bermuda-triangle-disapp earances https://www.discovery.com/exploration/explore-these-majestic-sand-dunes----in-colorad o https://www.vice.com/en/article/zmkyp8/scientists-claim-to-have-solved-the-mystery-of-t he-bermuda-triangle https://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/bermuda-trian...

Lorien walks Katharine through the likelihood that they or their snacks will just burst into flame. Sources: Sources  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spontaneous_combustion https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Autoignition_temperature https://www.tastingtable.com/850505/do-pistachios-actually-combust/ https://www.metaflix.com/a-devastating-look-at-the-1937-fox-vault-fire/ https://www.npr.org/2017/04/10/523...