Anxiety Road Podcast

The FL-100 headset is a possible a treatment option for people that have moderate to severe depression. Well in Europe, UK and  Australia, that is true. Hopefully it is coming some time soon for folks in the U.S.    I should mention that it is expensive and it will only be available via prescription from a doctor or medical provider. This is short episode that gives a brief overview of the product...

In the before times, I would have been hostile to meditation and mindfulness. I didn't have time for it, I wanted the quick cure, the fix and no B.S. I had stuff to do and no time for body symptom nonsense. I had to be karmically convinced to change my mind.  Hard lessons. Embarrassing lessons. But I came to understand the lesson is repeated until you learn.   Meditation might work for you. It mig...

In this episode I talk about what is a mindful walking meditation, the difference between meditation and mindfulness and a few resources to help you get more information about it. I know that in some places in the world you cannot walk freely or without consciousness of your immediate area. Some places in the U.S. do not have sidewalks. Other cities are actively hostile to pedestrians.    The good...

Well, I have a new to me and probably to you do-dad to help with anxiety symptoms. It is the Opera Air Mindfulness browser. In addition to the standard browsing features it has tools to help you breath and relax, guided meditations and a musical audio mode that can help you focus. Is this a good or bad thing? The TLDR : Some of the tech bros say it is a gimmick and who in their right mind would us...

If your are an adult human being, you have experienced situational anxiety. It is when you know that this specific thing is making you upset or anxious. It could be about money, your job, the lack of prospects of getting a job. Housing insecurity. Your car breaks down and you do not have cash or credit for the repair bill.   In this episode, a look at situational anxiety. Resources Mentioned:  To...

There is a video about a dentist joking about giving less medication to people not of her political persuasion. To her audience, I guess they found it funny.  There is a larger story than the dentist and the joke. I waited. I hoped someone would bring a non-political reason what the joke was bad, very bad and unprofessional.    For the record, there are million of us that have some form of dental...

This is a quick definition of fear, why it is an important emotion and two informational resources to help you learn more about. Fear is an emotional response to real or imaginary danger.    Your body enters into protection mode. It is not as some would describe it, a weakness or lack of backbone. You are in trouble and your body is helping you do deal with it.   When you understand what fear this...

I've done episodes about dietary supplements. I didn't take into account the ones sold at the gas station or corner store. People with an anxiety condition or disorder should be very careful about promises of herbal supplements treatment.    I don't want to be elitist here. There is bad stuff in U.S. pharmacies that do not work, known not to be effective or dangerous and yet still on sale. I have...

Living in a place with non-human beings can give you an appreciation of the unexpected. I've had encounters with possums, coyotes and skunks. Main skill is be aware of your surroundings, back up and give them a path to exit.   Haven't had a bear encounter yet. Do not want one either. Part of the inspiration of this episode is an old video of a man leaving his home, preoccupied on getting to work o...

I had a flashback. What generated it was that I watched a video of a congress person telling his constituents that only the truly deserving should have access to free health care. Those that work are worthy. That is my understanding of what he said. I could be wrong. The example he gave was that a 28 year old person who refused to work. Once upon a time, I was truly ill. I had no savings. I owed b...

I can talk about intrusive thoughts. Doesn't mean I don't still have them. Because I do. Here is the thing. Not only is the intrusive thought false but it is repetitive. There are things and practices you can do to reduce the intensity of intrusive thoughts. In this episode, a recent experience of an intrusive thought and three ideas on how to handle the little haters.  I messed up the name of the...

Trying to get back into the flow. I still don't have a desk or recording equipment. My phone will have to do the job. This is a quick pebble in the road on what is a mental health disorder.   Mental health disorders can affect a person's mood, feelings or become intrusive thoughts.   Most of us have experienced high stress periods or feeling like it's too much or way too much, or you really can't...

After a few minutes of an life update, I talk about the Smiling Minds app, a free resource designed to help practice meditation and also helps to build mental fitness.   If you need support contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988 or 1-800-273-8255, the Trevor Project at 1-866-488-7386 or text "START" to 741-741.   Resources Mentioned:    The Simply Noise app can help you with findi...

A brief update. I'm still going through chaos. I'm having to throw away a lot of things and re-organize my life.    This is a brief pebble in the road on a memory that I wrote down in 2002. It was a bad time.    There are ups and downs with having an anxiety condition. I was scraping cement at that time.   I'm grateful that is this a memory. I'm going to shred this page but I've memorialized it so...

In this episode, I talk about my process on handing a problem and four resources that might be helpful to those with panic attacks and panic disorder.    Some of the resources are informative but dry.    Other offerings are written in a more conversational form, accessible but might not explain a concept or two.   I get a little more personal than I like but I wanted to share with you my panic res...

We all have that thing that gets under our skin. The thing we can't stand and won't abide in any form. That at best is an irritation. But for some of us, it can be a problem if it impacts the quality of life. Those four-legged poof balls called cats can be a problem for people with a phobia about cats. In this episode, what it is, the symptoms and treatment resources. If you need support contact t...

There are forces that have us in a state of stress and unbalance. It is intentional. Our stress levels are way too high.  In this episode, I'm talking specifically about stress but those of us with anxiety still need to pay attention.    We still have the ability to decide how we want to go forward. You might need a personal support system to help you deal with the days, months or however ever lon...

Social anxiety is not about being shy or people not wanting to be social. People with social anxiety beats up on themselves before others get a chance to do it.  It is a condition where an excessive amount of fear is generated by the anticipation of rejection.  Either way, it can be harmful to the spirit. In this episode, a quick look at the book How to Be Your Self by Ellen Hendriksen, Ph. D. If...

Yeah, it is a real thing and we are existing in it. From the looks of things most of us are struggling and that is never a good thing. An infodemic is a smash up between too much information and a pandemic. I didn't invent this term. Goes back to 2001-2003ish.   There is a pandemic of bad, worse and toxic levels of disinformation. People are getting sick or at risk of ingesting poor quality inform...

In this episode, a brief explanation of cognitive behavioral therapy and then an overview of the mental health apps that claim to provide treatment or support resources. There are a lot of companies that are trying to convince insurance companies, private businesses and consumers that their app is the one to help treat mental health issues.  Just one problem. There is only (at this time in January...

The medical term for this is called bruxism. It is when a person grinds, gnash or clench your teeth and jaw bone. We are going to have a lot more people doing this in the year to come.    This is a pebble in the road on the condition and resources you can use to help you make decision about your health. If you need support contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255, the Tre...

Agoraphobia is the fear of being away from a safe place. People with agoraphobia have trouble being in certain types of public places. They also have problems with enclosed areas that don't seem to have an escape path. There are people that do just fine traveling only to a home, the store, work and maybe the church. Anything more than that causes them distress.    There are people that cannot ride...

We have to be a lot more careful about the apps we put on our phones and tablets. In the entrepreneurial app space, there are a lot of apps that claim to be mental health or wellness apps. Many now have AI slapped on their covers.  At this time, AI is a collection of words, stolen data and snatched public domain text to make it seem like it can answer a question.   It can't. The response you get i...

Once upon a time I had this guy call me on Thanksgiving day to sell his carpet cleaning service. He probably thought is was a good idea, everybody would be home. Probably had that 100 calls mentality.  I was not joyful or merry when I got that call. I did not curse him out. I reminded him that it was Thanksgiving day. The call ended shortly after that statement.   For some of us, this is the start...

EFT Tapping, that takes me back a couple of years. Back when there was limited 240x 120 size video on websites. My symptoms were really bad that that time. I tried to make sense of it. I couldn't. Not with a 56k modem.   I quickly moved on to other possible help sources. About a year ago, I saw a EFT Tapping video. I tried it out. It did work for me if I was on the edge of an attack. Not so much i...