Anxiety Breakthrough

You try to figure out what is wrong, so you go online and do extensive research. Unintentionally, you’ve scared yourself, because you find you have all the signs and symptoms of various serious illnesses. Now convinced that you have a serious medical condition, you go to your doctor, or maybe you show up at the ER because you fear you’re having a heart attack! The doctor responsibly conducts all the necessary tests to rule out conditions and find a cause. Nothing. “All clear,” they say. You then get officially diagnosed with an anxiety disorder. You say, “Anxiety? No way! This can’t be anxiety. It’s too serious!” You may have been told that you have an incurable condition and that, unfortunately, you will have this disorder for the rest of your life. You are told that you will just have to learn to cope. The solution? Take a pill. It’s not the doctor’s fault; they are treating your symptoms medically, the way they know. If you are fortunate, you have a collaborative doctor who also suggested psychotherapy, coaching, or other holistic modalities.

So, now how do you feel? Do you feel relief, because it means that it is real, it has a name, and others must experience it too? Do you also feel relief knowing that you have that script? Who could blame you. Or do you feel angry that they didn’t find a “real cause,” because this can’t possibly be mind-related? Or do you feel an emotional mix: relieved and ashamed, as though somehow it’s admitting to yourself that having this disorder is your fault. After all, people in your life are telling you to just “stop it,” and you don’t understand why you can’t. Or maybe you’re relieved but fearful, because you’re not a “med person,” but, you know, what choice do you have? Or maybe you feel relieved, fearful, and depressed, because you now believe that you will have to live with this the rest of your life.

• holistic: Mind, body, and spirit. Promoting the belief that these three elements of a human being must be seen together in order to achieve any notion of healing.
• integrative: You will be exposed to tools and strategies from cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), the most widely-used therapy for anxiety. Research has shown it to be effective in the treatment of panic, phobias, social anxiety, and generalized anxiety, among many other challenges. And neuro-linguistic programming (NLP), developed in the 1970s by John Grinder (a linguistics professor) and Richard Bandler (a mathematician). Through extensive research, Grinder and Bandler studied what made some therapists more effective than others. Based on their observations, a set of principles and techniques used to create change during therapy was created.
• all-natural: It requires no drugs or dangerous chemicals.
• action-oriented: Change is not just knowledge but also action; practice and journaling will move you forward consistently.
• encouraging and empowering.
• structured and disciplined: Commit to yourself; you will get out of it what you put into it.
• focused on elimination of symptoms versus management of symptoms.

You may have already tried a number of different ways to combat your anxiety, from traditional counseling, psychotherapy, and medication to nontraditional routes, such as acupuncture and other energy modalities. Natural solutions are becoming more common today. As a psychotherapist and health coach, I’m excited to study how food is related to our moods. There are many different schools of thought, schools of therapy, and solutions, all using their own unique treatment model.

You have probably heard the phrase “mind, body, spirit.” In this book—and in all my programs—I focus on each of these areas. You can make dramatic changes in each of these areas alone, but lasting change comes when all three areas are nurtured. With the first key, you will unlock powerful strategies for creating the mind-set necessary to kick anxiety symptoms to the curb. With the second key, you will discover what your physical body needs for optimal emotional wellness, and with the final key, you travel far beyond just coping and managing symptoms and move upward and onward to a truly fulfilling life!

Our minds are amazingly powerful. Sadly, we often sell ourselves extremely short with our negative and limited thinking. I cover tools and strategies rooted in cognitive therapy, neuro-linguistic programming (NLP), and the law of attraction. You will clearly realize that what we think is directly related to how we feel. All emotions are necessary, and I don’t label them as good or bad. Instead, I look at them as muscles; we need them all, but some, in this case anxiety, can become an “overdeveloped muscle.” You will learn how to have the mind-set that creates emotional strength and durability for life.

What good is emotional fitness if you’re lacking energy and feeling physically unfit? Have you seen those movies where the guy is stuck in prison and all he does is work out, resulting in a complete physical transformation when he’s released? This book will guide you to make the necessary changes that your body needs to provide better protection and immunity and ensure that you won’t be going back to your old cell any time soon.

By this time you will have broken out of Anxiety State Prison. You’ll be mastering your mind-set and well on your way to greater health and vitality. Moving into Key #3 will mean the difference between getting out and staying out. This is where you get your ticket to freedom forever. You will identify and rate your levels of personal growth in major life areas and then create the action plan necessary to get you there.