 Okay, we are back. What's up everybody drew here that anxiety guy calm back with Billy in the UK Hello, again anxiety united calm. That's me. Yes. Yes. Not just UK worldwide Calm international mental health knows no boundaries global phenomenon So today we are going to talk about the topic we're up to episode 16 by the way, we're on a roll We're shooting for the stars now So today we're gonna talk about the topic of triggers anxiety triggers So I'm gonna give a shout out to Gary who sent me that question about triggers on YouTube and we decided This would be a good topic to do so we're gonna talk about a good one I don't think we I don't think we've discussed much of the triggers No, we really haven't we talked about symptoms and all that sort of stuff, but we really haven't talked about triggers So Interesting topic because they're so wide-ranging and I think they go from the very obvious to the completely surprising like what the hell did that You know what happened there? Yeah. Yeah, I made a I made a list of a few So we got the The main stuff you've got your work. You've got your relationships Finances health and any long-term stress So that I mean the main ones but they cover so many different things that fall within those categories But then there's like the weird things or maybe not so weird But like just thinking about getting older being alone lack of sleep a big one for me is hunger Meeting new people and then even even more like people might think this is out there But like hearing sirens different smells or scents TV shows certain things that if they're about hospitals and stuff like that Being far from home and boredom that was my list. That was my homework. Yeah Yeah, yeah So that's a pretty long list It was you know what I probably have the same list But there's gonna be so many different things but I guess it's just does it really matter what what the triggers are It's how you respond to the triggers. Yeah, I don't know if it really matters I think the biggest thing sometimes for me it was hard to deal with a little bit was You kind of understanding that almost anything could be a trigger So I used to be so complexed and I know when Gary asked this question He said, you know, his issue was about what's going on at work for him You know, it's stressful. He's a tough boss blah blah blah and it's I guess it's kicking up his anxiety And then I actually got a question on Facebook this morning about that Somebody had a Cody somebody had mentioned that He ran into a problem I think driving home or something where somebody had cut him off He had a bit of a problem on the road and he got angry about it and then it kicked off his anxiety He was is that normal? Yeah. Yeah, and I would think we probably both agree that yet. The answer is yeah, that's sadly That's normal. That's it is maybe a stress response. It's a response to just something maybe that's not in your control. I Guess but then there are things there are there are things that are in your control It's just maybe we bury our heads in the sand too much. That's what my old man used to tell me That's that's actually not bad. I Think I would agree with that. It's a stress response So I remember years ago and you know, I think the answer the short answer to the trigger thing It's just about anything that puts some sort of stress or pressure on us No matter how big or small it could be emotional or more mental or physical stress Could lead to the anxiety response Especially when we're in the thick of it and we're like oversensitized and we you know, we're a little bit raw We don't have a lot of influence So if you're in the thick of it and you're dealing with anxiety all the time or you're panicking on a daily basis You have a hard time getting out of house, whatever that is I think you're more likely to find more things or triggers. Would you agree with that? Mm-hmm? Definitely definitely and I think what winds up happening is and I actually wrote about this many years ago on panic station I blogged About why stress becomes fear Yeah, that's one of the big things here on triggers because if you look around us all the people around us are stressed and feeling bad and Cut off on the road and you know having to wait on a line That's too long at the motor vehicles department or something and you could get stressed and maybe upset about it But it doesn't turn into fear for them. Yeah, yeah, that's it For us and so the trick with the trigger I think is how to identify a trigger and try and understand it well a stress response is normal a fear response isn't necessarily normal Well, I think I made three notes and that there's three different steps towards or to do with the triggers and number one Is the prevention of triggers so if it's something if it is finances or if it is work And these are things that you can actually do something about so, you know You could look for another job if it's that bad or you could check your finances get them in order stop ordering those bloody takeaways There's if there's something that you can do about it Then do your best to do it and then the other step being trigger Desensitization so maybe with the exposure stuff so you can actually put you if it's being alone at home Then put yourself in that situation if that's the trigger then try to Obviously desensitize and then the other one is to just acknowledge if there's nothing that you can do If there's some if it's something that you can't prevent If it's something that maybe you can't put yourself into desensitize then just acknowledge that whatever it is that's triggering That's the reason that you're feeling anxiety after it So once you actually start to recognize that okay, there is a reason for this fear or this anxiety now Then maybe it helps you just learn that I Guess the more or you're in no danger as we've said a million times You know the more that you do have to face that trigger The less that you will react hopefully. Yeah, those are all really good points You're probably right so you could you can desensitize and do a little bit of exposure on some of your triggers, but I Think I think a lot of it has to do with just recognizing that it's normal for me to be upset about something If you make a mistake at work and you get called on the carpet for it and you know, that's stressful It's normal and I think we make the mistake of trying to get into the situation where I want to have no anxiety No stress that'll be the solution here and that's that's just not normal if you're alive You're gonna feel stressed sometimes We spoke about this a long time ago triggers and stuff and I remember actually saying back to you Like this was probably five six years ago and sometimes I was saying that maybe for me The anxiety is sort of a distraction from the stress So if I've got financial troubles or if something's really bothering me, then I'll Feel more anxious and maybe that's like just my mind's way of telling me. Let's not think about the bills Let's think about how you're feeling right now. I don't know whether there's maybe other people that could relate to that Huh, that's an interesting perspective on that An anxiety becomes a shield or yeah, yeah, it's the stressing stressful Yeah, yeah, it's almost like a protection mechanism, but it's not protecting me. It's making me feel worse I'd rather pay the bills But that makes some sort of sense and sometimes That's that's interesting because sometimes then especially if you're still in that situation where you're gonna sort of wrap yourself in your anxiety and use it as a They can oh, I can't do that. I can't deal with that now because of my anxiety Then you kind of are protected like that that situation is pushed off. Yeah. Yeah, so I don't know I think That's actually really good. That's a lot of good insight right there Again again, you blew the lid right off it. So I think When people The question that Gary was asking and then they Cody asked me also was like is this normal I think is is it normal to feel that way? And yes, it is normal to feel that way It's just I think it will get better, you know as you start to make forward progress and you're working on this You're doing your exposure. You're working on your coping skills and you know You're feeling more in control of your anxiety or not afraid of the anxiety I think fear response to those other things also goes away too. Yeah Yeah, so I could say that I shared a lot of your triggers back then that like what are my triggers now think about that most of my triggers now are I Think when I'm really sleep deprived and I don't sleep a lot as it is. Yeah, really run down a much more likely to have an anxious day When I am which is okay, so I'm tired. Why does tired equal anxious? I still don't know Yeah, it's a strange strange Or it's we can go back a couple episodes like I was mentioned before we went live here My ears are plugged up again. So I had a sinus infection. That's gone But my stupid ears are plugged up again and that can Contribute to feeling a little bit unsteady because of the fluid in your ears. Mm-hmm that adds anxiety for me so it's it's strange and There's probably another 50 people in a 10 mile radius that have plugged up ears right now They're not feeling anxious about it. Mm-hmm. It's weird in it. It's frustrating. I don't like it. It's angry But well, I was I was saying before we went live. I had a real odd day a Couple of days ago. I just woke up in the morning and as soon as I open my eyes I just felt this uneasy like a flustery feeling I Know exactly why it happened now But the trigger was was that I'd forgot to take my Pramilar, which is a medication, but we're not doing medication today But I forgot to take it the night before so whether it actually Made me feel physically different. I don't know or whether it was like a mental thing But as soon as I woke up, I just thought to myself dang, I'd forgot my meds I don't know whether they help. That's another topic for another day But it was just that immediate response and then for the whole day Like I got up. I had the pill it made no difference. So I felt at the time You know, it's not that fast acting. You don't neck it and you feel great But for the rest of the day, I just felt on edge I felt uneasy just as if like there was panic just around the corner and I couldn't shake it But I didn't I didn't actually reach panic. It didn't escalate that far. So I don't know whether or anything I did but that was a trigger for me was just forgetting to take the bloody medication Even though it wasn't something that I'd really thought about It was just that that feeling that I had whether it was because I hadn't or because my mind was thinking you didn't And it just played on me. That's interesting. And so yeah, did you think about the meds first? I forgot my meds and then you felt anxious or did you wake up feeling anxious and then remember you forgot your meds? I Honestly can't remember what order. I honestly don't know Yeah, yeah, it was that it was just maybe the because it does it's the blink of an eye and it's What comes first the thought of the feeling? I honestly don't know. Yeah. Yeah, I don't know sometimes It's one way. Sometimes it's the other I Don't know so what do we do about these triggers? I think the advice on how to deal with triggers is the same as Every other bit of advice that we offer. Mm-hmm. So the trigger is just okay. It's what may lead you down that path That's fine. So really it's the same advice as the anxiety that comes, you know out of the blue people say it came out of the Blue came out of nowhere. Yeah. Yeah, well, whether it comes out of nowhere or it comes because of something Got a notice in the mail. You have an overdue bill or something. You're having money troubles Whatever it is you had to fight with your wife or you know, whatever it doesn't really matter in the end You still have to deal with it the same exact way Exactly, right. What a lot of people wind up doing I think is they start to avoid the triggers Yeah, so triggers becomes a part and parcel of what turns anxiety into an anxiety disorder because when you start to avoid your triggers Then you stop driving That is when it becomes lifestyle altering like we talked about Yeah, yeah, and that's difficult So you have to deal with regardless of the source of the anxiety whether it's one of your triggers that you're aware of or just Just seems to be in the background or comes out of the blue The response is the same Would we say that like because there's going to be people maybe watching this now or listening and thinking that they just feel anxious all the time So like how can there be a 24 7 trigger? But My response to that would be that they're perhaps just like Oversensitized yes, so perhaps those triggers have put you in this place Your body's oversensitized your mind doesn't stop So that would explain why you feel like that Most of the time yeah, and I think what winds up happening. I think I have a blog post on my site about this too about triggers As we go further into it, you know You're having anxiety issues and they're getting worse if you feel like you're on a downward slide and they're getting worse And your world is getting smaller. You just start to accumulate triggers your bag of triggers gets more and more full Like everything starts to become a trigger after yeah So when everything is a trigger in a way The the ultimate trigger is your anxiety itself Triggers more anxiety So you quickly go down that slope where like driving is a trigger the phone being on the phone is a trigger watching the news Is a trigger Yeah, it's because everything comes to trigger and then yeah, then your anxiety itself feeds itself and then that becomes your own trigger Yeah, it makes sense. Yeah, so when somebody feels like well, I'm just anxious 24-7. I don't have a trigger Yeah, well the fact that you're noticing that you're anxious 24-7 tells me that Is that is the trigger? Yeah I think that's that's probably where I go from I go between that and Having actual triggers and then triggering myself. That's where I feel like I get to I think I've only ever been out of that once and that was like Probably four or five years ago. Maybe more. Yeah It's funny because the and the word triggers appears to be everywhere now to Trigger Like kids were making jokes about being triggered the other day And I like I did the I did a video on yeah people being triggered. Yeah people being triggered by them Nuthers the sweets called Nuthers Yeah, and I'm not even sure what we're talking about. It's just a commentary and I guess what's going on in the media right now But here well there everybody's triggered by everything our president says like I know he's a character But it's just like what is it? It's everywhere. Yeah, people are triggered your anger is triggered your sense of disenfranchisement is triggered your anxiety is triggered And it leads that the use of the word trigger. I think is part of you know, we talked about anxiety sort of in the mainstream And how it may be yeah, yeah, maybe watering it down. So There was an article that I saw yesterday in the new york times at one of my facebook friends posted First of all, it was a marathon article. It took me five minutes to read it. I mean who reads five minute newspaper You got too much time in your eyes No, that's crazy So uh, but it was about the prevalence or the increased prevalence of anxiety among american teenagers And it talked about it was a fairly decent discussion about triggers and now everything Anything negative. Yeah appears to trigger anxiety So I think the point is that for our discussion, it's super easy to become so sensitized that just everything you see when I was at my worst I couldn't watch the news Like oh, there was a you know a flood in the philippines Yeah, yeah, it was bad news. It was actually literally bad news I will just say I used to watch I used to watch alex jones to fall asleep. I don't know Yeah, if you don't like watching news, don't watch that It's fun. It's fun. Keep you busy. Yeah, keep your mind busy Alex And I'm gonna go on the limb here if you're watching alex jones and you think he's right Probably stop watching because you might not be smart enough to understand what we're saying It's not gonna be a good thing Anyway, yeah, maybe we should edit that out. I don't know I Will leave it. I'll leave it. What the hell right? Yeah, let's ruffle some feathers So Anyway, um, that's triggers. Yes, everything can become a trigger. How do you stop it? So how do we eliminate triggers? What do we do to make the list smaller instead of bigger? so Obviously the things that you can control Take control or if you can pass it off and let somebody else control it Then let them, you know, because some people do try and take on too much like because perfectionism That's a common trait of people that suffer with anxiety. You know, they never feel good enough or You know what they're doing is not good enough. But if you can Share the jobs share the jobs And take control of the things that you can and the things that you can't just You know, there ain't no point in worrying about worrying about those That's the thing. Yes, I think that's true I would probably add to that that the way to to make your trigger list smaller is to just get better in general Yeah, yeah, well, we've discussed that many times and we recently, you know, healthy eating exercise something that I just I'm useless with sticking to these routines. Although I will add I am still off the caffeine. Nice job And I feel no symptoms no weird weaknesses or headaches or nothing like that. So It's got to be a positive. So then I was I was sitting like we were me and my wife were making tea the other day British tea and I was just saying to her like should I should I have a caffeine one because I feel a bit edgy Maybe I just need a caffeine kick and then I thought to myself. Well, that there's no positive from caffeine There's nothing. There's no reason that my body is Needs a bit of caffeine. You know what I mean? So it's like it's not as if it's like a vitamin deficiency I'm not So I just thought to myself. No, let's just carry on stick with it. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, and it had to work out fine, right? Yeah, it's good. It's all good Still there. Well, that's good I think the other thing so yes eating healthy and exercise and all the things that we've been talking about doing your exposure Not backing down learning to relax all of these things And triggers are just like any other facet of anxiety if you think it's a trigger You're gonna have to do it anyway. Yeah. Yeah, I'm not saying that you should immerse yourself into every trigger at the same time But you can use them as points for exposure work also If you're triggered by watching the news and many people are Watch a couple of minutes, you know, yeah, yeah, you can you can get over them that way too But I think what you find is if you naturally start working toward making forward progress overall the list of triggers would get smaller Basically might stress you out if somebody cuts me off on the road I mean, I'm still pounding on the steering wheel and saying bad words Yelling at them. Yeah, yeah Yeah, it doesn't lead to you know, oh my god now. I'm having anxiety Yeah, yeah angry and then it's over and you'll come back to that normal state where you might be stressed out But it doesn't turn into the fear I was just gonna want to mention you just reminded me like another trigger Maybe could actually be like excitement because that can actually trigger people's anxiety because the The feelings and the emotions are so similar aren't they that's the Like when people get excited imagine if you won the lottery right now You would probably feel exactly the same as you would made panic Same chemicals same adrenaline. That is very true And I've heard many people say that what has helped them is to remember that like when I'm feeling panicky and anxious Well, this is the same way I might feel if I just got news that I won the lottery or yeah, you know It's it's true. The physical sensations are the same so there could be positive triggers too You know, I've seen that I've actually You know, when I was at my worst there were times when even really happy things like What put me over the top and suddenly yeah, I mean a freaking panic attack. I was just having this great time So that's a really positive. That's a good point triggers aren't always negative things even positive things could Could lead to that I notice because like I'm a massive UFC fan So we're we're bringing so many different angles in here today But like when I'm watching like a main event if it's something I'm really hyped for then I usually get a I don't sit on the sofa to watch I stand behind the sofa because I am so Like the energy that I've gotten like it it feels I feel really nervous about it And it feels like anxiety, but I know I'm able to make that distinction that I know that I'm excited Yeah, it's weird Whereas if there was nothing on tv and I was feeling like that's done in the I'd start questioning what's going on. It's good. It's all in the context And so that's a really good way to think of triggers like oh my you know, my boss just yelled at me like well, okay, but You know take it out of the It is all in the context like those same feelings could happen like you said in a positive environment So maybe something's flip it. I used to have to do Yeah, yeah All right If I was watching I do the same thing with with well, I'm not not so much these days, but it's a huge hockey ice hockey fan You know and I can remember our and American football I've been to your giants and when they won their last two super balls They were nail biters and I remember like pacing around Watching the game just just like let it be over let it be over. Let you're trying to win Same exact feeling as it's mad. Yeah, except it was fun. So strange Strange that we can our minds don't even Like It's it's odd. It's all the interpretation. So yeah, it is in the interpretation not the sensation or the thought or the feeling Yeah So that so that's triggers we nailed them triggers. I think so if anybody has questions boy, I'll keep them coming I guess do you want to take some questions that I've got we've got a we've got a few questions Uh, let's have a luke Question number one was from Olivia and it was to me. Did I ever get to go bowling? That's good I didn't And we still talk about it and we still say yeah, we need to go and do that but I haven't It's bad. I'm going to use my phone to look at my questions. So apologies for that That's all right. So no You gotta get no bowling At least at least we get the show picture if there's no video I don't know if I do go there will be footage There will be footage But I haven't done anything to be honest. I mean since I did the last Uh exposure video where I went for breakfast. I've barely been out. It's been weird. It's been a real I don't know. I've just haven't felt too sharp. I feel a bit Low mood It's normal I'm not questioning it Let me have a look. Let me have a look Yeah Okay, you go on. No you go on. So I had one thing in terms. How's it going Ron? Um, he asked me on saturday I have one last question regarding recovery. Did you wake up one morning and you just had no symptoms or was it more gradual and gradual over time? And the answer to that is absolutely was gradual I didn't wake up one morning and say hey no more anxiety What I found was I would wake up and mornings were really difficult for me. I would have a hard time staying asleep I'd wind up waking up at three or four o'clock in the morning couldn't go back to sleep and I would just lay there and just marinate in anxiety and What I found is The first sign that things were getting better for me was I wouldn't wake up at three o'clock in the morning I'd wake up a little later and a little later later and when I woke up I didn't feel that Or when I would feel the horrible morning anxiety as soon as I open my eyes I would be able to say, you know what by noon this is going to be better Yeah, and then it would be better by noon and then my morning anxiety started to go away It was a gradual thing over time. It wasn't like I'm cured, you know, yeah, I wish it did but that didn't happen Yeah, so it's Incidentally like the same kind of thing happened for me But to go the other way when I was feeling better To actually go back downhill was a lot quicker Than getting up the hill in the first place You know what that's a good point and it's just the way it is I I kind of feel like we got gypped a little bit How our brains work from the factory Yeah, learn, you know, I've used the the example of like being afraid of dogs For instance, you can learn to be afraid of dogs in three minutes If a dog bites you, bam, you have a photo of dogs very possible But it could take you three weeks or three months to back out of that. Yeah. Yeah, it's it's crazy. It's not But so Yes, uh, this is from crave 163 How do you get to not care when going out is so traumatic? That was the basic gist of the question So how do you reach that point where you just don't care how you feel anymore? You know, whether whether panic comes or not Okay, that's a reasonable question. Um, I'll I'll start that one The first thing you do is stop talking about how traumatic it is And I said this to someone else in a facebook discussion too last week The the very first thing you have to do is stop talking about how traumatic it is. That's a that's a judgment It's an interpretation. It's a it has negative connotation. It's not traumatic I feel so when you go out the door and you feel badly the statement is Well, I feel like crap the science. I hate this. I feel badly. That's it done. That's the interpretation That's the acknowledgement of it. It's not traumatic. It's not horrible. It's not crippling It's not awful Stop we have to stop doing that. I think first And that's the first step in not caring So when you're already convinced that going out is traumatic Yeah Just a parking spot behind me Um When you when you're convinced that going out is traumatic that's a horrible negative judgment Then it becomes hard not to care about that because nobody wants to be traumatized Yeah, yeah, he almost sets you up. Doesn't he set you up with that? It does paint in that negative pitch Yeah, yeah, then the real the major way that you get to not care is to do it anyway So call it traumatic if you will and then do it anyway Unfortunately, I don't have a better answer than that sooner or later. You have to just do it anyway And if you're not willing to do that then it will continue to be traumatic and you'll always care how you feel I don't know if you want to add anything to that No, I think it's traumatic No, no, I understand no Exactly I remember when it felt like the end of the world, but what she do, of course I did but But sooner or later The only way to not care is to start doing it anyway And we really do it the in the right way not white-knock laying relaxing all the things we talked about And then suddenly you discover like this isn't hurting me And there's probably evidence that we've all got like everybody that's watching this has had times where they've Achieved and they felt good about themselves and felt a progress. So exactly what you're saying is true It's just that maybe we stumbled or there was a setback or we stopped pushing ourselves and that's why We go back down that path. That's what I do. Whereas you continued on the path I think sooner or later what it comes down to is Yeah, I'm gonna use a ridiculous sexist term, but sooner or later you man up and you just keep doing it And you build on that victory like wow that felt so good. I'm gonna do it again right now So the best advice I could give You want to get to the point where you don't care how you feel just keep doing it over and over and over Immediately one right after another. So when you have a victory build on it immediately right that minute go out the door again Don't come back sit on the sofa and pat yourself on the back about how good it feels That's good for fighting get dressed and get back out the door again for another five minutes And then you will you will learn not to care how you feel You make me feel bad No, no, it's what people need. It's what you need to hear It's what you need to where it's not really what you need to hear is what you need to freaking do at the end of the day That's exactly right and sometimes we get stuck and I was stuck there before I started making my progress Yeah, I know I have to do this. I know I have to do this. I know how to do this. In fact, I was on Like that stupid new webcam. I went on facebook live Friday night just to play with it And I had a couple of people I seen it and somebody asked like, you know What did I see this? What was the turning point? I said, well, I just started doing things different Well, what did you do different? Well, really nothing. I just did the things that I knew I had to do So in the end, yeah, yeah That's how you learn not to care how you feel If you remember, I don't know if you will remember this But when we did the podcast years and years ago, I said I was going to try the yes man thing Do you remember that you haven't seen the movie the Jim Carrey movie? Yes, man No It's very easy He saw he gets dragged into this cult sort of thing where people are only allowed to say yes So whatever anybody asks the answer has to be yes And if you remember like years and years ago, I started doing that And just like my daughter was asking if I'd go to Viking day at her school this year. Yeah, when I said immediately I just said yes to her Because we'd we'd reached a point where she was no longer asking me To go and do stuff because she knew that I was always going to say no So she you know, she'd ask her mom or she'd ask my dad or whatever And then one day she just asked me and I just said I made a decision Yes, man, let's do this and then I just I just used it I felt like crap at the end of like a couple of weeks of doing it But that's because I was so sensitized, but if I had to continued, right I probably wouldn't be sitting here doing this now because I'd be I don't know Yeah On the moon and you would be also exhausted. It's hard work. You will feel very tired and worn out and that sort of stuff I think that's what stops people Yeah, yeah, there's no doubt about that and you have to use your best judgment like when you're working hard at that It's exhausting. I there's no doubt about that. So you got to build in some downtime and some rest. Yeah, yeah But um, yeah, I know that was a rambling Yes, man Just do that. That's your that's your the project for the week for the viewers is to Just say yes. Yeah, just say yes. Well within reason. Don't go breaking the law and stuff Who wants to rob a bank? Yeah Yes You know, do you have any others? Let's have a look It was a really long one. I don't know whether I can be bothered to read out, which is so bad Um This one's from sarah bishop Um, she has a terrible cold or a cough for a month. She's been to the doctor has no chest infection So no medication However, it's made anxiety more difficult to deal with because they're feeling genuinely ill But constantly questioning whether the symptoms are the illness or anxiety and it's exhausting So we're up. This was the question from the health anxiety one, right? So it's You know, it's it's all about just accepting that this is a cold or whatever it is Then it is just that And that's it Yeah, and Yeah, in a way that we talked about that in that yeah. Yeah. I mean, there's no other way to go about it It's so difficult. It's all mental. It's all mental And just maybe accept that you will feel more exhausted anyway because you run down So your body's working harder to to fight whatever infection you've got. So maybe, you know take a bit of rest, but Just accept that it's a cold And time allow time to pass in it. I mean look two weeks ago. I was sniffling and freaking about Is this something worse than a cold? Why do I feel so tired? Look at me now Yes I love it Okay, so yeah and take your names. Oh, yeah, that's great Um, I'm about out. I don't really have I have a couple but we'll talk about them off the air and probably turn them into actual topics for Okay, okay. So if you got any more you want to throw out there? Um You know how I've got one of the one I'm just reading through it You can sing for a minute. Yes. That's what everybody wants me to do. Yeah, I sound like I have a good singing voice, don't I? Yeah, yeah, I think so You know, nobody wants me to sing trust No So this one was basically it's from Ruth and she was talking about symptoms and restless emotions racing thoughts But the physical physical symptoms continue um Feeling like she was gonna pass out severe headaches dizziness lightheadedness tingling There are times when she feels like she's really gonna black out it happens at stores while driving While walking. What's the explanation for this and why can't she get a handle on the physical symptoms? So we're back, but she's on zoloft and valium And wants to avoid going to the er sure well The first thing is it feels like i'm going to pass out It's the key word feels like words. So the question is have you ever actually passed out? No It feels like i'm gonna fall over because i'm dizzy Have you ever actually fallen over and not been able to get up the answer is probably no I've been there. You've been there I think Not being able to get a handle on the physical sensations is Is an indicator that you still haven't really accepted them as as Yeah, I don't know if you would agree with that. Yeah. Yeah, definitely. Yeah expecting to go away. They only You know, it's the same thing as anything else. They only go away when you stop caring about them And if you're still focused on how you're feeling and engaging in an inner dialogue with yourself about how you feel Is this okay? Is that okay? Is this this hurt more? Does that hurt more? Do I feel like i'm going to pass out? Do I feel like this? Do I feel like i'm having a heart attack? If you're still engaging in that inner dialogue and focusing on how you feel then you probably haven't fully accepted that That you're okay Yeah, yeah, because the way that you it's the cycle, isn't it if you you have that sensation And it makes you feel anxious then you're likely to have either that sensation or another one because of the physical effects of the anxiety. So the the chemicals that are running through your body It's it's going to make something else and then you're going to freak out about that And then you're going to feel anxious and then you're going to do it again And that's why it's called the fear cycle, isn't it? And I mean sometimes we forget anxiety is a physiological state. It is a physical state of being Yeah, yeah, you have an increased level of adrenaline in your bloodstream and that comes with all kinds of effects And dizziness is one of them and shaky legs is one of them and the rapid heart rate is one of them And I think we should perhaps maybe do an episode where we talk about Maybe like we know why the symptoms happen, but just go through the symptoms just so people can Maybe we do something it maybe will help people just understand that They're normal normal reactions to the stress to the anxiety, you know I would we should that we should do that that would be a good way It's just it But there is a condition to us doing that video is that you watch that and then you never watch another freaking symptom video Or post in another forum about a symptom. Yeah, that anybody ever felt has anybody? Yes, we could do a whole episode just on seeking reassurance Well, I'm going to do a video on Facebook groups we've mentioned this before but there's so many negative But just one thing I'm just going to mention there was a question and it's Made me it's reignited the fire in me to do the facebook group video And the question was it had you know when you get the nice backgrounds on the facebook thing So you can put all lovely gradients What what is the best way to commit suicide? That was the question And I'm like all my days Holy cow Seriously Yeah, that was the question big bold letters in a group with like 40 up thousand members What is the best way to commit suicide? But I didn't respond on that but I was thinking like well the people that did the best way are probably dead by now Anyway, so they're not going to be able to answer and by yeah by best. What did they actually mean? Like what's the most enjoyable way? That's what I just couldn't get my head around why somebody would Think that was any way appropriate to post in a group anxiety. Just bizarre There was another one there was another one saying um, is anybody else having problems with e Because I can't make calls on my phone. That was another one In an anxiety group I think you know what though, that's interesting. We'll definitely talk about that We have got to do a couple episodes that's social, you know focus on social media Yeah, I've seen that and I think sometimes it's because there are a few of the groups that I am an admin on and things I think people get so comfortable in those groups Yeah, come their friends and their support system that they just go there for anything You seem that way. I'm making a souffle. How long do I keep it in the other? And it's always strange because as an admin there have been times we've had to like put our heads together with the other admins and say We can't really allow this because and yeah, yeah real things down past the fold and yeah, yeah That's tough, but I get that I'm gonna just a real quick one for that to follow up on that last question Right now, even as we're doing this podcast. I mentioned before that my ears are plugged up So yes, my ears are sloshing around you see me come home I know isn't do the clearing my ears thing a little bit. Yeah, so right now I am actually feeling a little bit dizzy because of the fluid in my ears but So I'm feeling dizzy So the point is That does trigger a little bit of anxiety So if I have to measure my anxiety level from a scale of one zero to ten, I would say I'm two right now Not zero And I'm a two because I'm feeling a little bit dizzy So when I move my head or move my you know, I'm feeling yeah, it takes me a second to get that oriented back I probably feel the same way as the person who asked you the question about not getting a hold on physical symptoms Yeah, yeah, it feels like I'm going to fall over the room spins for just a half a second or so and then stops What's the difference between the fact that I'm standing here calmly talking to you in a podcast feeling Or feeling that way and You know trying to do something about it or yeah to it in fear. So well, that's the difference You're not reaching for water or mints or right calling a friend or reacting to Yeah, so the best the advice I'm going to offer on that. How do you get past the physical symptoms? Acknowledge it. Yes. I feel dizzy and I'm just going to slowly and deliberately keep doing what it is I'm doing if I'm walking down the street I'm just going to keep walking down the street because I felt that way a thousand times. I've never fallen over I've never passed out. I'm just going to keep going Do it slowly and deliberately and I'm going to be soft in the face of that symptom not hard Yeah, I'm not going to fight it or brace or anything. I'm just I'm going to relax into that and just slowly and deliberately go about what I'm doing So Practically, that's the best advice I can offer on how can I get a hold of my physical symptoms? Let them be what you want to do. Anyway That's it. So there you go What else we got I'm done with questions me. I think we're done for this week I wonder like have we looked at our stats do people watch the whole videos? I think I know I don't look yeah, I never watch to see if people go the whole way I know one longer as we go. I know one person who watches them all Me I have to I have to just in case Yeah, yeah, that's it. Well, billy also makes the thumbnails for these so you have to find that perfect thumb that maybe that's you know I don't know if you like Do it again and all Very good. Um, okay, I guess we're done. So next week we'll be back again with another one the way we're doing this Just so people know we it's thursday morning right now We're recording on thursday morning or thursday morning in the u.s. Thursday afternoon for billy Yes, so we record on thursdays and we seem to publish on tuesdays So it's good. It gives you a couple of days So if you've got any questions that you want answering next week you can post them on this video It'll give us a couple of days to yeah Drum up some answers exactly and then answer them in the next video. So also the The uh, I know we've just slated facebook groups, but your group is not one of those It's a it's a good one. How do we find it? Okay, so it is I will post it in the video description I I don't know the I don't remember the url. It's one of those crazy facebook URLs But if you go to facebook.com slash that anxiety guy, I think there's a link to the group right there And there's maybe 50 people or so Um, but I'll put it in the video description on this one too Sounds good. So if you want everybody's welcome. Just something for me personally, it's not a plug at all Uh, no, I was gonna say like if somebody else is doing youtube videos if they're doing exposure therapy anything like that Then I always like sitting and having a look, you know watching other people progress and stuff So if anybody wants to share a channel link in the comments or anything like that Don't be afraid. We're not going to remove your comment if you want to share a channel do I'm with you on that You know, so we can just have a look and maybe you know if people want to bounce ideas Let's do it. Yeah. Yeah, I'm good. I'm totally good with that too. Yeah, Billy channel my channel wherever. It's all good Yeah, yeah, huge fan of success stories giant. Yeah. Yeah, so even and I don't mean like Hey, I'm cured anything like hey today. I made it to you know school. Yeah, whatever. I pick my kid up off the bus Share it those those are great I think some of the best things that we could do online and I think you and I would both agree One of the things we're trying to accomplish here is if we could build a community around this these videos and podcasts It would be one of encouragement and inspiration positivity. Yeah, definitely As opposed to just comparing symptoms and you know wallowing at it. So 100% yeah, bring it All right anxiety united.com to find billy, of course Yep, that anxiety guy com to find me that anxiety guy on twitter and facebook and youtube and all this stuff Keep the questions and comments coming. They're getting good We're getting there. Yeah, I like it. So we're building up some speedy. We totally are building up some speed. It's been good Yes, all right. We'll see you guys next week. We're out