 What up peeps? Welcome back to the anxious truth Book launch edition this week. This is podcast episode number 173 I am Drew lincellata creator and host of this fine program and coincidentally and congruently with this week's episode I'm also the author of seven percent slower a simple trick for moving past anxiety and stress which launched this week I'm pretty happy about that my latest book. It is by the time you listen to this it will be available at least on kindle and Print and audiobook are coming over the next seven to ten days by the time you listen You're probably going to be able to see all of it You can find it at seven percent slower calm all the stuff is there But before we get too much into marketing because I'm not here to sell books today Why are we going to talk about the concept of seven percent slower today? I want to tell you what it's all about and then we're going to listen to a chapter from the book today So we're going to listen to chapter three which is called What does your speed response look like so you're going to get a free chapter from the book in this podcast episode in a few minutes? And if you go to my website at seven percent slower calm at the bottom of that page You can jump on my mailing list and I will send you download links so that you can listen to or read chapter one So you can have two chapters of this book on me before you ever go and get it Which I did go like giving away stuff So there you go before we get into the sample chapter. Let's talk about seven percent slower Here is the bottom line when it comes to seven percent slower if you can learn to slow down While anxiety stress fear and panic are demanding that you speed up Good things happen over time I'm going to repeat that because it's like the most important part of this whole thing if you can learn to slow down When anxiety and panic are telling you to speed up good things will happen over time This is really important. That's why seven percent slower exists in the first place It's why I kind of came up with it for my own uses like way back in 2008 as a little mental device And here's what this is all about. Let's go through the basic premise of what seven percent slower is and why it matters to you And then we'll get into the sample chapter So baked in to your anxiety response your fear response your stress response your panic response is The act of rushing around and speeding up speed is baked into that for most people the majority of people Yes, some people kind of deal with the freeze response and they don't necessarily speed up But most of us do have speed as a baked in part of our anxiety and fear response So if you think about that when you get anxious when you begin to panic when you're afraid when you're super stressed Odds are you begin rushing around you begin speeding up and when I surveyed the community It was almost the universal answers. I walk faster. I try to talk faster. I stumble with my words I stutter I forget words. I drop things. I fumble with things. I can't write or hold a pen I engage with my racing thoughts. I breathe faster. They we do everything faster Everything I was doing it like I was working on my recovery I was willing to go and do those hard things going into those exposures going toward my fear and every time I did it Of course, I was willing to feel really afraid anxiety and even panic. I was fine when I wasn't fine I didn't like it but I was willing to do that to get better And every time I would experience those things While it got dicey because I would really start to rush around. So if I went for a drive Everything I was doing in that car was at high speed because I was anxious I was afraid in some instances I was in a panic And I would speed up speed up speed up everything I was doing In all parts of my life no matter what it was when I was really anxious I was speeding up and I realized like this is not helping me because like it or not that's not helping you Right. So the idea that speeding up when you get anxious and afraid it's kind of automatic. That's true But it doesn't have to be an absolute thing. We can learn To go against that we can learn to slow down And that's the premise of all this if you can learn to slow down when anxiety wants you to speed up Good things happen over time not because going slower is a magic cure for your anxiety problem It's not none of the things I talk about taken by themselves as some sort of magic anxiety or panic shield But when you learn to do this good things happen over time because it is part of building this new reaction and response in relations to Anxiety and fear and panic you hear me talk about that all the time What is recovery recovery is building a new response a new default response to anxiety panic and fear It's building a new relationship with those things learning to go through them instead of trying to go run away from them That's recovery. That's what recovery looks like and part and parcel of that Is reversing your natural tendency to speed up when you get afraid So when you can learn to slow down when anxiety is telling you to speed up good things happen over time I've now said that like five times in this episode. You're gonna be really tired of it by the time we're over It's over, but it's true So the object behind seven percent slower is that the book is designed to Show you what that is right teach you why that happens Help you understand what your particular rushing around habits look like and then teach you how to identify those And how to back away from them and how to slow down So let's talk about what's going on. Why is it going on? How can you recognize your rushing around habits? And what can you do to literally begin to break those habits and slow down instead? That's what the book is all about. It's a short read It'll take you about two hours two and a half hours to read most people even read read in less than that So it's super friendly. It's full of all kinds of humor and jokes and it's very accessible If you read the anxious truth, that's like a 400 page almost a textbook on recovery It's like going through a college course on anxiety recovery seven percent slower is much much easier It's much lighter. It's much more friendly. It's much more accessible It's fun to most people that are reading it say it's fun to read while also being educational and informative So that's what seven percent slower is all about it's learning to slow down and how that helps us Build this new relationship with anxiety panic fear and stress Like it is part and parcel of making a better life And it was for me too I came up with the concept Way back in my own recovery because I was having a hard time remembering to slow down And my ridiculous brain at one point just came up with the idea of going seven percent slower Because it's ridiculous and absurd and you cannot calculate seven percent slower But it was silly enough that my brain latched on to it and remembered it So that little mental device that I sort of came up with on my own that I never thought would be anything turned into this Uh, and it kind of like it's become part of my life going seven percent slower is literally part of my life on a daily basis But I didn't think about it for many many years because they didn't have to But in the last year or so, you know within the community surrounding the podcast my social media community and having the privilege to work One on one with some people Yeah, that came back out as I'm trying to teach people to go slower I'm like, oh yeah try going seven percent slower and the response was almost universally positive like oh my god that works for me It's a ridiculous little mental device You know the act of learning to slow down isn't revolutionary but the using the mental device seven percent slower helps people to remember And uh, you know the response was so good that I discovered well, this has to be a book and so I wrote a book All right, so that is the idea behind seven percent slower. I think it's a great lesson This is a good tool to have in your toolkit learning how to go slower learning how to recognize that you are rushing Know why you're rushing and know what to do about that is a huge help in anxiety recovery It was for me. It's love for a lot of people and for people who are now reading the book. They are discovering. Oh my goodness This is a big deal And I'm really proud of that So let's get into chapter three of the book again If you go to seven percent slower com and get on my mailing list you can download chapter one Of the book but we're going to listen now to chapter three called. What does your speed response look like? Probably only last about another six minutes or so this chapter is short the whole book is short And then I'll come back in at the end and we'll wrap up the episode like I usually do So I hope you guys enjoy chapter three of seven percent slower. Here we go Chapter three What does your speed response look like? Rushing is a thing we often do without realizing that we're doing it This is why in the last chapter I pointed out that you've likely been told to slow down by anyone observing you in speed demon mode Your lizard brain is hella fast It operates quickly enough that you can't really interact with its process until the launch sequence has been activated So you will find yourself rushing around and running through life before you even know it This is standard So don't feel bad when you discover that you were in high gear and you feel like your brain has tricked you again We all get tricked. This is how humans work But once you realize it then you can do something about it You are not doomed to a life of frantic activity. You're not even doomed to a day or hour of it Not only that but you can pump to behavioral and cognitive breaks and change things You may have to repeat this exercise quite often to master it, but that's okay, too This is what you need to do to retrain your lizard brain successfully But let's not get ahead of ourselves Before you can enact any major change it helps to recognize what your particular speed response looks like Often the first signs of stress and fear based acceleration can be found in your thoughts Or what you tell yourself when responding to fear anxiety and stress Typical thoughts and self-talk statements can look like this Oh my god, I hate this I need to get out of here. I just want this over as quickly as possible I need to get back to my comfort zone fast My body just has a mind of its own I feel trapped and I have to get out now All I want to do is get this done so I can relax I don't have time for this now. I have so much to worry about and do Do any of those thoughts or statements sound familiar to you? When anxious stressed or afraid take a quick inventory of what you think about and what you say to yourself It might help for you to take a short break now grab a pen and paper and jot down the usual thoughts that pop into your anxious Brain when you are feeling at the height of your anxiety Which of those statements are demands for speed? Which will trigger the rushing around? Which thoughts focus on the future specifically getting through the current situation so you can find safety calm or relaxation to feel better This little exercise of simply jotting down the thoughts that plague your anxious brain Can help you identify the signs of your speed response So you can act to interrupt that process and oh, I don't know slow down by some small percentage Let's examine some physical signs and manifestations of your speed response When anxious afraid and stressed you may engage in some or all of these habits Breath holding Shortening your walking stride Increasing your walking speed Tensing your muscles Grimacing or clenching your jaw Darting your eyes back and forth Fumbling or dropping things Shaking Stumbling over your words Theoriously doom scrolling through your favorite social media feeds Engaging in the self hug or hunching over in a defensive posture Of course these thinking and behavioral habits are not necessarily rushing behaviors by themselves They are indicators though flags Signals you can check for when you find yourself engaging in enough of them at the same time There is a good chance that you are rushing around because you are anxious afraid or stressed to the max Another way you can tell that you are in escape focused speed demon mode is by how you manage your behaviors and thoughts Are you ending conversations quickly and unnaturally to get away from being trapped? Are you leaving tasks unfinished dropping them on the floor and making a half-hearted promise to yourself to return and complete them when you feel better Are you postponing the tasks or appointments that lie ahead of you? Because you just want to get through the discomfort you're feeling and return to a position of safety soothing and increased calm Do you find yourself putting your head down and refusing to engage with the world around you to more quickly exit the situation you are in? These are all valuable hints that tell you when your lizard brain has ordered your brain and body into high gear These behaviors all represent efforts to escape from your anxiety and fear triggers or whatever is ramping up your stress level The following are the cognitive and behavioral calling cards of your speed response thinking quickly, but not terribly effectively with the goal of escape propelling your body through space and time so quickly that your physical function suffers And terminating engagements and existing situations because you have had enough or feel that you can't handle it These are the signs telling you that you are on the fear and stress autobahn On this road, there is no speed limit and going as fast as possible to escape is the only goal that matters to you Before you can learn to go slower Maybe seven percent slower You will need to learn how to recognize your speed response and rushing habits so you can intervene and correct your reaction Here is your first little hack designed to help you slow things down After you take the time to jot down all your rushing and speed habits Take more time to refer to your list a few times a day Learning to go seven percent slower requires that you treat this task like studying for an exam The more you go over your notes the more familiar you will be with the material Know your habits firmly implant them in your head Knowing them well will help you as we go down this road After you've done your homework and gone over your speed habits Do your best to insert a pause somewhere in the first minute or so of your anxiety or stress response When you feel the emotion welling up and you know You're nearing the end of your fear or stress rope and want to explode stop Just for 30 seconds Go back to your speed habits list If you need a cheat sheet keep your list on your phone to access it fast Scan the list mentally or on your phone Then make a note to remind yourself to be on the lookout for your thinking and behavioral habits This serves two purposes One it will help you recognize when you go into high gear more quickly so you can act to downshift Slow down before you get carried away Two paying attention to your speed habits means you are paying less attention to your anxiety and stress-fueling thoughts Shift your job from responding to catastrophic and negative thoughts to paying attention to what you're actually doing from moment to moment It is harder to pour fuel on your fear and stress fire when you are actively engaged in a more productive task If you have been listening to my podcast or reading my other books You may be jumping up and down now and screaming, but drew isn't that distraction if you are good job It's the right question to ask Here's the difference and why moving your mind to make better decisions is not a distraction You've heard me talk about how intent matters and in this situation you are not attempting to drown out anxiety fear or stress You are engaging in a productive task Even while feeling stress-based or fear-based sensations and hearing fear and stress-based thoughts This first little hack isn't designed to distract you It is perfectly in alignment with our desire to learn to function productively even when we feel that we can't Know your speed and rushing habits then start working on recognizing them when they get triggered This is your first step toward going seven percent slower Alrighty, I hope you guys enjoyed chapter three of seven percent slower Hopefully it was informative and lightning educational entertaining. Who knows whatever it is Uh, so that is this week's episode I appreciate you guys coming by if you would like to know more about Seven percent slower about the concept of learning to slow down when anxiety wants you to speed up Head on over to seven percent slower.com Again, you can join my mailing list and get chapter one for free You'll see quotes from the book. You'll see reviews of the book You'll see a synopsis of the book and all the links on where to get it is there So go check that out and I will end the podcast as always with afterglow by my buddy ben drake You can find ben and all of his music at ben drake music.com. He's a good dude. Just go check him out And uh, if you are listening to this podcast on itunes or spotify or any place where you can leave a rating or review Please take a minute and rate the podcast five stars is awesome And then maybe write a quick review because it does help other people find the podcast And helping as many people as we can is why I do this and hopefully why you guys do this along with me So thanks again for coming by oh and by the way if you own seven percent slower And you have read it and you dig it then head on over to amazon and review it for me I always appreciate that all right peeps. I am out of here. Thanks again for giving me your time and attention I will see you in the next podcast episode next week and as always remember This is the way You