Disordered is the podcast that delivers real, evidence-based, actionable talk about anxiety disorders and anxiety recovery in a kind, compassionate, community-o...
BUT THIS REALLY HAPPENED!
You have an event in your past that you just can't stop thinking about and ruminating on, and the feelings you are getting about that event are incredibly intense and feel overpowering. Those feelings might include guilt, shame, embarrassment, anxiety, or worry about your status as a good person. But no matter how much you replay the event in your head or seek reassurance that it wasn't' as bad as you think, that never lasts and the cycle continues.
Welcome to Real Event OCD. This OCD variant is particularly stubborn because when we are struggling with REOCD your anxious mind will insist that all the most effective approaches to OCD are not applicable because "it really happened!"
This week we're talking about Real Event OCD. While it is true that the event you are fixated on really did happen, that does not change the rules of engagement .... or more accurately non-engagement. Sometimes things happen that aren't what we want. Sometimes events occur that make us afraid, unsure, worried, or very uncomfortable. In this episode we're chatting about this, and why the path through REOCD is to recognize that you're trying to solve a feeling that can't be - and doesn't need to be - solved.
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Disordered Roundtables are here. Think of it as "Disordered Live", a way for members of our audience to spend time with us in an intimate virtual setting (attendance is limited) to engage in real time sharing and discussion on specific anxiety disorder and recovery topics. To be notified when new Disordered Roundtable sessions are scheduled, visit our homepage and get on our mailing list.
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Struggling with worry and rumination that you feel you can't stop or control? Check out Worry and Rumination Explained, a two hour pre-recorded workshop produced by Josh and Drew. The workshop takes a deep dive into the mechanics of worrying and ruminating, offering some helpful ways to approach the seemingly unsolvable problem of trying to solve seemingly unsolveable problems.
https://bit.ly/worryrumination
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Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?
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39:59
Anxiety Insights w/Dr Sally Winston and Dr. Martin Seif (Episode 94)
This week on Disordered we're having a good old anxiety Q&A session, except the people answering the questions are legends in the area of anxiety disorders!
Drs Sally Winston and Marty Seif are here this week to take questions from our listeners and to share some of the insights they gained over years of working with anxiety disorders.
There's a reason why Sally and Marty are looked up to by so many in this field (including us!) so tune in to learn from two of most well informed and experienced anxiety experts on the planet today.
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Disordered Roundtables are here. Think of it as "Disordered Live", a way for members of our audience to spend time with us in an intimate virtual setting (attendance is limited) to engage in real time sharing and discussion on specific anxiety disorder and recovery topics. To be notified when new Disordered Roundtable sessions are scheduled, visit our homepage and get on our mailing list.
---
Struggling with worry and rumination that you feel you can't stop or control? Check out Worry and Rumination Explained, a two hour pre-recorded workshop produced by Josh and Drew. The workshop takes a deep dive into the mechanics of worrying and ruminating, offering some helpful ways to approach the seemingly unsolvable problem of trying to solve seemingly unsolveable problems.
https://bit.ly/worryrumination
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Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?
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53:54
Anxiety Recovery ... Chasing "Rest and Digest" (Episode 93)
"I MUST BE CALM OR ALL BETS ARE OFF!"
If this feels like a rule you're living by, you may find that you're chasing calm all the time, looking for ways to force your way into the coveted parasympathetic "rest and digest" state. Anxious people tend to work very hard to create calm and to maintain it at all costs.
This week on Disordered the guys are talking about "rest and digest" or the state of neutral calm that an anxious person would pay a large sum of money to achieve. What is rest and digest? How does one get into that parasympathetic state we hear about from all the wellness gurus online? There must be some way to calm and regulate your nervous system to get to that place, right?
Well, as usual, we're looking at a paradox here. An anxious person chasing calm - trying to force "rest and digest" - is not terribly likely to achieve or maintain that desired state.
Great. So are you and your anxiety stuck forever? Not really. Tune in and give this episode a listen for more on why demanding calm is generally a bad plan, and why its safe to stop doing that, even if you're really anxious!
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Disordered Roundtables are here. Think of it as "Disordered Live", a way for members of our audience to spend time with us in an intimate virtual setting (attendance is limited) to engage in real time sharing and discussion on specific anxiety disorder and recovery topics. To be notified when new Disordered Roundtable sessions are scheduled, visit our homepage and get on our mailing list.
---
Struggling with worry and rumination that you feel you can't stop or control? Check out Worry and Rumination Explained, a two hour pre-recorded workshop produced by Josh and Drew. The workshop takes a deep dive into the mechanics of worrying and ruminating, offering some helpful ways to approach the seemingly unsolvable problem of trying to solve seemingly unsolveable problems.
https://bit.ly/worryrumination
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Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?
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45:09
Anxiety Disorders .. The "Default Thought" (Episode 92)
There is a default thought that stands as thread that weaves itself throughout the life of a person struggling with disordered or chronic anxiety.
"How do I feel?"
This week Josh and Drew are looking at this default thought and the impact it has on an anxious person. All living humans will ask this question probably every day in some form, but anxious humans ask it as their default appraisal and monitoring strategy. It becomes inflated and twisted and takes over life at a level that is not in alignment with actual safety. An anxious person has no room to act in accordance with their true selves or what they value because the default thought keeps bringing everything back to anxiety and discomfort all day long.
If you're struggling with anxiety and find yourself on a default thought hamster wheel that you can't seem to get off, if you spend all day long checking in on how you feel, and if every situation you find yourself in always comes back to how you feel or might feel ... you're not alone in that and this episode is for you.
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Disordered Roundtables are here. Think of it as "Disordered Live", a way for members of our audience to spend time with us in an intimate virtual setting (attendance is limited) to engage in real time sharing and discussion on specific anxiety disorder and recovery topics. To be notified when new Disordered Roundtable sessions are scheduled, visit our homepage and get on our mailing list.
---
Struggling with worry and rumination that you feel you can't stop or control? Check out Worry and Rumination Explained, a two hour pre-recorded workshop produced by Josh and Drew. The workshop takes a deep dive into the mechanics of worrying and ruminating, offering some helpful ways to approach the seemingly unsolvable problem of trying to solve seemingly unsolveable problems.
https://bit.ly/worryrumination
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Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?
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36:07
I Get So Anxious When I'm Sick! (Episode 91)
"When I am ill, my anxiety goes through the roof!"
Does this sound familiar? Many people struggling with disordered anxiety will say that if they get sick or feel unwell (i.e. a cold, a sore throat, the flu, etc.) they find that they are extremely anxious. If you experience this struggle, its not just you.
This week Drew and Josh are examining the mechanics behind your over-productive threat monitoring system and why being sick or unwell can often push you into high alert mode with your anxious mind constantly scanning, measuring, evaluating, and worrying about how you feel moment to moment.
Anxious people are generally terrible at tolerating discomfort and uncertainty, and that nasty sinus infection that has you down is probably also doing a good job of triggering both of those things.
Here's a spoiler alert (but listen anyway) ... choosing to actively involve yourself in persistent worry and body scanning and evaluating your safety when sick is not keeping you any safer or making you feel any better. Get the medical support you might need of course, but once you have your plan and you've DONE all you can do ... its time to practice tolerating that feeling of discomfort, the fear, and the uncertainty.
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Disordered Roundtables are here. Think of it as "Disordered Live", a way for members of our audience to spend time with us in an intimate virtual setting (attendance is limited) to engage in real time sharing and discussion on specific anxiety disorder and recovery topics. To be notified when new Disordered Roundtable sessions are scheduled, visit our homepage and get on our mailing list.
---
Struggling with worry and rumination that you feel you can't stop or control? Check out Worry and Rumination Explained, a two hour pre-recorded workshop produced by Josh and Drew. The workshop takes a deep dive into the mechanics of worrying and ruminating, offering some helpful ways to approach the seemingly unsolvable problem of trying to solve seemingly unsolveable problems.
https://bit.ly/worryrumination
-----
Want to ask us questions, share your wins, or get more information about Josh, Drew, and the Disordered podcast?
Disordered is the podcast that delivers real, evidence-based, actionable talk about anxiety disorders and anxiety recovery in a kind, compassionate, community-oriented environment. Josh Fletcher is a qualified psychotherapist in the UK. Drew Linsalata is a therapist practicing under supervision in the US. They're both bestselling authors in the anxiety and mental health space. Josh and Drew are funny, friendly, and they have a knack for combining lived experience, formal training, and professional experience in an encouraging, inspiring, and compassionate mental health message.
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