Finding Your Why - The First Step to Dealing With Anxiety - Anxiety Course Day 1/30

Summary

This video script emphasizes the importance of taking radical responsibility for one's anxiety, rather than seeking to merely eliminate it. It illustrates how avoiding anxiety can shrink one's world and suggests that the real goal should be to enrich life with meaningful experiences, despite anxiety. The course aims to teach skills for better managing anxiety, fostering a healthier relationship with it, and ultimately leading a life filled with joy and purpose.

Takeaways

• 📝 The course encourages participants to take radical responsibility for their anxiety, aiming to change controllable aspects rather than avoiding anxiety altogether.
• ✍️ It's important to write down goals for the course to have a clear vision of what one wants to achieve, which can be done in a workbook or in the comments section.
• 🚫 The instructor emphasizes that the course will not teach avoidance of anxiety but instead focus on managing it effectively.
• 🎭 A story about 8th graders facing anxiety during auditions and tryouts illustrates the difference between facing anxiety and avoiding it to protect oneself.
• 📉 Avoiding anxiety can lead to a shrinking world, causing more misery and potentially increasing anxiety levels.
• 🤝 The course aims to improve one's relationship with anxiety by developing skills like clear communication and setting healthy boundaries.
• 🏋️‍♀️ The instructor will teach various skills to decrease anxiety and change one's perspective towards it, promoting tolerance and acceptance.
• 🎯 The primary goal is not just to reduce anxiety but to enrich life with meaningful experiences, relationships, and accomplishments.
• 🤔 The script highlights that anxiety itself is not the problem; it's the attempts to escape it that can diminish the quality of life.
• 🌟 The course will challenge participants to do hard things, emphasizing the need for a strong 'why' to motivate oneself to face and manage anxiety.

Q & A

What is the main goal of the course mentioned in the script?

The main goal of the course is not just to make anxiety go away, but to help participants improve their relationship with anxiety, decrease it, and fill their lives with things they care about, thus making life more awesome again.

Why does the script suggest that setting the goal of feeling less anxious can be problematic?

Setting the goal of feeling less anxious can be problematic because it leads to cutting out parts of life that cause anxiety, which in turn shrinks one's world and can make life more miserable, potentially increasing anxiety.

What example is given in the script to illustrate the impact of anxiety on people's decisions?

The script provides the example of 8th graders auditioning for plays and trying out for sports teams. Some, despite high anxiety, faced it to achieve their goals, while others avoided it to make their anxiety go away, leading to a different impact on their lives.

How does the script differentiate between two groups of kids with high anxiety regarding their approach to auditions?

The script differentiates the two groups by their actions: one group faced their anxiety and auditioned, while the other avoided auditioning to eliminate their anxiety.

What is the paradox of anxiety mentioned in the script?

The paradox of anxiety is that the more we try to make it go away, the more we signal to our brain that anxiety is important, which can make the brain amplify it, leading to increased anxiety.

What common behaviors are described in the script that people engage in to avoid anxiety?

Common behaviors include avoiding social situations due to social anxiety, engaging in compulsive behaviors in response to OCD, seeking constant reassurance, and worrying to prevent disappointment.

How does the script suggest that worry can fuel anxiety?

The script suggests that worry can fuel anxiety by causing individuals to focus on avoiding anxiety, which paradoxically increases the focus on anxiety and can lead to more worry and anxiety.

What is the script's stance on the idea of 'dead people goals' in relation to anxiety?

The script argues against 'dead people goals,' which is the idea of trying to not feel anything, including anxiety. It states that only dead people don't feel any anxiety, implying that it's unrealistic and unhealthy to aim for a life without any anxiety.

What exercise is recommended in the script to help participants envision a life without anxiety controlling their choices?

The script recommends a visualization exercise where participants imagine doing the things they love, being around the people they love, and chasing their dreams without anxiety controlling their choices.

What is the script's advice on dealing with difficult relationships in the context of anxiety?

The script advises that instead of avoiding difficult relationships, one should learn new skills such as clear communication, setting healthy boundaries, and assertive problem-solving to improve the relationship and reduce the impact of the difficult person on their life.

How does the script define 'radical responsibility' in relation to anxiety?

The script defines 'radical responsibility' as taking charge of one's anxiety, which involves changing the things that can be changed and learning the skills to do so, rather than just trying to cope with anxiety.