Welcome to season 3 of Us Anxious Folk!

In this rather rambly, personally-focused episode, I talk about the challenges I've been facing lately - from transition periods and the book launch, to some very confronting emotions and feeling like giving up.

Please be aware, this episode includes stories about some tough feels, so please only listen if you are in a space to do so :)

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If you would like to be a guest on the podcast and share your anxiety story, please get in touch with me at hello@iamlaurenrose.com. I would love to have you!

My Website - http://iamlaurenrose.com My Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/laurenr_rose In this episode of Us Anxious Folk, I talk about the concept of 'letting the fear come with you' when you do exposures, or when you head out of your comfort zone, or...really, when you do anything with anxiety and panic! Because we all know that it can be one thing to say 'you need to accept the fear'...but it's another thing altogether to actually learn how to do that. In this ep, we find out how.

I cover: how understanding our body's natural responses—like adrenaline—can help reduce panic.How reframing fear-related sensations as neutral or even positive can shift our mindset and reduce anxiety. Plus, I'll explore the power of mindfulness and being present with discomfort and fear, to build emotional resilience and foster personal growth. ------------------ If you would like to be a guest on the podcast and share your anxiety story, please get in touch with me at hello@iamlaurenrose.com. I would love to have you!

In this episode of Us Anxious Folk, I'm joined by licensed psychotherapist, author and trauma professional Duygu Balan.

Duygu talks to us about the value of creativity in healing from anxiety and trauma, why the body is the gatekeeper to building a relationship with our fears, and how we can get to learn safety and self-compassion within a body that feels perpetually unsafe.

We talk about the joys of connection, including the use of social media and the impact on our mental health, and setting healthy boundaries with one another.

We discuss the nature of being human, the spectrum of human emotion and experience, and daily practices to help you connect with and harness the power and beauty of your human nature.

Duygu is the co-author of Confidently Chill: An Anxiety Workbook for New Adults and Re-Write: A Trauma Workbook of Creative Writing and Recovery in Our New Normal

You can find her at her website https://www.duygubalan.com/ and instagram https://www.instagram.com/duygubalan/

In this requested episode of Us Anxious Folk, I talk about what happens when you start to experience apathy with recovery.

Moving through anxiety and panic can be so challenging, and takes such a physical and emotional toll, that when you get to a place of being able to exist semi-comfortably (read: still very much in a restricted 'comfort zone') it can be almost too tempting to stay there. You lose the motivation to keep 'trying', because it's already taken so long to just get where you are now.

How do we get that motivation back? How do we light a fire within us to want to try, when we've worked so hard at putting out the anxiety fire within us?! How can we turn apathy into a drive to really get out there, to figure out what we want and how we want to get it?

Listen to this episode to find out 😎 Mentioned in this episode:https://www.instagram.com/p/C9ZnlYXogUV/ Time Will Pass Anyway - Adam Russell ( @wordswithruss )

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If you would like to be a guest on the podcast and share your anxiety story, please get in touch with me at hello@iamlaurenrose.com. I would love to have you!

My Website - http://iamlaurenrose.com My Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/laurenr_rose In this episode of Us Anxious Folk, I bring you another discussion on the topic of toilet anxiety. I talk about the pressure of living in a world where we are pushed to be perfect and likeable, coupled with the insidious nature of social media, and how this results in us feeling like we are under a microscope. Are we forgetting that it's okay to be human? That it's normal to have bodily functions, and that in trying so desperately to exist in an 'acceptable' way, we've somehow made it impossible to be who we really are? ------------------ If you would like to be a guest on the podcast and share your anxiety story, please get in touch with me at hello@iamlaurenrose.com. I would love to have you!

In this episode of Us Anxious Folk, I talk about 'fatigue of the spirit', which according to Claire Weekes (the Australian physician famous for her work with nervous suffering) is what occurs alongside mental fatigue and physical fatigue, when we are speaking of long-term anxiety and panic.

I discuss the five things that I think are critical to help heal this spiritual exhaustion, and how we can find ourselves back to a place of feeling invigorated and alive in the world again.

You can find Claire Weekes books here ⁠https://www.amazon.com.au/Complete-Self-Help-Nerves-Claire-Weekes/dp/0732287073/ref=pd_lpo_sccl_3/357-6850995-8620202?pd_rd_w=YA04O&content-id=amzn1.sym.7ef4c059-30c9-4984-b131-e38134d0b653&pf_rd_p=7ef4c059-30c9-4984-b131-e38134d0b653&pf_rd_r=A15WZTZHTYH4FF88Z50D&pd_rd_wg=jqpo0&pd_rd_r=68321b21-5be4-4a98-a587-38a398f7da30&pd_rd_i=0732287073&psc=1⁠

and some audio here

⁠https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IlMsNAcsUSg⁠

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If you would like to be a guest on the podcast and share your anxiety story, please get in touch with me at hello@iamlaurenrose.com.

I would love to have you!

My Website - http://iamlaurenrose.com My Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/laurenr_rose **TRIGGER WARNING: this episode discusses sensitive topics such as self-harm and sexual assault** In this episode of Us Anxious Folk, I talk to Demi Slater, a cyber-security student from London. Demi discusses her struggles with anxiety, self-harm, and the difficulty in obtaining mental health diagnoses and treatment. She reflects on her journey of trying different forms of therapy, including CBT and DBT, and receiving specialized therapy for PTSD following a sexual assault.

Demi emphasizes the importance of self-compassion, open communication about mental health, and the challenges of seeking and navigating mental health care, as well as the significance of supportive relationships and humor as coping mechanisms.

We talk about stigma, medication, and the what the journey towards self-acceptance and self-love looks like. If you would like to get in touch with Demi, you can find her at https://www.instagram.com/semiquaver/ If you would like to be a guest on Us Anxious Folk to share your anxiety story, please get in touch with me at hello@iamlaurenrose.com. I would love to have you!

In today's episode of Us Anxious Folk, we are delving into the concept of presence, and how we can truly 'be with' our anxiety in order to encourage and grow a nurturing and healing relationship with the stickier emotions (like panic and discomfort!)

We spend so much time and energy trying to cure ourselves of the uncomfortable feelings...but what if we were instead spending time and energy on really getting to know those uncomfortable feelings. Spending time exploring their edges, becoming familiar with the depths of our fears. How would this change the relationship we have with ourselves?

For me, the goalpost has been shifting for a while now; I'm less willing to spend time 'solving', and more open to spend time just being present with exactly what's here.

If you would like to share your story on Us Anxious Folk, please get in touch with me at "hello@iamlaurenrose.com"