The Happiness Lab with Dr. Laurie Santos cover image

The Happiness Lab with Dr. Laurie Santos

Stepping Off the Path of Anxiety

Jan 17, 2022
Andrea Wachter, a psychotherapist and meditation teacher, shares her journey battling anxiety and offers powerful coping strategies. She emphasizes the importance of self-compassion and mindfulness in recognizing and managing anxious thoughts. Listeners learn practical tools like focused breathing and reframing negative thoughts. Wachter also explores embracing emotions, including anger, as a pathway to emotional well-being, all while guiding toward a more fulfilling and satisfying life.
26:42

Episode guests

Podcast summary created with Snipd AI

Quick takeaways

  • Self-compassion and self-soothing techniques are crucial in managing anxiety.
  • Questioning anxious thoughts and using different voices can help separate ourselves from distortions.

Deep dives

Understanding Anxiety

In this podcast episode, anxiety is explored as a common emotion that many people struggle with. The speaker, Andrea Walter, shares her personal experiences with anxiety and discusses the physical and mental manifestations of this emotion. She explains that anxiety is often characterized by worrisome thoughts and sensations such as pit in the stomach, tightness in the chest, shaking, nausea, headaches, and fatigue. Andrea emphasizes the importance of self-compassion and self-soothing techniques in managing anxiety. She suggests tools like deep breathing, exercise, self-havening, and mindfulness to calm the nervous system and bring one's focus back to the present moment.

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