Our society today is facing an epidemic of anxiety. Despite technology that promises to make our lives faster and easier, it seems that we’re more anxious than ever. In 2020, Google searches for “anxiety” reached an all-time high.

We have to look beyond the diagnosis of anxiety and seek to find the root cause of why so many people are living with such high stress and dysregulation that are creating anxiety. There is something bigger going on here.

And since we’re whole humans, we need to look at the whole picture – mind, body and spirit – when thinking about how we heal and manage anxiety.

My guest on this show, Dr. Ellen Vora, is a psychiatrist who takes a functional medicine approach to anxiety, looking at mental health factors and physical health factors, such as sleep, digestion and blood sugar, that can add up to throw us out of balance and contribute to feelings of anxiety.

She also helps us to distinguish between feelings of anxiety that come from a physical imbalance vs. true anxiety, which comes from our inner compass telling us something truly isn’t ok.

Listen to discover:

What's causing our current epidemic of anxiety
The connection between sleep and anxiety
Why blood sugar imbalances can cause "false anxiety"
The difference between true anxiety and false anxiety
The many reasons for cell phone-induced anxiety
Spirituality and anxiety management
A psychiatrist’s honest opinion about psychedelics, medications and anxiety

We need to start taking a “layered” approach to treating and managing anxiety by looking at the physical, emotional, mental and spiritual elements of our lives and how they work together to create stress or health.

This hopeful approach to anxiety empowers us all to make choices that support our well-being, even in the face of real personal and mental health challenges.

"I was sort of taking the temperature of our society, and the temperature right now is anxiety." - Dr. Ellen Vora

"False anxiety is anxiety that is not our true essence." - Dr. Ellen Vora

"It's not just one thing that we have to look at." - Michelle Chalfant

"Genes plays a role, but that keeps a lot of us feeling stuck and feeling destined to be anxious....it's more dynamic than we appreciate." - Dr. Ellen Vora

"Our problems, our stressors are still valid. It's just that if we had a snack and our blood sugar was more stable in that moment, we would be more resilient in the face of our stressors." - Dr. Ellen Vora

"Our mind is the consummate meaning maker." - Dr. Ellen Vora

“It’s not like we have to dramatically change everything that we do, but we just want to make informed choices.” - Dr. Ellen Vora

“We don’t get to gluten free or decaf coffee our way out of our true anxiety.” - Dr. Ellen Vora

“I would have my clients sit in their bodies and feel what was going on, and their physical symptoms would start to change.” - Michelle Chalfant

“[Anxiety] is the physical manifestation of unfelt emotions.” - Michelle Chalfant

“It’s our body that’s able to listen and really dial in and tap into a deeper knowing.” - Dr. Ellen Vora

“It’s turning toward the anxiety instead of turning away from.” - Michelle Chalfant

“We reach outside of ourselves to ‘fix us’…and it doesn’t end it. We’ve gotta get to the root.” - Michelle Chalfant

“We need to change our narrative of what is materially possible.” - Dr. Ellen Vora

“We’re never stuck. We are never broken.” - Dr. Ellen Vora

LINKS & RESOURCES

Dr. Ellen Vora Website

https://ellenvora.com/

Dr. Ellen Vora Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/ellenvoramd/

"The Anatomy of Anxiety" (Dr. Ellen Vora book)

https://www.amazon.com/Anatomy-Anxiety-Understanding-Overcoming-Response/dp/0063075091

The Self-Worth Meditation Bundle

https://theadultchair.com/worthy

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