A psychologist shares her personal and professional journey in understanding and treating anxiety. She discusses the evolutionary benefits of anxiety, the problems excessive anxiety can cause, and her son's struggles with fear. Through her experiences, she discovers cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) as an effective treatment. She emphasizes the importance of facing fears directly and provides practical tools for managing anxiety, such as externalizing worries, correcting thinking mistakes, and gradual exposure. Her work leads to successful self-help books for children and a personal breakthrough in overcoming her own public speaking anxiety using CBT techniques.
Here are the key facts extracted from the text:
1. The speaker, a psychologist, gave a TEDx talk about anxiety.
2. The speaker's son, Eli, was anxious as a child and had many fears.
3. Eli's parents tried to reassure him and help him avoid things he was afraid of, but his anxiety continued to grow.
4. The speaker took Eli to a therapist who diagnosed him with a fear of penetration related to Freud-Oedipal issues.
5. The speaker didn't find the therapist's diagnosis helpful.
6. The speaker discovered cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and decided to try it with Eli.
7. CBT is based on the idea that thoughts, feelings, and actions are interconnected.
8. The speaker and Eli worked on changing Eli's actions to help him overcome his anxiety.
9. Eli was afraid of bees, so the speaker bribed him to go outside with the promise of $10 if he got stung.
10. Eli got stung and handled it well, and his fear of bees began to fade.
11. The speaker realized that she was also anxious about public speaking, despite being a national expert on anxiety.
12. The speaker decided to use CBT to overcome her own anxiety about public speaking.
13. Exposure is a cognitive behavioral intervention that involves gradually facing one's fears.
14. The speaker created a hierarchy of challenges to help her overcome her anxiety about public speaking.
15. The speaker eventually became comfortable with public speaking and was able to give a TEDx talk.
16. The speaker discussed three common thinking mistakes that can fuel anxiety: overestimating likelihood, catastrophizing, and self-doubt.
17. The speaker emphasized the importance of externalizing anxiety and recognizing that thoughts are not necessarily true or useful.
18. The speaker suggested that deep breathing, mindfulness exercises, and distraction can be helpful tools in managing anxiety.
19. The speaker concluded that anxiety is like a Chinese finger trap, and that the way to overcome it is to relax and move towards one's fears.