Talking Back to Anxiety

Anyone who suffers from anxiety knows what it feels like to be told, “you should just…” followed by some oversimplified answer. Or the sentence ends in some technique you’ve already tried (and tried). My favorite advice regarding my driving issue is, “Just get on the highway.” This pearl comes straight…

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Aren’t There Drugs for That?

Yes, there are medications for anxiety. Why am I not taking them? A year after my first panic attack, my therapeutic plan was to force myself to drive and continue to get onto highways, the stimulus for my panic attacks. You know, “getting back on the horse.” It wasn’t the…

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Cold Water: Original Freakout

I feel like I’ve been holding out on you, dear readers. A weekend in March, just before I began this blog, something happened that I haven’t shared with you—the incident, in fact, that renewed my determination to get better and convinced me to start this blog. *** When whitewater paddling…

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Some Thoughts on Thunder

Thunder in the distance tonight sounds like trembling. And the recliner is shuddering because my dog, Cleo, is hiding underneath the footrest. Sometimes Cleo will go outside in the thunder, even though thunder—or rain, which suggests the prospect of thunder—terrifies her if she’s in the house. I wonder if this…

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