You know why you become anxious when someone pulls away. You can trace your perfectionism back to the expectations you grew up with. You understand why you find it difficult to ask for help, why you apologize so quickly, or why rest can feel uncomfortable even when you are exhausted. And yet, when the familiar […]

Anxiety has a way of becoming the thing we organize our lives around. We try to understand it, manage it, and make it go away. We search for the right explanation, the right coping strategy, the right amount of reassurance. And when it returns, we may feel as though we have failed to make progress. […]

You have already thought through the situation. You know the meeting will probably be fine, that your friend is unlikely to be upset with you, or that the strange sensation in your body is probably nothing serious. You have reassured yourself, perhaps more than once. And yet, the worry returns. This can be one of […]