FAQ about the cause of anxiety

Link to the session where I found the root cause of the anxiety trigger I presented in the video

A condensed summary with key takeaways of the sessions is here.

The full audio of the session can be found here.

https://youtu.be/2t98uGW0Gfc

What I mean by unconscious

Things that exist–especially aspects of ourselves–that we are not fully aware of. I’ve written about this in more detail here. The dictionary definition for reference.

What I mean by anxiety

I’ve answered that in a video here.

Text summary: When attempting to do something or trying to rest, our hearts may race, we may feel fidgety, and we might sweat or feel like our body’s temperature is uncomfortably rising or high. While experiencing this, we may find it difficult to think straight or focus on whatever we’re doing at the moment. These symptoms may compel us to avoid situations or people we think will trigger these symptoms in us. The worldviews and beliefs that fuel social anxiety often fuel anxiety in general which is why addressing social anxiety can reduce overall anxiety.

The solution to the trigger in my case study:

Here.

Note: It’s possible the people at dinner weren’t thinking about me not being equal. Regardless, I want the emotional fortitude to be undisturbed and anxious-free if a situation like this really did or does happen.

How what I’ve presented here is supported by Stoic philosophy

Precursors of certain fundamental aspects of CBT have been identified in various ancient philosophical traditions, particularly Stoicism.¹[1] Stoic philosophers, particularly Epictetus, believed logic could be used to identify and discard false beliefs that lead to destructive emotions, which has influenced the way modern cognitive-behavioral therapists identify cognitive distortions that contribute to depression and anxiety. Aaron T. Beck’s original treatment manual for depression states, “The philosophical origins of cognitive therapy can be traced back to the Stoic philosophers”.²[2] Another example of Stoic influence on cognitive theorists is Epictetus on Albert Ellis.³

How can I validate/test what’s been presented here for myself?

To do this, we recommend you reflect on these 3 questions:
A) Why is it that two people can be witnessing or going through the same event, but only one person gets anxious while the other person has no anxiety? You may have experienced this phenomenon yourself with a friend or family member.
B) Think of your most understood anxiety trigger. You might find that you can articulate why you get anxious about the trigger. By doing this, have you not articulated the reasons (and thus beliefs) why you’re anxious about the trigger? You described the reasons you get anxious about the trigger, but there may be someone else in the world who doesn’t view your answers as reasons to be anxious about your trigger.
C) Think of something that used to make you anxious in the past. What is about that thing that made you anxious? Why aren’t you anxious about it anymore? Correct me if I’m wrong, but I bet it’s because you no longer have or see reasons to be anxious about it anymore.

This is cute but how do I get rid of my physical anxiety triggers?

A video of my 3-step recommendation for conquering anxiety is here. These are the steps:

Understanding the cause of anxiety is the first step which the video you just watched covers. I have a free ebook called Why Am I Anxious: Understanding the Root Cause of Anxiety if you’d like to understand the cause of anxiety in written format.

The next step is to learn how to eliminate anxiety triggers which I cover in my ebook, Fight-or-Flight: Eliminate Anxiety Triggers with the Option Method. The sometimes hard part in eliminating anxiety is being able to uncover anxiety-causing beliefs because they’re often unconscious. In a short read, Eliminate Anxiety Triggers with the Option Method shows you how to uncover and discard anxiety-causing beliefs so you can neutralize your triggers.

The technique in the book is based on the Option Method created by Bruce Di Marsico The Option Method which anyone can learn or use. Both books I’ve shared can be finished in less than a day.

Why this book over other Option Method books and free material

The Option Method can be applied for several psychological problems but this book digests how to use it specifically for physical anxiety. It contains unique insights from applying the Option Method on myself to improve my anxiety symptoms and contains the expert knowledge I gained from training under a practitioner who has been teaching and practicing with the method or 30+ years. While training, I completed a practicum.

Although the Option Method is simply a set of 5 questions, it can be tough for someone new to it to know when and how to ask those questions. Further, it can be tricky to know how to use the answers to those questions to successfully eliminate their physical anxiety triggers. For example, some people may unknowingly overlook beliefs, thinking that certain things are “reality” or “how things are.” The book provides clarity and insights to avoid mistakes like this so beginners can successfully eliminate their triggers.

What type of things can people get physically anxious about?

Answered here.

Does this explain anxiety from trauma?

I defend why it does in my explanation here.

Why would I want to make myself anxious about something?

For those interested, I’ve put this answer into a quick-read essay called The Anxiety Paradox for 5$ as a fundraising tool. If you are unable to pay right now or would like to consider paying after getting a chance to read it, let me know at Harrison.Obiorah@gmail.com, and we can figure something out. I think this is information all of humanity should know so I won’t let price be a blocker.

Purchasers of the books will be able to ask me questions about the content inside for free.

Why would I think I should be anxious about something?

The answer is the same to Why would I want to make myself anxious about something?

Why do ppl get triggered by the same things?

Video on this here.

My anxiety story and how I validated the claims I’ve shared and made in this video

A now deceased psychotherapist named Bruce Di Marsico put forward the idea that beliefs cause non-physiological generated emotions (ex: anxiety from low blood sugar). Bruce also created a system of questions he called the Option Method to help people uncover these often unconscious beliefs. I had the chance to read multiple transcripts of counseling sessions that used Bruce’s teaching to help clients find the reasons why they felt negative emotions. I saw how the counselors “dug up” beliefs that were producing the negative emotions the clients wanted to eliminate which proved to me that beliefs–often unconscious ones–did cause our negative emotions.

After this realization, I got my hands on as many books and recordings produced by Brue and those who learned from him to develop the ability to identify and eliminate the beliefs that were causing my social and work anxiety. I then worked with two mentees of Bruce who teach and mentor people who want to understand and eliminate their undesirable emotions. I worked with these coaches to eliminate social anxiety symptoms that became noticeably distressing in 2015 but worsened to the point that I felt anxious in almost all social situations during COVID lockdowns.

After 13 hours of one-on-one sessions, the number of social instances that triggered my anxiety noticeably decreased and the intensity of my anxiety responses dampened. I now use the experience and insights from my anxiety journey to help others eliminate their anxiety triggers.

Citations:

– CBT research supports the claim that emotions are caused by beliefs:
– More than 2,000 studies have demonstrated the efficacy of CBT for psychiatric disorders, psychological problems and medical problems with a psychiatric component
– THERAPISTS, STOICS, AND BEST-SELLING AUTHORS WHO’VE clinically validated & believe that anxiety is caused by beliefs

1. Donald Robertson (2010). The Philosophy of Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy: Stoicism as Rational and Cognitive Psychotherapy. London: Karnac. p. xix. ISBN 978-1-85575-756-1. ↩︎
2. Beck AT, Rush AJ, Shaw BF, Emery G (1979). Cognitive Therapy of Depression. New York: Guilford Press. p. 8. ISBN 978-0-89862-000-9. ↩︎
3. Engler B (2006). Personality theories (7th ed.). Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company. p. 424. ↩︎