Dr Kirren - Psychologist

Do you relate to this? ✨This fear is more common than you might think. And, there's lots of reasons for it. Sometimes it’s about struggling to tolerate uncertainty, and that can make your brain treat the unknown like it’s dangerous. Not knowing how something might affect you can feel unsafe — even if it isn’t. ✨You might also worry about losing control. Taking medication you’ve never tried before can feel like handing over control to something unknown or unpredictable. That can naturally trigger anxiety — especially if feeling in control is what helps you feel safe. ✨And if you’ve ever had a bad reaction before, your brain might hold onto that — flashing it at you like a warning light every time something similar comes up: ‘What if that happens again?’ ✨Getting past this fear usually means getting better at dealing with uncertainty, changing how you focus on bodily sensations, changing your relationship with your anxious thoughts, gently reducing avoidance, and processing any difficult experiences that have shaped this fear. I go into all of these steps in more detail in my book 📚 Ten Times Calmer. Information for general educational purposes in relation to anxiety. Always see your own doctor for advice specific to your situation. #anxietyhelp #anxietytips #anxietysymptoms #anxietyrelief #anxietycheck #anxiety

👇WHY THIS WORKS👇 
✨Brushing your teeth with a minty toothpaste might seem like a small thing, but it can actually bring relief from the anxiety lump. The coolness of the mint, the texture of the toothpaste, the cold water, the motion of brushing, all create sensations that can compete with the hyperfocus you have on your throat. As you move the muscles in your mouth, tongue, and throat, you can also release some of the built-up tension in that area, which can also help.
 ✨And there’s something else happening too! When you brush your teeth, you're telling your brain something: I’m doing something normal. Everything’s okay. That message matters, because anxiety thrives on signs of danger, but a normal everyday action can help counter that.
 ✨This simple act can interrupt the cycle of anxiety that keeps the sensation going. You feel anxious, you get the anxiety throat lump/tightness, this makes you hyperfocus on it, which then causes you even more anxiety, the sensation worsens, and round and round the cycle goes.
 ✨Even though this isn’t a cure for anxiety, it’s a small, practical way to help manage this sensation in the moment. And sometimes, those small shifts can make a big difference, especially when you keep doing them. If you’d like a comprehensive programme for dealing with anxiety, you’ll find it in my book 📚 Ten Times Calmer. Information for general educational purposes in relation to anxiety. Always see your own doctor for advice specific to your situation. ##anxietytips##anxietyrelief##anxietyhelp##healthanxiety##panicattackhelp

Has this happened to you?

✨When you have health anxiety, your worries don’t just go away once you’ve ruled out one illness, they often jump to another. ✨That’s because health anxiety isn’t just about the fear of one specific disease. It’s about the thinking patterns that come with it. Mainly catastrophizing, where you assume the worst, and hyper-focusing on bodily sensations. Over time, these patterns train your brain to believe that this is the only way to stay safe. So it keeps scanning for the next thing to worry about… and the next. ✨So, how do you break free from this? It starts with changing your relationship with catastrophic thoughts by accepting them without reacting and approaching them with curiosity. You also need to shift your focus away from bodily sensations by intentionally redirecting your attention elsewhere. The more you do this, the more you teach your brain that it doesn’t need to stay on high alert all the time.
 If you want a full guide on how to do these things, plus many more tools for dealing with health anxiety see my book 📚 Ten Times Calmer. Information for general educational purposes in relation to anxiety. Always see your own doctor for advice specific to your situation. #healthanxiety #healthanxietyrelief #hypochondria #hypochondriac

Why It Happens & What to Do Below ⬇️ 
 ✨Anxiety can have a profound effect on your body, causing all kinds of strange symptoms that can also be long-lasting. ✨Long-term anxiety can put increased stress on your body, which can cause these symptoms to persist. Your body can remain in a state of fight-or-flight, continuing to react in these ways until you find effective strategies for managing the anxiety. ✨When people experience these symptoms, they often become frightened, which is entirely understandable. But that fear can also worsen the symptoms, creating a cycle that can be difficult to break. See my book 📚Ten Times Calmer for tons of strategies to help break this cycle and deal with these symptoms more effectively.  Information for general educational purposes only. See your own doctor for advice specific to your situation. #anxietysymptoms #anxietycheck #anxietyawareness #anxiety #anxietyhelp #healthanxiety