The Transforming Anxiety Podcast

I thought it was time for us all to take a breath and sit together. I needed a new meditation, and I love to meditate with you. We sometimes lean towards someone or something out of love, out of curiosity, out of interest. We are pulled off-center, but it's short-term, unattached, and beautiful. It fills us up. Other times, we lean in out of fear, worry, or tension. We grasp and cling. We try to control and manipulate. Maybe we overstay our welcome and we wind up sacrificing ourselves in order to get in there. It depletes us. There's also leaning away...when we try to avoid, route around, or resist what's happening. We're arguing with reality when we lean away like this. This is the "if I can't see you, you can't see me" method. But...we can also simply lean back. We can open our hands, loosen our grip, and let life unfold exactly as it is. When we lean back this way, we may hit *pause* on our own actions, but we gain perspective, clarity, and recognize what's happening. This is the "go with the flow" techniq

Are you familiar with the children's book We're Going on a Bear Hunt? In case you haven't been inside a preschool in the past, well, ever, it's a children's story about overcoming obstacles. For some reason, 4 kids, a baby, and a dog are on this adventure (hunting bears?!) and they encounter a bunch of barriers (a deep cold river, thick oozy mud, a big dark forest) on their way to the bear's cave. However implausible this all seems (it's a kid's book, we'll go with it), the refrain they repeat every time they find another hurdle is: We can't go over it. We can't go under it. Oh no! We've got to go through it! And if this isn't the refrain for 2020, then I don't even know... This week, we're going to look at pandemic-life through the lens of the kids' bear hunt. How very, very much we're all going THROUGH right now... And! I'm offering a FREE mini-course: 5 Days to Calm Your Anxiety. To find out more and get registered go to www.kellyhanlinmccormick.com/calm 

Who needs some rest? My hunch is that we're all experiencing that "tired but wired" sensation that we sometimes get right before bed. You know, where you can't stop scrolling through Instagram even though you *know* you should put the damn phone down and go to sleep already? But on a mass, collective scale. The pandemic just. keeps. going. The election is looming. The kids are back to school but everything looks different than we could've ever imagined. Some of it sweet, some of it heart-wrenching. This week, I wanna talk about rest. How can you tell when you're tired? What KIND of tired are you? How do you rest up? And are you waiting for *permission* to get that rest? After you listen in, share your rest ideas with me! Text me at (816) 354-1279 and DM me on Instagram, I'm @khanlinmccormick. Let's rest up...

Well, this isn't the sexiest podcast episode, buuuut, what it lacks in glamour and happily-ever-after it makes up for in vulnerability, real-life anxiety, and legit: this is why I do this work. I have to remind my clients and students all. the. time. that the goal with this work is not to get rid of anxiety, never stress out again, and live a life free of overwhelm, worry, and self-doubt. But while the goal has never been to eradicate anxiety from our lives entirely, we can learn to relate to it differently; we can have a completely different experience of anxiety when we feel anxious; and we can find calm around it. Yup, you too. Join me for this episode and then get enrolled in The Fierce Calm Project to do this work for yourself. Text me at (816) 354-1279 to find out more and visit www.kellyhanlinmccormick.com/podcast/81. 

If you had a dollar for every time you've recently heard, "these are uncertain times," am I right? Listen, times *are* uncertain. But not any more uncertain than pre-pandemic. Times have always been exactly this uncertain... So how do we deal with that sensation of being untethered and groundless? Where do we find certainty? Why do these times feel more uncertain than normal? Let's explore it together in this week's episode. And remember: text PODCAST to (816) 354-1279 to get mindfulness reminders, anxiety hacks, and little love notes from me straight to your pocket. :)

Do you have a tendency to lump things into THIS or THAT category? Label people, experiences, and emotions as GOOD or BAD? Indulge in ALL or NOTHING thinking? Yeah, you're not alone. This seems to be an extra-special feature of the thinking-mind that we all fall into...especially when things are intense. And (I think) we can all agree that things? They're intense. So this week, we're going to tackle all or nothing thinking. Although, it's a gentle tackle, because we're coming at it via the vehicle of meditation. Find out more over at www.kellyhanlinmccormick.com/meditate/1 

When the memo for 2020 landed on our collective desks (pandemic! racial injustice! political strife!) it didn't sound great. And eight months in, it's still not sounding so hot. But every once in a while, I come up for air and look around and think, "Huh, look at us! We're doing it!" And I got to thinking...no matter how life-y life gets, we humans were made for this. Our capacity for resilience, neural plasticity, hedonic adaptation...there are all kinds of wild ways that humans are literally designed to not only handle life's challenges, but return to a steady state, and even thrive in spite of hardship. This episode is part pep-talk and part compassionate-head-nodding. We got this. We were MADE for this. Find out more at www.kellyhanlinmccormick.com/podcast/79 and don't forget to text PODCAST to (816) 354-1279 to get mindfulness reminders, anxiety hacks, and little love notes straight to your phone.

Many times, I've had the idea that I want OUT of anxiety: it wasn't even enough to push against it or try and avoid it, it was like I wanted to take my skin off, throw it on the ground and get AWAY from the whole experience. And that was just on a Tuesday. Add to that a pandemic, political strife, the cancellation of *life* as we knew it, racial injustice, and overall uncertainty and that sense of ​​I want OUT of anxiety​​​ goes through the roof. This week, we're going to talk about the thought, "I want OUT of anxiety" and how we can reframe this notion. And don't forget to text me! Just text PODCAST to (816)354-1279 and I'll send you mindfulness reminders, anxiety hacks, and little love notes. And get on my email list - I'm holding a public call this Friday, August 7th at 1pm CST called: Ask Me Anything about Anxiety. Bring any questions, struggles you're facing, worries that you have about the upcoming school year, you name it...I want to talk to YOU, and I want to help. See you on your phone and on Friday!

Is your idea of *handling* anxiety hiding, playing small, and resisting the whole thing? I get it. And you're certainly not alone if this seems like a solid plan for managing the ick. There's such a deep sense of groundedness and authenticity on the path through the discomfort that just can't be found any other way. And in the end, that path, the very journey of healing and discovery, is the most awe-filled path of all of the paths. This week we're going to talk about resisting anxiety, why outright resistance doesn't work, and how to move towards acceptance...

I'm interested in all kinds of ways that I can care for my mental and emotional wellbeing. Because I don't know about you, but I've found that there's no *one thing* that eases feelings of anxiety and overwhelm every time. So there are a few things in heavy rotation on this path: yoga, meditation, sleep, lots of water and tea, and self-compassion. Self-compassion consistently helps. No matter what else I'm up to, if I can bring self-compassion along for the ride, things are bound to go smoother and I'm more likely to find that flow with life rather than finding myself at odds with the reality around me. In this episode, I talk through 4 self-compassion practices and how they can positively influence your experience of anxiety. And there's a worksheet that goes along with this one! Just click here or go to www.kellyhanlinmccormick.com/podcast/76 to grab your copy. You can text PODCAST to (816)354-1279 to get mindfulness reminders, anxiety hacks, and little love notes directly to your phone. Plus, ask me any qu

We're doing something a little different this week on - I'm sharing a bit about where I'm at, in my personal journey and in my offerings for you, and then I'm inviting you to take a short seat with me for a sweet meditation backed up with music from the amazing DJ Sol Rising. This week, we're making some Breathing Room together. Together, apart. I've been on the path of self-discovery and growth for a long time. And I've been practicing and teaching yoga for a while as well. And I see an obvious place for me to up-level my own work...and I want to take you with me. Mindfulness, for one. And meditation, for another. Let's start here and now. I'm so glad to be here with you, and grateful YOU are here with ME.

Jack Kornfield defines mindfulness as, "paying attention to the present moment without judgment, characterized by interest, friendliness, and clear seeing." And this week, I want to bring that sense into the work we do around here on mindset. There's a lot of energy behind achieving, doing, going, more more more...we live in a power society that's borderline obsessed with busy-ness. So I want to slow things way down in this episode and bring attention to mindset. Sound good? And I mention in the show how we can now TEXT each other (!), so if you want to get in touch with me and receive mindfulness tips, anxiety hacks, and little love notes, just text PODCAST to (816) 354-1279. "See" you in your contacts list... :)

Do you ever find yourself in the middle of something and wonder, "WHAT am I doing?!" Maybe it's a habit you can't break out of and you watch yourself spin through the same cycle day after day. Maybe it's a tempting dessert that you weren't planning on having, but then you find yourself asking for a second helping. Or maybe it shows up as a general sense of, "I can't handle this," and that thought churns through your mind all day at work...and then all night at home. We're going to unravel this today: the underpinnings of our motivations and how those can also turn into traps. And! Fun news!! We can text each other now! If you're interested in getting mindfulness reminders, anxiety hacks, and little love notes directly to your phone + if you want to be able to text me directly and ask me questions about the show and what you've learned here, just text PODCAST to (816) 354-1279. See you there...

Do you ever feel your attention being tugged all over the place? Social media, the to-do list, ads, the kids, work, the news...there's a lot out there vying for our attention. Your attention is *yours*. But it's a consistent practice to cultivate the meta-skill of being able to reliably direct your attention to the most meaningful and impactful aspects of your life. This week's episode covers: The reality of the human mind Meditation as a practice in cultivating attention Inspiration from great thinkers, writers, and activists Join me for this important episode all about the power of redirecting your attention...

The breath is having a big moment right now: between a global pandemic centered around a virus that affects the lungs and our ability to breathe, and the protests centered in no small part around every human beings right to breathe, the breath is at the center of our attention. So this week, we're going to slow things down and turn inward a bit. We're going to take a moment with the breath. The breath is one of those things we don't *have* to pay conscious attention to; your breath will breathe your body on and on throughout your life, whether you ever stop and consider it or not. But you *can* pull your breath under your conscious control...and create big changes in your body when you do. On this week's episode we're going to talk about: Unconscious vs. conscious breathing How grief and sadness live in the lungs The power of long, deep breathing How breath relates to anxiety Plus, I made a couple downloadable recordings for you. To grab your breath work + guided meditation recordings, click here or c'mon o

This week, I'm not teaching; I want to have a conversation with you instead. Actually, it occurs to me we should have conversations like this more often. That I should share more about where I'm at, that we should get to know each other and connect in a more open way. I tend to shy away from giving you my opinion; this podcast, community, and my coaching has never really been about *my* opinion, after all. Turns out, we need a deeper connection, opinions included. So this week is a heart-to-heart between you and me. This week we're talking about: Where we're putting our energy Cultural appropriation Honesty Love (always love) Let me know what you think. Let's make this a two-way street; send me an email or DM me on social and let me know where you're at. What's on your mind? On your heart? How does this conversation, and a deeper connection, land for you? I want to hear...

you don't need me. You don't need a white, privileged woman talking to you. Things are too big, too scary, too heartbreaking, and too real for me to be the one talking. What I need right now is to listen. I'm muting myself, and listening. So, to that end, here are some people I'm listening to and learning from, with their Instagram handles in case you want to join me: Rachel Cargle (@rachel.cargle) No White Saviors (@nowhitesaviors) Rachel Ricketts (@iamrachelricketts) Ibram X. Kendi (@ibramxk) The Conscious Kid (@theconsciouskid) Austin Channing Brown (@austinchanning) Nicole Cardoza (@nicoleacardoza) This week we're doing 8 minutes and 46 seconds of silence. I'd love to sit with you and be with you for this...and then go out there and learn some more.

Everything I'm hearing, from clients to friends, family to neighbors, points to the idea that we all need to take it easy on ourselves. That we could use a few more permission slips to be gentle with our days. That we can't get enough reminders that we are absolutely enough, exactly as we are, and that we are allowed whatever support and assistance we require. Basically: that props are proving to be quite essential. In this episode, we're going to talk about props from all angles. The props we use in yoga. The tools we use to make DIY jobs easier. Small kitchen appliances and how they make cooking a breeze. But we're also going to consider additional props you need in your life right now. Things you can use to support yourself. Ways that you can love on yourself. And I made a worksheet for you that goes along with this one. You can grab your downloadable copy by clicking here or visiting www.kellyhanlinmccormick.com/podcast/68 

What do rockstars have to do with coaching? What do managers have to do with mental health and managing your mind? This week on the podcast, we're talking about one of the most fun tools I've created and something that I use with most of my clients: Rockstars & Managers. We all have an inner rockstar. Y'know, that creative visionary who dreams big and lives wild and wants everything NOW? And we all have an inner manager. The practical logical side that thinks rationally about long-term best interests. How we tune in to and harness the rockstar and the manager in our own minds can be a really helpful way to get settled around all elements of our lives, from diet and exercise, to work and relationships. For show notes, c'mon over to www.kellyhanlinmccormick.com/podcast/67 

You've seen the endless memes about decluttering, learning a foreign language, and reading Anna Karenina during quarantine, yes? It's like we're all supposed to be *winning* Coronavirus by being ultra-productive while we're stuck at home. This week, we're going to explore the concept of Non-Productive Productivity. Meaning: instead of all of the doing we're going to sink in to simply being.  Sound good? Also: I make a reference to Embodied Sounds during the episode. You can find out more about Joshua Miller and his offerings here: www.embodiedsounds.com