Your Anxiety Toolkit

Well, this week I tell you a story about the most influential moment I have experienced regarding boundary setting.  It is one of my favorite stories to tell because it taught me SO MUCH about setting boundaries and helped me see that some of the beliefs I had around setting boundaries were ENTIRELY wrong! During this podcast, we discuss FOUR steps to Boundary Setting and discuss how this can help us manage anxiety, resentment, and anger. I hope you enjoy the story as much I as enjoy telling it! Forward we go, Kimberley

Wassup Yo! This podcast is seriously Badass, even if I do say so myself! I am honored to introduce to you, Tiffany Roe.  Tiffany is a Licensed Professional Counselor in the state of Utah and has the most incredible Instagram account, which is where I "met" her.   Tiffany is another one of those CBT Rockstars, who uses Mindfulness and CBT to help her clients manage Anxiety, Depression and Eating Disorders.   I just adore her!   In this podcast, we talk about how to talk back to depression like a Gangsta.  Tiffany shares some incredibly inspirational, empowering and FUN ways to talk back to Depression, when it bullies us and makes us feel like there is no hope. BUT THERE IS MORE!  Tiffany was so excited about our conversation, she kindly put together a Spotify Playlist of her favorite music that helps her lift out of depression and back into her own power and strength.   See below or click HERE for the link.  NB: Please note that some of the songs listed in the playlist include profanity. Thank you Tiffany for

#32: How to Reduce Reassurance Seeking Behaviors Welcome back, everyone! Welcome back to the Series on Problematic Anxiety-Related Behaviors. Today, we are talking about Mindfulness-based tools to help with Reassurance Seeking. For those of you who don’t think this topic applies to you, stick around a little.  You might find that you are employing this behavior, even in slight and tricky ways. As mentioned in the last episode, there are behaviors that you can reduce, which will result in better outcomes when it comes to anxiety.   Last Week we discussed Avoidance and how this compulsion only makes fear worse.   This week, as we mentioned, we are discussing Reassurance Seeking Compulsions. So, What is Reassurance Seeking? Before I give a definition, let me give you some examples and you can see if you resonate with any of these. Am I doing this right? (Common in Perfectionism) Did you turn off the stove? Did I turn off the........ (Common in Obsessive Compulsive Disorder) Are you sure everything will be ok? Do

BIG announcement and Why You Have to Stop Avoiding First, let me share some EXCITING news with you! I am so excited to share with you some news about the work I am focusing on in 2018! But first, let me tell you the back story. Each year, I do my best to attend several conferences for OCD, Anxiety, Body Focused Repetitive Behaviors (BFRB’s) and Depression.   I have had the privilege of presenting at many of these conferences over the years and I often return home in a state of joy, empowerment and determination to help those who struggle with these debilitating disorders.   I love learning all about the evidence-based treatment modalities for OCD, Anxiety Disorders and Body Focused Repetitive Behaviors such as Trichotillomania and Skin Picking and using the skills to increase recovery outcomes and improve self-esteem and self-care. However, last year, I left one of the conferences quite sad.  I was sad for those sufferers who attended the conferences and then had to return home to their hometown, with very li

In this episode, we try a new meditation to help you stay present in THIS day. HAPPY NEW YEAR! It is a great guided meditation to help you stay centered on the present moment and let go of yesterdays events or tomorrows possible happenings.  I recorded this meditation at the beach, as this is where I feel the most present and alive.  I hope you find it helpful.  It has become a daily part of my practice and I hope it brings you empowerment and peace. Forward we go! Kimberley  

Happy Almost New Year!! Well, it's that time of year! You know, the time where you reflect on the year and set outrageous resolutions for the upcoming year.  It is when you dwell on all the things you DIDN'T do last year that you said you would. During this podcast, I walk through a very successful way to set intentions for the upcoming Year, Month, Week, Day and even Hour!  I walk you through why New Year's Resolutions rarely work and how I use Honesty and values to set goals that will improve self compassion, self-respect and effectiveness. I also give a few examples of how this applies to those with OCD, Eating Disorders, Social Anxiety and Panic Attacks. Last of all, I want to with you the HAPPIEST and SAFEST New Year! Forward we go! Kimberley

Hello there Everyone! Today, I am thrilled to have guest, Alison Dotson on the Your Anxiety Toolkit Podcast. During this podcast, Alison shares her journey from not even knowing what OCD was to what helped her with her recovery.   Alison and I had a fun time also managing technological hiccups, which ended up being a wonderful practice of mindfulness. Alison Dotson is the author of Being Me with OCD: How I Learned to Obsess Less and Live My Life. In this book, Alison shares her personal journey with obsessive-compulsive disorder and includes some of the most heart-wrenching details.  Her genuine goal is to spread awareness and helping teens and young adults with OCD. Resources Mentioned in this this Podcast: Alisondotson.com facebook.com/beingmewithocd Imp of the Mind IOCDF.org twitter- beingmewithocd OCD Twin Cities  info@ocdtc.org

  Today, we have an AMAZING guess on the podcast, Dave Trachtenberg.    Dave is the Program Director at Minds Incorporated.  Minds Inc. is a non-profit dedicated to empowering Washington DC-area schools by teaching mindfulness-based practices to students, educators, and parents. During the Podcast, Dave shares how Minds Inc. teaches students, starting in elementary school (and their educators, and parents) simple daily mindfulness practices.  Dave speaks about how these teachings increase focus and attention, reduce stress and anxiety, create resilience and the capacity to handle difficult emotions, and build compassion. As discussed in the podcast, sometimes when I get down about the state of the world, I find myself doing late night Google searches on how I can make it better.  In my searches, I found Minds Inc's website and came across Dave.   Dave shared some beautiful stories about helping young children and teens and also shared his own struggles with OCD, Tic Disorder, Depression and Self-worth.    Dav

Well, Lets be honest!  Sometimes I get so excited about practicing and teaching the deep and helpful concepts of Mindfulness that I forget to remind y'all of how simple it can and should be! Often, when we experience anxiety (or other strong emotions), we often forget everything we have learned and are left standing helpful and afraid.  In this podcast, we return to one of the most simplest and easiest Mindfulness tool available. Check it out!  And, if you are noticing how basic and thinned out this blog is, that is no accident.  This week, we are practicing simplicity!!  See you next week!    

Vulnerability: The Road to Courage, Self-Compassion and Self-Worth In today’s podcast, I wanted to dissect the concept of Vulnerability. Brene Brown, reknowned researcher on Vulnerability defines Vulnerability as “Uncertainty, Risk and Emotional Exposure” I find this somewhat ironic, as Uncertainty, Risk and Emotional Exposure are the worst nightmare of someone who experiences anxiety, OCD, an eating disorder (such as Anorexia Nervosa or Bulimia Nervosa), trauma, grief or depression. I think many humans struggle with these concepts, but I feel that it is significantly difficult for those who struggle with these mental health disorders.   In many cases, there is a complete rejection of vulnerability.  I believe we think that if we avoid vulnerability, we  can rid ourselves of shame, embarrassment, being judged, feeling sad or hurt.    However, all we end up doing is numbing.  When we have anxiety, we think that if we avoid vulnerability, we could rid ourselves of possible bad or catastrophic  outcomes.  Howev

Episode #24: Willingness-Leave It All Out On The Field! I LOVE the term, "leave it all out on the field!" There is something totally radical and badass about the idea of "leaving it all out on the field!" It means we are committed to the hard work.  It demonstrates that we are ready to feel some discomfort.  "Leaving it out on the field" describes giving it your everything.  I LOVE it! How does this apply to Mindfulness? The degree that you "leave it out on the field" is a great way to describe Willingness.  Willingness is radically accepting and giving consent to our present experience. We can conceptualize Willingness as scale, similar to a continuum. 0/10 Willingness implies we have absolutely NO willingness to be uncomfortable (or have anxiety, intrusive thoughts, panic, have uncertainty). We reject all feelings of discomfort Fear makes our decisions (causing us to do more compulsions) Disown any negative experience 10/10 Willingness is saying 100% "YES" to whatever experience of discomfort that arises

The Mindful Use of Technology Hi everyone!  I hope this finds you well. This podcast is about a topic that is so important and so interesting to me.  In this episode, we speak with screen time expert, Dr Dustin Weissman about how to use technology (smart phones, tablets, internet etc) in a mindful and healthy way.  We specifically discuss how to manage Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), OCD Spectrum Disorders such as Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD), and Eating Disorders. In this episode, we discussed: Does technology improve or harm our Self-Esteem? How can we create a Balanced lifestyle when using technology? How can Parents monitor and moderate their children's use? How can Parents practice sound and mindful discipline using technology as the reward or consequence? How can we, as adults, monitor and manage our use of technology in this era of information? How can we manage the compulsive use of internet/mobile devices for those with OCD and BDD? How can we manage reassurance seeking behaviors related to

Got something you really want to achieve? I am guessing that you most certainly do. What is holding you back from taking on this thing you want achieve?  Why can't you reach this goal? This is the big question that I am toying with right now.  Why can't I? Why not Me? Why not you?  It is a really tough subject, because we have to face ourselves and our possibilities, and this can be SUPER scary. Sometimes, at least for me, when we look at our big goals, we are forces to tackle our deepest limiting beliefs.  "I am not enough."  "I am not strong enough." "No one cares about me anyway."  "What's the point.  I will only ruin everything anyway."  These are all limiting beliefs that stop us from reaching realistic goals. Think about it. I am guessing at least one person (or maybe millions of people) have achieved your goal, or a goal like it, already.  WHY NOT YOU?   "It's not special if someone else has already done it."  LIMITING BELIEF!!! "I don't have what it takes!"   How do you know? Thomas Edison failed 100

Happy Halloween everyone!  It's one of my favorite months and I LOVE that everyone is so willing to be afraid on this special day.   Let's all commit to being willing to be scared/afraid/anxious every day, shall we? This episode is a little different to the normal format.  Today, I answer questions from Your Anxiety Toolkit listeners about anxiety, OCD, Mindfulness and appropriate treatment for certain disorders. Questions include: How to manage Postpartum OCD (including thoughts of hurting our children) How to help someone with Scrupulocity or Moral Obsessions (including fear of offending God or sinning) How to help a son with OCD and Tic Disorder How to manage thoughts about Death GREAT, GREAT QUESTIONS!  I hope my answers were helpful Have a wonderful day everyone!

  Hi there guys!  I couldn't finish the day without checking in with you and sending you my support after such a difficult day.   This podcast was not planned and I kind of threw it together at the last minute.  I hope it is helpful. For anyone in Las Vegas or Puerto Rico or any other place where there is destruction and pain, please know that I am praying for you and I hold you in my heart. These scary events can trigger our already high anxiety, so please listen for some tips and tools to manage your anxiety about the current events and affairs in the news. A couple of important points: Anger Sadness and Anxiety/Fear are all very human responses to these horrific events. Obsessions to look out for: "Will this happen to me, or a loved one?" Intrusive Imagery (Mental images of people suffering from traumatic events, shootings, hurricanes, earthquakes etc) Intrusive sounds (Gun shots, people crying, sobbing, screaming, sirens etc) For those with Harm OCD:  "Am I capable of doing such an act?" Compulsions to

  If you are anything like me, the days go by too fast and you find yourself running through the day without stopping to take in the beauty of nature.   Is it just me? Today, I was lucky enough to interview Zoe Gillis, who I consider to be the MASTER of combining mindfulness with a wilderness practice. She combines hiking, backpacking and camping with Mindfulness and Meditation as a way to get a deeper understanding of our self and each other.  It is BRILLIANT stuff and it makes me want to pack my bags and go camp in the dessert right now! Zoe is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and a wilderness guide who is the founder of Z Adventures.   Z Adventures thrives on the belief that we need to disconnect before we can connect and step out into the wilderness more often. During this podcast, Zoe and I discuss: Ways to introduce nature into your mindfulness practice. How being in nature can help us identify how we see ourselves How being in nature can help us identify our strengths and weaknesses. The benef

How to Heal Self-Blame with Self-Forgiveness using Ho'oponopono Meditation If you are anything like me, you are quick to blame yourself for any of the below reasons: You have not achieved some level or expectation. You tried to better yourself and you "failed." You made a mistake (unintentional) or had an accident (I call this, “You Did a human” AKA Making a human mistake) Especially for you, if you have OCD; You have “bad” thoughts, intrusive thoughts, thoughts you deem "unacceptable." You feel like you are a BAD person who doesn't EVER deserve to be forgiven. You are attempting to work through your mental health issues. You struggle to do exposures or follow some treatment goal. You experience self-disgust (for having pimples, cellulite, intrusive thoughts etc. My main message in this podcast is this: HUMANS ARE NOT SUPPOSED TO BE PERFECT! HUMANS ARE ALWAYS AND FOREVER GOING TO MAKE MISTAKES! This podcast details a practice called Ho’oponopono.  Ho-oponopon is a spiritual practice of harmony between peopl

What You Say To Yourself Matters. More importantly, what you say to yourself about anxiety matters! In this podcast, I delve into the importance of accurate and mindful language, specifically related to how to experience and manage anxiety.   Believe it or not, the story you tell yourself can greatly change the way you see yourself and the world around you. The way we talk to ourselves about our experience of anxiety can greatly affect the management of our anxiety, and can create a platform for whether we thrive or merely survive our anxiety. To help us conceptualize this subject, I use a fictional example, Mary.  My hope is that Mary can help us understand the complexity of our negative thinking and help us to find new ways to talk to ourselves about our anxiety. Example: Mary has anxiety and wakes up and feeling anxious. She immediately thinks, “I am so anxious”, “Something bad is going to happen”, “It isn’t fair that this is happening”, and “Why me?”    She goes off to work, repeating in her head, “I can

GUILT, SHAME and being “SO OCD” with Shala Nicely I am honored to share with you a recent interview I did with OCD ROCKSTAR and dear friend, Shala Nicely. Shala is a Licensed Professional Counselor in Atlanta and treats OCD and OCD Spectrum Disorders using Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. I briefly outlined the conversation and left all the links discussed during the podcast. Enjoy! Shala recently wrote an awesome blog post article about a top women’s magazine that posted an article encouraging readers to “be a little OCD!” Shala declared enough was enough and got writing. Shala and her ROCKSTAR mom are doing so much to advocate for the OCD community. See the below link to check it out. http://www.shalanicely.com/misc/aha-moments-magazine-encouraging-us-little-ocd/ How do you respond when people say, “I am SO OCD?” Shala reports that she always aims to never shame anyone. For this reason, she talked about polite and non-shaming ways to educate others on what OCD and how painful and debilitating it can be. How

Hello everyone! I am excited to share this months podcast, as we are joined by what I call a CBT SUPERSTAR, Sara Vicendese.  Sara is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist who specializes in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) in addition to traditional PsychoDynamic therapy. This podcast is based on the phrase, "It takes a village to raise a child".   This phrase is used often to explain the importance of community when raising a thriving and successful child.  We believe that you can create your own "micro-village" to help you along with your recovery. Today we talk about ways to create YOUR "Village" (in whatever form you think is helpful) to help you with your on personal recovery.  We discuss how to find the correct treatment, access the most helpful resources and how to include your family members, friends or partners in your recovery, in a healthy and helpful way. Below is a basic layout of our conversation.  Enjoy!!!  Today we talk about ways to create YOUR