“It’s time to stop asking what’s wrong and start asking what happened.”
This article is circulating amongst some of my coaching and hypnotherapy colleagues and for good reason.
Depression and anxiety is running rampant, especially within entrepreneur circles - although it’s often spoken about in hushed tones. We joke about popping another Xanax to get through the day or gulp down another glass of wine to stave off the looping thoughts at the end of the night.
“Entrepreneur Anxiety” is a REAL THING and as this article illuminates, meds are a long road to nowhere.
“It’s not until you get to the underlying cause of an issue that true healing can take place.”
I can’t tell you how many of my very successful clients come to me after YEARS of anti-depressant and anti-anxiety anxiety meds and who are still in exactly the same place. Pills can soothe some of the symptoms, but it’s not until you get to the underlying cause that true healing and recovery can take place. It requires you to not only address the feels of anxiety and depression, but all of the associated thoughts and behaviors as well. Much of which is learned and reinforced through repetition over time.
You were't born depressed, you weren’t born anxious. Something did or did not happen to you that created the depression, triggered the expression of a gene, or taught you to worry.
At some point in your life, you experienced something that had a negative effect on the way you see yourself and the world. For most people, this negative experience occurs between the age of 2 and 11, in your developmental years.
It could have been sexual abuse, bullying or even a parent who was never home. Whatever it was for you, that experience sent you a message. Perhaps it was, "I'm not worthy of love.", "I am powerless", or "Crying is a sign of weakness.". That message then became a belief. That belief then began to drive your behaviors and way of thinking.
As you grow up, those beliefs and thoughts stay with you, only now you're not a powerless little kid, you're an adult. The problem is, your mind doesn't know the difference.
Subconsciously, you're still that little kid. You still feel like you aren't good enough. You still feel powerless and out of control. Not to mention, all of those feelings of being scared or sad, were never really processed. Instead they were bottled up and pushed way, way down.
It's the psyche's way of keeping you safe, helping you cope and function in the world when at the time, you weren't mentally, emotionally or physically mature enough to handle a situation.
That worked for a while, but it's not sustainable and so, eventually, that lingering sadness becomes depression. Eventually, that feeling of being powerless and out of control leads to worry and anxiety. Next thing you know, you're heading to the doctor to try to figure out "What's wrong with you" and BAM, you're handed your first prescription for Xanax, Zoloft or Prozac.
This is one of the greatest problems facing mental health today - we're asking the wrong question.
The real question isn't, "What's wrong?", it's "What happened?".
You see, when you ask "what's wrong with me" you're addressing the symptoms of the problem, not the root cause. As Dr. Felliti points out in his article, the reasons behind our mental, emotional and even spiritual sickness are ignored and swept under the rug, carpeted with pills, booze and drugs.
It's not working.
According to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America, an estimated 40 million adults in the US suffer from anxiety related illness. Anxiety in US adolescents has steadily been on the rise since 2007, with teen girls becoming the fastest growing segment.
Researchers and pundits have pointed fingers at everything from smart phones to the Great Recession in 2007 for this increase. Regardless of why it's happening, pills aren't enough.
In fact, in many cases they're not necessary at all.
There are stories upon stories, article upon article, of people eliminating depression and anxiety from their lives without medication.
Like this research published by the Journal of Psychiatric Research, which showed a diet that consists of a high intake of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, fish and anti-oxidants is associated with a decrease risk of depression.
Exercise, spiritual practices and my personal favorites, hypnotherapy, coaching and emotional processing, are all proven to reduce and even completely eliminate these “dis-eases” from someone’s life.
Emerging studies in the field of Hypnotherapy are also showing that when combined with other techniques like cognitve-behavioral-therapy or psychotherapy, anxiety and depression symptoms can be reduced dramatically.
I know it’s possible because I have seen it.
Using the power of Subconscious Harmonics, my unique method that combines the power of hypnotherapy and coaching; I’ve helped dozens of clients rewire their brain and change their actions to go from deep depression, chronic anxiety and even suicidal thinking, to living positive, present and healthy lives.
I'd like to be clear, I'm not suggesting that if you're currently on anti-anxiety or depression meds that you should run to the cabinet and toss them down the drain. First, that's dangerous because you need to slowly be weened off those drugs. Second, for some people medication can be beneficial when combined with other therapies and methods like the ones previously mentioned.
What I want to drive home here is that ONLY relying on pills to solve your problem is not enough. You have to pick up the rock, as scary as it might be, and look underneath. Only then, can you begin to address the real reasons why you feel the way you do.
It starts with the choice to change and the decision to ask for help. It takes strength and courage to ask for support, but you can do it. And just by asking, just by exploring, you are already on the path to change.
I'd like to leave you with this parting thought from Albert Einstein:
"If I had one hour to save the world, I would spend 55 minutes defining the problem and only five minutes finding the solution".
Take the time to understand the cause of your problem. You're worth it.
Love,
Jess
PS. If you or someone you know is an entrepreneur who is struggling with anxiety and depression, click here to schedule a call to learn more about Subconscious Harmonics and discover how it can help you or your loved one.
