A podcast highlight (Dr. Don Wood interviewing a program participant) where the guest describes rapid, post-program reductions in anxiety without medication. Key reported effects: immediate feelings of clarity and peace, understanding the mental 'mechanics' that triggered automatic negative thoughts, and regaining normal daily functioning (returning to work, enjoying family/home). The guest emphasizes self-application of practices (meditative/symbolic safe-space) and removing stigma by recognizing anxiety as mechanistic rather than moral failing.
Chapters
So what do you remember feeling right afterwards? What was it? What would you describe it as afterwards, going through the program?
I just think clarity, right? I think for me, it's. It's clarity, you know, And I want to be very clear here, guys. For somebody who has, you know, been holistic my entire life, I've never taken any drugs or medications for this. I've always wanted to be dialed in myself and figured out myself. Even though it felt like I was never going to get there.
Right.
In certain instances, I felt clarity. Right. Because at the end of the day, like, in my mind, it's almost like my. My mind is so sharp. And so if I was like, oh, I'm going to do this before we jumped on, you know, my mind, I'm like, is this really going to work? Like, what the hell? Like, what can this guy tell me that I already know? They know it's all on me to do the work, right? People can sign up, they can go through the top package with you hand in hand, or they can do the one. But if they're not willing to put the work in right, then nothing's going to change, right? So that's where my mind was at first. But the clarity aspect of it was, hey, now I know the mechanics here, right? I know that, you know, my body, my subconscious has thrown me these automatic negative thoughts or, you know, get me to this heightened state of anxiety to try to protect me. Right? And so I would say clarity for sure. And, you know, I would for sure say peaceful, right? I felt at peace, so I felt clear and I felt peaceful because of knowing and understanding the mechanics of everything. And, you know, and. And then also the path to when you're feeling anxious or if you have those moments, you know, to go to, you know, your symbol and, you know, in that safe space that you create with that meditative space you put yourself in.
Yeah. So did you notice, like, for example, what situation would have created that anxiety before all of a sudden realize that you're not feeling that anxiety now that you're in the same place?
Yeah, yeah.
Can you describe what that felt like when all of a sudden you notice, this isn't activating my nervous system right now.
It was almost immediate. You know, the next day I went right into the office. It's almost feels like a hangover. You're like, why was I so anxious about that? Like, what was I thinking? Like, why. Why was that such a big deal? And I would say that's kind of how I felt when I first went into the Office. I'm like, you know what, what made me so worried about being here, right? Like, what was the issue?
Right?
Because I'm fine. You. And I hung up, and then I went outside, and my backyard's pretty, pretty tranquil. You know, I have, I have a couple acres of land, and it's all greenery and, like, a park, like, greenery. And, you know, I have the waterfalls going. I sat there and I was like, sitting here because, because here's the thing. Most people, entrepreneur, athlete, high performer, you tend to not stop and, you know, and enjoy the fruits of your labor as ever, right? Because you're, like, ready for the next thing. And that's me. I'm like, you know, I, you know, me. My wife bought our dream home. We have our beautiful dream kids. You know, I'm married to the woman of my dreams. And I'm sitting there, I'm like, all this time running around, feeling this way I'm feeling and stuff. And if I went back to the earliest version, right? Or the most vulnerable version of myself and said, dude, look at the life that you've built. Look at the family that you have, you know, look at the impact you're making. I, I would be like, oh, my gosh. Like, dude, I, I, I hit the lottery twice. Right after that session. I went outside, I was listening to all the, the sounds of nature and the things, and I said to myself, I was like, you know, that's it. I'm done. I'm done being any sort of victim to this situation. Not that I would have that mentality, but I, I was not gonna allow myself do it anymore. Cause now I know the mechanics. Now I know why, what's happening. Now I know how to navigate through it, right? And so I left there feeling that calm and, and, and tranquil, and then went to the office the next day and just started going back to, like, I went to the grocery store and went to do this stuff and that stuff. And then, you know, I was right back into being a citizen again.
And then those things before would have created that anxiety, right? That you would have been feeling it and experiencing it, and then it's gone.
Right?
Right. And that's basically how you're always supposed to live. If there's a threat that shows up, you're fully capable of handling the threat, but your mind was operating on all of this old data and continue to run the old data, activating your nervous system. And yet you didn't have to take medication. You figured out ways to cope with it, right? Figured out ways to manage it, but you never needed to. And the key really is, like you said, you said it really well, is understanding the mechanics. Because when you understand the mechanics, you go, well, of course that would happen, right? It would have to have happened. There's nothing wrong with me, right? So that takes a lot of that stigma away from it.
