The Anxiety Toolkit: How to Tolerate Uncertainty with Joshua Fletcher

Being Well with Forrest Hanson and Dr. Rick Hanson

Anxiety is something we all experience from time to time, and because it’s so common it can be easy to take it lightly. But anxiety dominates the lives of many people, and in this episode psychotherapist Joshua Fletcher joins Forrest for an in-depth exploration of anxiety. They talk about the anxiety cycle, moving away from thinking in terms of a “cure,” and the key target of the “willful tolerance of uncertainty.” Josh also shares insights on exposure therapy, managing self-criticism, and developing greater self-awareness.

About our Guest: Joshua Fletcher, also known as Anxiety Josh, is a psychotherapist based in Manchester, UK, and the author of several books, including his newest, "and how does that make you feel?" Joshua also co-hosts the podcast "Disordered," and you may have bumped into his content on Tiktok or Instagram, where he has over a quarter million followers.

You can watch this episode on YouTube.

Key Topics:

0:00: Introduction

3:30: Josh’s first panic attack

10:15: The vicious cycle of threat monitoring

14:00: The three magic words: “just in case”

20:00: The “willful tolerance of uncertainty”

27:00: Exposure therapy

31:55: Working with self-criticism

41:20: Reward, punishment, and trauma

48:05: Identifying our varied inner voices

52:10: Worried voice, false comfort, and wise mind

54:00: Approaching anxiety as a neurodivergent person

58:10: Healthy disenchantment

1:00:15: Recap

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