From high-functioning anxious to high-functioning

There’s a running joke amongst Type A personalities that we aren’t just Type A, we’re Type A+++. With that comes high performance, but the cost is often high-functioning anxiety, which we aren’t even aware of.

There’s little that is more challenging in our lives than when we come into conflict with our own values. Sometimes we may not even be aware of what those values are until we are in conflict, or misaligned with them.

My clients joke that I specialise in two types of problems— Rich People Problems (referencing the third book in the Crazy Rich Asians trilogy) and Overachiever Problems. Each group is curious about the unexpected problems the other faces— we believe that each other’s world is so perfect, what problems could they possibly have?

I love that new car smell. We all do, right? It’s quite distinctive. Clean, a little sweet and yet undeniably industrial. You wouldn’t wear it as cologne, but it’s part of the pleasure of buying a new car, probably because of its associations with the pleasure and excitement of a major new purchase.

We all know that training our bodies physically helps us to avoid physical illness. Well thanks to the intersection between psychology and neuroscience we now also know that we can train our brains mentally to avoid mental illness and be totally awesome in the process.

Beliefs, the wiring in our brain that guides us to act and behave in response to what’s going on around us, can often stop us from moving forward and achieving goals.

One of the most common complaints I hear in my clinic is people saying they have low energy or fluctuating energy levels.

Well that was a first…! I was recently doing a keynote speaking session when mid-session we were evacuated due to smoke billowing out of the light fixtures and air conditioning vents. This is not something I am used to happening, to say the least!

So I may have an entire module on the neuroscience of mindfulness as part of my Masters in Psychology and Neuroscience of Mental Health, but the interesting thing is that I’ve learned so many tips from my dog.

In my reading recently I came across this statement and, unfortunately, I can’t remember where I read it or who made the comment (so I credit you, whoever you are!). You may have heard a version of it before, but this version really resonated with me.