I battled anxiety for most of my life, and I know I’m not alone. Almost every woman I work with in my coaching practice struggles with anxiety. It shows up in various forms: chronic worry, nervousness, overthinking, replaying scenarios in your head, overreacting to small things, maximizing the negative, minimizing the positive, people-pleasing, over-apologizing, fear of making mistakes, distraction, and difficulty making decisions. All of these symptoms can leave you feeling powerless, unworthy, scared, and stuck.

Anxiety in Women Is on the Rise

The rates of anxiety and depression are about four times higher than they were in 2019. In 2019, the percentage of U.S. adults reporting symptoms of anxiety ranged between 7.4% - 8.6%. By 2021, that percentage had jumped to an average of 28.2% - 37.2%. Women, in particular, have been disproportionately affected, as societal pressures and expectations continue to mount.

With the ongoing stress of global events like war and the COVID-19 pandemic, your anxiety may be increasing. Those inner demons you thought you’d dealt with long ago might be resurfacing, making it harder to push through and pretend everything is okay.

In 2020, I wrote my bestselling book, If I’m So Spiritual, Why Am I Still So Anxious? One reader shared this powerful review:

“Joy’s book is an incredible resource for any womenl dealing with anxiety. I’ve had anxiety on and off for years. I was able to almost completely eradicate it with the tools I learned from yoga, but after COVID-19 hit, I found my demons slipping through the cracks. Joy’s approach towards helping you understand anxiety in a spiritual context has helped me build a different relationship and, more importantly, a better reaction to it. This book is a must-read for anyone who thinks they will always suffer from anxiety.” — Holly S.

Why Quick-Fix Solutions Don’t Work for Anxiety

Our society has conditioned us to look for quick fixes. We’ve been taught to manage symptoms and problems, but that’s like trying to keep a huge cork underwater. It requires constant effort, and if you let go, the cork just pops back up. This is exactly what happens when you try to manage anxiety without addressing its root cause.

To truly heal anxiety, you need to redefine it. You must learn to view anxiety from an entirely new perspective—one that allows you to let go of the proverbial cork, restore your energy, and take back control of your life, even when everything around you is changing, uncertain, and unknown.

That’s what my work, this blog, and everything I do to help women with anxiety is all about. It’s about empowering you, not just giving you another tool—you already have plenty of those! It’s about helping you take control of your mind because that’s where you truly live. You interact with the world, but you spend most of your time lost in your thoughts, repeating the same narratives and outcomes you experienced yesterday. This is what actually leads to anxiety and feeling stuck.

The Spiritual Solution to Anxiety

The solution to anxiety is a spiritual one. It requires you to develop a new relationship with who you truly are. You also need a positive system to navigate this ever-changing world from a place of wisdom, rather than trying to accomplish the impossible task of controlling other people, places, and events.

Until you address the spiritual break in your life, you’ll always be pushing down the cork and thinking the cork is the problem. You’ll believe that if only the cork would stay underwater, everything would be okay. But that mindset gives power to the cork, not you! It gives power to circumstances, not you. It gives power to other people, not you.

Here’s another review from a reader of If I’m So Spiritual, Why Am I Still So Anxious?:

“I remember when I first started reading Pema Chödrön and Thich Nhat Hanh to find the answers to true spirituality. Your book, just like these spiritual teachers, explains the true path of spirituality. To change my reaction to situations, I must do the work and learn from life experiences.” — Chris L.

A Simple Step to Start Healing Your Anxiety

Your beliefs shape your reality because they influence how you see and experience everything. But your beliefs are not facts. This can be hard to grasp, especially if you’ve held certain beliefs for a long time and have an emotional attachment to them. Your emotions drive your behavior, which perpetuates and reinforces your beliefs.

But here’s the good news! You can change your reality by changing your relationship with your beliefs, your internal reactions, and yourself.

Although there are several proven steps in the framework I teach, I want you to focus on one action right now. This will help you gain more insight and clarity about who you truly are and what you can do to get unstuck and become the best version of yourself—without endlessly focusing on problems or just managing symptoms.

On a piece of paper, write down your answers to these three simple but profound questions. Sit quietly and take a few deep breaths before you begin. Do this exercise every day for 10 minutes for the next 7 days. Write down whatever comes to your heart and mind—there are no wrong answers. You’ll find that so much wisdom will come forth as you open your heart and mind and just do this:

Who was I before I became scared to be me?
Who was I before the world told me who I should be?
What is one thing I can do right now to give this part of me life again?
The Missing Link to Healing Anxiety Is YOU

You, my friend, are powerful beyond measure. Learning how to tap into your power is the best work you can do. When you are a better you, the world is a better place. When you are happier, you show up and serve in a bigger way. Taking your power back will not only positively and profoundly change your life—it will transform your world!