{"id":17732,"date":"2024-03-01T10:08:15","date_gmt":"2024-03-01T10:08:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kingscollegehospitaldubai.com\/?post_type=podcasts&p=17732"},"modified":"2024-03-05T11:38:50","modified_gmt":"2024-03-05T11:38:50","slug":"the-kings-podcast-anxiety-and-burnout-in-dubai","status":"publish","type":"podcasts","link":"https:\/\/kingscollegehospitaldubai.com\/ar\/podcasts\/the-kings-podcast-anxiety-and-burnout-in-dubai\/","title":{"rendered":"KING\u2019S EPISODE #4 ANXIETY AND BURNOUT IN DUBAI | DR. REBECCA STEINGIESSER"},"content":{"rendered":"
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hello welcome back to the Kings podcast season 2 today we’re here with Dr Rebecca consultant clinical psychologist<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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and today’s topic is going to be all about anxiety and burnout and we’re very excited to be talking to Rebecca today<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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would you be able to introduce yourself for the listeners at home please sure I’m Dr Rebecca I’m a clinical<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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psychologist and clinical neuropsychologist here at Kings I’ve been with Kings probably almost 3 years<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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at later this year um and I work across the age range with children adolescence<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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and adults working in with them through a therapeutic point of view but also doing neuropsychological diagnostic<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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assessments with children who might have any developmental learning or um<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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cognitive issues so today we really want to talk to you about anxiety um<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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obviously it’s a huge topic um can you explain a little bit how it manifests<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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differently in different people because some people may be more anxious than others some people might not have anxiety at all or they do have it and<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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they don’t realize they have it how can we Define it yeah even what is anxiety in the first place because we ask people<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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and some people don’t know what it is yes and and it’s a blessing to not have to know what anxiety is and I’m happy<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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for those people but I think we all experience anxiety at different stages of life um for different reasons um some<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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people people are more predisposed to experiencing anxiety genetically because they have family members who might have<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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struggled with it in the past um or still have ongoing issues with it so there’s a genetic predisposition to<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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experiencing anxiety but for some people it’s life struggles the various different things that they encounter in<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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their day-to-day that might create stress and therefore anxiety for them but anxiety is based on fear it’s based<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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on the the idea that your nervous system is activated trying to prepare you to<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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protect yourself self from often times something that is not an actual threat so from an evolutionary perspective our<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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bodies were designed to be able to protect ourselves if we were out in the forests and you know in the jungle or<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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wherever and there’s a sabertooth tiger coming at us the anxiety would activate all the senses and help us know how to<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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protect ourselves and where to flee or the fight or flight response would dictate that unfortunately though um our<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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bodies has have still a very Antiquated way of responding um to perceived<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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threats and which is what we see in our day-to-day um you know what’s going to happen with my exam results am I going<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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to pass am I not going to pass so there’s lots of anxiety that comes with the unknowns and the uncertainty of life<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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which is pretty much what we experience in our day-to-day some people have better coping resources and mechanisms<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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for that um some people are able to be more present in the here and now and don’t don’t think too much about what’s<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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coming next so that doesn’t activate that fear response as much for them but<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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other people struggle more with that and that could be for a variety of different reasons it could be temperament based it<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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could be personality um it could also be how they were raised and what kind of environment they were raised in but<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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fundamentally um anxiety it can present in so many different ways so some people<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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will come to me saying you know I’ve been to every single doctor at the hospital um I’ve had issues with my<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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breathing or I thought I was I have a breathing tumor and I went to see the neurologist and I was having chest pain<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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so I went to see uh the cardiologist or the pulmonologist and every I’ve done<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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every test I’ve done has all come back normal and they’re saying that I’ve got a full clean bill of health but there’s<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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something not right with me one because either I don’t sleep or I get these radiating pains um but their body<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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sending them a message that something’s not quite right and that usually occurs in people who are not really accessing<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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or understanding what is going on with them emotionally and so the body then sends signs and symptoms to say no pay<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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attention we need to work on something so most often uh for people who are not<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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fully kind of connected with their emotional experience it will come out as what we call psychosomatic experiences<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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like tummy aches um in kids like not wanting to go to school it could be regular migraines or headaches um you<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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know sometimes people still nauseous before going to work if they’re really anxious at work but these are not<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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actually finded by there being in any underlying medical condition to explain it inter I think a lot of people assume<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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that anxiety is just kind of a mind related um disorder but it is actually quite a physical very much so yeah how<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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come it manifests that way how so um I don’t know some people may experience their anxiety like in their stomach they<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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may have because they say IBS is linked to anxiety right so how does the brain<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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like how does that even happen like so everything starts off in the brain right um and our brain is responsible for all<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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our hormones our endocrine system our nervous system everything but if our<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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mind is telling us that there’s a fear or something to be feared it’s going to send signals to all those body systems<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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to try to activate them for self- protection even when there isn’t a real threat the problem with that is that<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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prolonged exposure to the stress hormones like cortisol um adrenaline all<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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of those actually cause damage to um organs in the body and then it creates um a whole Cascade effect of um release<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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of various like for example in stomach I’m not not a gastroenterologist but I would assume that that’s associated with<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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a lot more um excretion of gastric juices that causes um heartb birth and<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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various other symptoms like that um same thing with your nervous system in terms of your um your brain um if you’re under<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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a lot of pressure and if you’re not sleeping very well which usually occurs when you’re anxious your nervous system<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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is going to get kind of overloaded very quickly and that’s why people end up having really terrible migraines or even<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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fainting spells sometimes panic attacks um so the body is very closely related to the mind and that is why sometimes<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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the body sends the initial message to tell the person that they need to slow down and figure out what it is that’s<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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going on um sometimes it’s very unconscious we could be going through very like serious period of time in our<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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lives but we feel like we’re okay we feel like we’re coping until we hit a wall and that’s when burnout in status<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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set ear where there’s a lot of fatigue restlessness in sleep irritation and<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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irritability but not really knowing where it’s coming from a lot of my clients report just all of a sudden<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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getting intense Road Rage or just spping at their family members and they’re not really sure like they haven’t really<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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done anything or they’ve just stopped exercising they haven’t had the time to go and do nice you know self-care or you<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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know participate more in family or activities or I really enhancing their their marriage or their relationships<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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and that’s when the body starts to send those signals um that you need to slow down and my job with my clients is one<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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to help them uncover what those things are um also to give them sort of strategies on how to cope with the<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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physiological impact of their anxiety because that takes that can be the hardest thing to handle yeah on a<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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day-to-day basis because it impacts your functioning at work in school life in relationships so it can be incredibly<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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overwhelming but in order to understand what goes on cognitively we also have to reduce the symptoms and so my job a lot<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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of the time is to help people let’s just focus on how we can get you to sleep and let’s focus on how we can get you to<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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spend more quality time with family and over time once they’re doing more of that there’s more space for them to<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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access the emotional content to actually understand where some of these stresses are standing from so would you say there<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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is I everybody experiences anxiety to some level but then how would you know if it’s enough to go see your doctor<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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very good question so I would say um anxiety should come and go and it comes<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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and goes in waves right and it should be uh occurring at a time when there it’s<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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expected to have an emotional response to it so you know a lot of people feel anxious before they travel fairly normal<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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moving hats you know having a baby even getting engaged getting married all of these things they create stress and<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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that’s normal to feel anxious uh because you want things to go in a particular way and you have expect for it and you<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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have a certain outcome that you that you would like or that you have in mind the problem is is that sometimes when you<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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are not experiencing any of those stresses or they’re not um significant<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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yet you’re still feeling high levels of anxiety to the point where you just feel miserable and you don’t a feel sense of<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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satisfaction in your life and you can’t get any Joy from the things that used to bring you Joy that’s when we would be<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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concerned that anxiety is then becoming unmanageable and the unmanageable anxiety if untreated can lead to<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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depression and that’s when suicidal thinking and more concerning issues can<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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occur so I would always say you know and your body should tell you when you need<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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to seek help I would also say though that before allowing your body to be screaming these messages out to you it’s<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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really important to slow down and reflect on a daily basis of how am I actually doing and how am I feeling and<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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what am I satisfied with what am I not satisfied with um what could I do differently How can I make myself feel<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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better and if you’ve tried all of these different things and if you’ve done good reading and maybe you’ve spoken to a<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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friend um maybe who’s in the same position you sort out comfort and and support from your network and you’re<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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still not feeling settled that’s when coming to see a doctor or seeing a<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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professional to kind of understand it a bit better is the ideal way to go so if<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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somebody doesn’t really need to see a doctor yet um is there little things that they can do at home or by<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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themselves that they can actually help their anxiety themselves absolutely it really starts with very basic things um<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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one is your warning routine so I’m not saying you know we have to do robin shamas 500 a.m. clay we having to be off<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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at the you know the sunrise or before the sunrise and go for a run or do anything like that but um we need to<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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slow down think we live the very fast-paced life especially here in Dubai there’s a lot of traffic there are a lot<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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of stresses that get in the way um of leading kind of a very settled life I would say and when we wake up in the<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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morning how much time we spend kind of getting ourselves to feel uh settled<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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calm doing some mindfulness meditation listening to audios as it’s very helpful<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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I do recommend exercise in the morning for those people who have the time for it it doesn’t have to be intense it it<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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doesn’t even have to be going to the gym it could be just going for a walk around your neighborhood if the weather permits it could just be doing stretches or<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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doing you know little yoga video before you start your day um I think it’s<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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really important especially for those who work from home to make sure that they wake up around the same time every day that they’re consistent in their<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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morning routine having a good healthy breakfast it’s all Basics and if we go back down to our childhoods we probably<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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would discover that we probably had a lot of those healthy habits then and then as we get older we’re spending more<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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time waking up first thing and just checking our phones and then scrolling um you know then all of a sudden like I<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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don’t have time to get ready and then we get into the car and we’re rushing and we’re driving terribly and we’re<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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aggressive and that’s when the the anxiety and the stress sort of slowly starts to build over the course of the<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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day yeah another important thing is is in the evening is your sleep routine um it’s so important that we go to bed at a<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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predictable time routine creates safety and comfort and that’s why babies and kids Thrive when they’re on routine<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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because there’s predictability and that makes them feel less anxious and more settled so if you have a similar like<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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routine at bedtime things that Cal doing things that calm you obviously eating<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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well not watching too much TV before bed not scrolling on your phone before bed reading a book all the basics we used to<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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do um I guess in my time it was before devices that Joy um but I think also<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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another important thing is to make sure that we schedule Pleasant and pleasurable activities weekly so we<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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should always have something to look forward to in the weekend I think it’s important that we do stuff in the weekday as well whether that be<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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exercise or catching up with friends or you know if you live close to the beach go for a walk on the beach do little<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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things that help to ground you spending time in nature is a big one harder to do here but now that the weather’s good<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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it’s definitely doable um and I would say that we it’s just really really small things every now and then you know<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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um pamper yourself get a massage or um you know go for a hike do something that<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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you don’t normally do but sometimes it’s important to do some of these things on your own because when you’re on your own<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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you have the opportunity to think to reflect to really try to access what is going on for you emotionally and we<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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don’t do enough of that yeah we don’t know how to slow down especially in living a fast-paced life and so I think<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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every day we should be just giving ourselves 5 to 10 minutes and it just that’s not a lot just to sit quietly and<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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think some people like to do their thinking in the bath or in the shower some people like to do it on their drive<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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to work with no no music playing or anything um some people like to do it kind of just um as<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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theyve woken up and they just do a little meditation and then just a little self-reflection over what they want or<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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hope to achieve for the day some people do it through prayer so it really doesn’t matter how you do it but we need<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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to slow down and give ourselves those 5 to 10 minutes every day just to do a little selfcheck in yeah so it really is<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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just stripping It Back to Basics really and just taking that time to just do something for you not not for other<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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people not for work just literally just for you absolutely and we’re not very good at that no and especially as our<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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lives become bigger and as we become parents and we have kids and we have jobs we have responsibilities we have<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Partners we might have have aging parents or family members people visit people love to<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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visit and there’s all sorts of things that you have to constantly adapt to but if you are always giving to others<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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around you um which is an important part of life we all give to one another but if we not receiving if we’re not filling<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
14:30<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

up our cup we’re going to burnout and burnout happens um very quickly and<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
14:36<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

sometimes it’s a lot harder to come back from when we’ve let it go too far so would you say then that there’s because<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
14:43<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

it’s not really something I’ve ever linked together is there a link between anxiety and burnout like yes absolutely<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
14:50<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

absolutely so burnout isn’t just from working really hard burnout can be from<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
14:55<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

a variety of different things that that are occurring all at once you know people who are experiencing loss or<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
15:01<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

grief or stress um related to family illness or something like that might<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
15:06<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

also have a very busy stressful job and might also have kids who have maybe needs or need support or just just need<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
15:14<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

to be driven around town you know like our lives are really busy but when you’ve got all of that building up it<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
15:20<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

becomes a cumulative effect of stress and then stress turns into anxiety because there just there’s a feeling of<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
15:26<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

overwhelm of like I’m actually not coping with this and then when we’re really busy and when we’re already<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
15:31<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

stressed and when we’re short of time our needs become secondary so we don’t<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
15:37<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

prioritize it we don’t make the time to exercise or to go visit our friends or to do the things that actually bring us<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
15:43<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

joy and when that occurs our system is basically screaming at us and we’re not<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
15:49<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

doing very well and then all of a sudden you get invited out to go out and you’re just too tired to do it yeah or the<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
15:55<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

weekend comes along and you’ve got all the time of the world but you don’t want to do anything because your body just needs needs rest and then that makes you<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
16:03<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

sad cuz you feel isolated and withdrawn and then that adds to the anxiety and a knock on effect absolutely that’s why<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
16:09<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

long periods of burnout and untreated anxiety can lead to depression and so<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
16:14<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

that’s why we need to be very conscious of the fact that it starts to impact functioning so all of a sudden<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
16:20<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

relationships start to become really challenging um work relationships even as well work stress or not being able to<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
16:27<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

cope with the stress or being AF of work all these sorts of things can kind of come as secondary to the fact that you<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
16:32<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

just haven’t paid enough attention to what your own internal needs are do you find a lot of that in divide the burnout<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
16:38<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

and the anxiety absolutely I feel like it must be quite common it’s a very work centered work-driven environment here<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
16:46<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

and and also keeping in mind that Dubai is a place that’s filled with you know<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
16:51<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

very high functioning intelligent professionals um who come from all walks of life from different cultures where<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
16:57<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

you know work work is is this is experienced differently and um the mix<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
17:03<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

of cultures in how we work and how we do things also contributes to that but<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
17:08<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

because we’re all very high functioning individuals there are higher expectations and because we are living<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
17:15<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

in a tax-free environment the expectations of those High salaries that we get are also a lot<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
17:21<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

higher so work life balance is a lot harder to achieve people work a lot<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
17:26<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

later than than they would let’s say back home where I’m from in Australia um there are things are not as regulated in<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
17:32<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

terms of what’s kind of acceptable um you know apparently in France I’ve read<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
17:39<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

that they don’t talk about work on the weekends and it’s like you’re allowed to whereas here I think work never really<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
17:46<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

stops not especially if people don’t have traditional day jobs that I’m sort of the 9 to-5 people who are Consultants<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
17:53<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

people who work in real estate they’re always on their phone they’re always working and and you know know in some in<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
17:59<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

some careers you really need to hustle here yeah um and life in Dubai is really expensive<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
18:04<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

so a lot of people need to work very hard in order to have a good life here and it balances out because we do have<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
18:11<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

lovely opportunities to have great life here but it doesn’t um mean that we um<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
18:17<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

can avoid the stress that comes with it so Dubai stress is very high and we’re not we’re just also talking about things<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
18:23<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

like how busy the the the roads are at the moment you know get any we it’s<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
18:28<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

really hard at the moment so people have to add time to their Journeys people get stressed people don’t drive well then<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
18:35<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

you’ve got py cyclical effect and in addition to to all of that you’ve got um<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
18:41<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

processes and procedures that are just different to how it is in your home country so sometimes getting things done<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
18:47<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

that you know in your mind should feel very simple has lots of different steps that go with it that can create stress<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
18:54<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

um and that’s just I think very typical of the UAE and the Reg um but then it balances out by also<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
19:02<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

having so many things that are really easy and really accessible like anything can be deliver to your door um you know<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
19:07<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

whatever you need whenever you want it it’s like that but there are other things that take longer and more<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
19:13<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

frustrating time consuming irritating and I think with that on top of you know<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
19:20<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

busy school runs and kids who have loads of activities after school and we’ve got<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
19:25<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

really highly scheduled lives for ourselves and for for our families and it takes away from the opportunity just<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
19:32<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

to sit and be and kind of have quiet time and I feel like Dubai really Dubai<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
19:38<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

it’s a very much like a Work Hard Play Hard kind of Lifestyle especially with some of the younger people here and that<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
19:45<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

can be problematic in and of itself because the more you play that means in some ways there could be too much<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
19:52<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

alcohol consumption going out too late at night not sleeping properly not taking care of your health and wellbeing<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
19:58<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

and then that on top of the stress of work can lead to burnout a lot quicker<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
20:04<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

how would you balance that though so for some people they may say but by going out my seeing my friend staying late is<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
20:10<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

my time to chill or get away from work but obviously you can overdo that as well absolutely so how do you you have<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
20:17<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

this busy you’re working 24\/7 and then you’re like I want to go see my friends I know I’m going to finish really late<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
20:22<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

and then I’m going to be tired for work the next day but if I don’t see my friends I’m not doing anything for me how do you begin to to manage that to<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
20:29<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

for wellness of your body or for your mind well it’s a really important question because I think it’s twofold I think yes there has to be having fun in<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
20:37<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

moderation um and making sure that if you do go out you know you’re not going out till 2:00 in the morning and that<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
20:42<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

you’re maybe not consuming too much alcohol or you’re trying to be careful about what you choose to eat while you’re out but at the same time you need<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
20:48<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

need to send boundaries with work so that you’re not relying so heavily on going all out uh in party mode when you<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
20:55<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

have the moment for it because that’s going to be detrimental it doesn’t actually alleviate the stress it creates<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
21:02<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

a different kind of stress it properly adds to it that him man absolutely and so then sleep deprivation becomes worse<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
21:09<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

um body image issues if they already exist become worse because maybe eating Foods at various times of the night they<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
21:15<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

shouldn’t be eating or you know you’re not conscious of what you’re eating and what you’re consuming and then that becomes really problematic in terms of<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
21:21<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

the energy you have the next day to function so I actually think that it all really starts with making sure that<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
21:27<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

we’re what we need to give for our jobs but that we’re also being mindful of how we can create boundaries around that um<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
21:35<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

and you know there are there are expectations that some companies have that are completely unrealistic but<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
21:40<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

there are also expectations that we sometimes Place upon ourselves and maybe that’s because we want to prove ourselves or we want to be seen as you<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
21:47<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

know someone who’s a really um High performer all of these pressures can also be internal pressures they may not<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
21:54<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

necessarily be pressures that are put on you um some people are always on their phones the week weekends responding to emails but they don’t actually have to<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
22:00<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

be if you’re the type of person who gets emails over the weekend and you have a lot of work stress how can you avoid<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
22:05<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

that how can you not take that home with you yeah and I know a lot of people here in Dubai try to have two different phones for that they phone and they have<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
22:12<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

their personal phone and as long as you’re good at making sure you keep that<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
22:17<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

at home when you’re on the weekends then yeah it’s doable but it’s all about mental trap practice is just asking<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
22:25<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

yourself you know who’s paying me for this time and if I’m not being paid for this time why am I doing it and is it<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
22:32<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

end of day stuff you know is it life or death is something terrible going to happen if I don’t respond to this email<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
22:39<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

will that person maybe even figure out what they need to figure out in the time that takes you to respond yeah sometimes<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
22:44<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

we don’t actually need to be on this sort of trigger happy straight response<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
22:50<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

um way of living um because yes although we do appreciate when people are very<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
22:55<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

responsive to us it actually adds a lot of stress to both parties with these<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
23:00<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

expectations that kind of unrealistic especially if you’re working with people in different time zones and that happens a lot in with people in Dubai who manage<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
23:07<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

the minor region let’s say and they’re different time zones they’re they’re they’re on calls late at night but then<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
23:13<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

they need to then start their day later some of them are on calls till 11: or 12:00 at night but then still start their day at 8:00 a.m. and that’s where<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
23:20<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

we need to be careful about how we set those boundaries because we’re actually been ending up working the job of two<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
23:25<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

people rather than just one actually wanted to bring it back to something that you said earlier about anxiety<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
23:31<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

being based around fear and fear is irrational but is there any type of anxiety that is rational because when me<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
23:37<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

and Danielle were doing research about this topic we found out so many different anxieties that people we know<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
23:44<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

have some of them we don’t share um like you know maybe someone’s scared of an<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
23:50<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

elevator or maybe someone’s scared of the see how do we know what is rational and what isn’t so a lot of the time it’s<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
23:57<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

based on your previous experiences so if you’ve ever had a stressful or traumatic experience it can sometimes uh solidify<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
24:05<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

into an ongoing fear um and I would say that that’s not necessarily anxiety<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
24:10<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

that’s more phobia based and there are multiple different types of anxiety and I should kind of explain that so we’ve<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
24:15<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

got the obsessive compulsive type of anxiety where a person is unable to stop thinking these intrusive thoughts that<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
24:22<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

are kind of obsessive that result in them doing a compulsive Behavior like let’s say I’m terrif B of germs and then<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
24:29<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

the compulsion is to constantly wash my hands that’s a less common I mean very<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
24:34<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

there’s it’s not as common as generalized anxiety where there are people who are just more affected by all forms of things that might create stress<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
24:41<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

for them and it’s really more just about difficulty managing stress that leads to anxiety but then you’ve also got um the<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
24:48<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

type of anxieties like eating disorders are actually not just about eating they are an an expression of anxiety and and<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
24:55<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

need to control so some people who feel anxious about I don’t know whatever’s going on in their family life might<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
25:01<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

develop an eating disorder not because of R Body Image issues but because it’s the only way that they can create a<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
25:08<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

sense of control and ownership over their life and so control of eating helps them feel more secure and that’s<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
25:14<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

how an eating disorder develops we’ve also got um panic disorder which is an anxiety disorder where the nervous<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
25:20<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

system is highly activated um and it isn’t responding to cues around the<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
25:26<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

person to say that everything is okay and what we need to do with those is try to S of understand where these stem from<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
25:33<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

so a lot of the work I do with anxiety isn’t just about symtom management it’s also going back into someone’s childhood<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
25:39<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

or their early life experiences and trying to figure out where this might have um kind of come from you know<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
25:46<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

personally I have a major phobia of sakes I’m terrified of sakes coming from Australia you would imagine that I<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
25:51<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

didn’t come across things quite often never seen one except in like you know a farm or like in in a zoo but my daughter<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
25:59<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

is just as terrified my youngest one loves her I mean she’ happily go<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
26:06<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

tou to get it from you the sopia and that’s what we don’t know some of it’s<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
26:11<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

genetic she’s never actually seen a snake in the wild neither have I but my<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
26:17<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

mom was terrified at snakes and so maybe there is a genetic kind of relationship<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
26:22<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

there um so we we also sometimes don’t understand where that it stems from but<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
26:28<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

we also really kind of have to respect that it’s there anyway yeah and we can do things about it so a lot of people<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
26:34<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

have just an innate fear of flying um where does it come from it could be from a movie they watched it could be from an<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
26:40<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

experience they had on a plane it could also just be that the fear of not being in control you know somebody else is<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
26:47<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

flying that plane it’s not you um and the the fear of trust being able to trust someone else so there are so many<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
26:54<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

different elements of anxiety um but yes r anxiety is rational when it comes to<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
26:59<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

something you know that’s very meaningful for you you know you get a a blood test ad and you’re really worried<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
27:05<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

that you’re going to get diagnosed with something that makes sense if if there’s something going on but if you are<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
27:11<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

feeling highly anxious about a blood test that’s just there to check your you<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
27:16<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

know vitamin D levels that’s not something that’s going to you know be terribly uh like lifechanging for you<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
27:24<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

but having the same kind of anxiety response as someone who’s waiting for a diagnosis that’s something quite scary<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
27:30<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

that’s quite different and so it’s it’s logical anxiety can be logical it makes sense to be anxious but the problem is<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
27:37<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

is that when your anxiety isn’t even when you try to manage it you can’t challenge the thoughts that come with it<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
27:42<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

and you can’t bring that neurological that nervous system um overactivity down<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
27:48<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

that’s when it becomes overwhelming and difficult to manage yeah cuz it can be quite debilitating when you have like<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
27:54<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

those thoughts cuz it can stop people from doing things it can stop people from doing whether it’s just being a simple day-to-day activity or like a<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
28:01<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

bigger kind of event it does stop people from feeling comfortable to do things so<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
28:06<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

how can you detail your mind okay I’m being not silly obviously it’s not silly it’s a<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
28:12<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

real thought but I need to just do it I need to be brave like how can you push yourself to to do it at home like yeah<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
28:19<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

so I would say that within therapy there are multiple different techniques that we use and cognitive behavioral therapy<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
28:26<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

is one of the most common use techniques and the the C in CBT<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
28:31<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

stands for cognitive and that’s the thinking and what we do in that is we understand our thinking Styles if we<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
28:38<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

have unhelpful thinking or problematic thinking Styles like overgeneralization or pastra<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
28:44<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

catastrophizing or jumping to conclusions or mind reading fortune telling there were all different types<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
28:49<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

of unhelpful thinking Styles once we understand what those unhelpful thinking styles are we can then challenge them<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
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28:55<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

with more balanced ways of viewing things and so I do this with my clients with automatic thought records so we’ll<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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write down what the situation was or what the emotion was what do they experience physically but also what<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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theyve felt and then write them down how they responded what were the thought patterns that came up then on retrospect<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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they can look at that thought and think H I think I was jumping to conclusions over there what’s a more balanced way of<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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thinking about this and then they would come up with a um you know um a more<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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balanced way but also thinking about like what’s the probability what’s the likelihood that this will actually happen and we often get people to ask<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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the answer certain questions like if my best friend was sitting next to me and talking to me about this problem what<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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would I be saying to them how would I be supporting them and why are we not able to do that to us with ourselves so<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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that’s an important part of the cognitive element so the b in CBT is the behavioral which I spoke about before<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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which is a lot more related to self-care and exercise and socializing and all of that but a lot lot of clients will say<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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that anxiety for them is debilitating because it results in analysis paralysis<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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they just can’t do anything major procrastination difficulty getting started on anything a lot of withdrawal<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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um just major avoidance and that becomes terrifying because they feel<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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like they’re constrained by their anxiety and they don’t really know how to get out of it or how to unpack it um<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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and so an important part of uh anxiety is treat it with respect now we don’t<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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want to hide from our anxiety we want to respect that anxiety is a normal human emotion um it’s just that it’s sometimes<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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because of our patterns of behavior because of our maybe perfectionistic traits could be because of our<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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temperament or how we were raised we have more of a likelihood to think more negatively about things or to be more<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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fearful about things and you’ll see that the percentages of oh my gosh that’s 80% likely to happen realistically is maybe<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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only 20% likely to happen but in their mind it’s Amplified yeah and so the the C of restructuring and<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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thought challenging exercises just help you understand how your mind can be a bit of a bully and be able to talk back<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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to that voice and with practice we become better and better and better at doing that um but we often need time to<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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actually reflect and journaling is a good way to be able to get access to the thoughts to to help us understand them a bit better so really it’s about<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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embracing your anxiety and then understanding it as well not to be as<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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fearful from it just to say right I’ve got this this is an issue how can I start to understand it and then maybe<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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it’ll become a bit more manageable hopefully and thinking also about um thoughts negative thoughts as choices I<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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have a choice right now to engage with this negative thought and take it let it take it me on this journey that it wants<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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me to go on or I can just stay where I am and I can I can breathe through it I<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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can let it go and that’s you know that’s from elements of acceptance in commitment therapy um where we use the<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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analogy of you’re sitting you’re standing on the platform at the train station and the negative thought is the<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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train and you have a choice if you want to get on that train and go with the thought and let it take you on that<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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tangent or you can just stay on the platform and decide to wait for a more positive thought to come and so we do a<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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lot of visual imagery um grounding techniques to help kind of visualize a thought as like a leaf on the water it<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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comes but it will Flow Away we just need to give it time but the quicker we are to try to avoid the anxiety or to<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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32:29<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

challenge the thought sometimes we end up diving in and that’s where the problem lies okay well we’d like to end<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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32:36<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

the podcast with a very special question sure today’s question for you is what is your top secret about managing<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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32:43<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

anxiety oh what well I’m biased because I’m a cat person and um my cats I call<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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32:51<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

them my therapy cats um I feel very soothed when I’m around animals especially cats um and Cuddles cuddles<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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32:59<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

with my kids cuddles with family always get I think you need about eight hugs a<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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day to survive and like maybe 15 or so Huns a day to<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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thrive so we need to be having physical contact cuddles with whoever cats dogs<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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whatever um H and our loved ones I think affection and come the comfort that we get from a really nice tight squeeze um<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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33:24<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

this is my go-to when I’m feeling overwhelmed am that’s a really lovely tip really ni very thank to Dr Rebecca<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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33:31<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

for coming on the podcast you so much we hope to see you again time<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":17733,"template":"","class_list":["post-17732","podcasts","type-podcasts","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t