Anxiety affects more than forty million Americans a number that continues to climb in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. While conventional medicine tends to view anxiety as a neck-up problem that is, one of brain chemistry and psychology the truth is that the origins of anxiety are rooted in the body.

In The Anatomy of Anxiety, holistic psychiatrist Dr. Ellen Vora offers nothing less than a paradigm shift in our understanding of anxiety and mental health, suggesting that anxiety is not simply a brain disorder but a whole-body condition.

In her clinical work, Dr. Vora has found time and again that the symptoms of anxiety can often be traced to imbalances in the body. The emotional and physical discomfort we experience sleeplessness, brain fog, stomach pain, jitters is a result of the body’s stress response. This physiological state can be triggered by challenging experiences as well as seemingly innocuous factors, such as diet, drinking alcohol, nutrient deficiencies, the use of technology and many other factors that we will explore on the show.

What You’ll Learn

Tune into today’s podcast to hear all about:

• The difference between “true anxiety” and “false anxiety”.
• Ellen’s key tips from her book, The Anatomy of Anxiety, that will help to reduce anxiety.
• The relationship between sleep and anxiety.
• Why food is central to managing anxiety.
• Top supplements and herbs Ellen recommends to her patients for anxiety.
• GABA’s role in reducing anxiety.
• Why you must address trauma to heal anxiety.

Transcript

Click here! Read transcript for #433 The Anatomy of Anxiety with Dr. Ellen Vora

Dr. Ellen Vora Bio:

Ellen Vora, MD, is a holistic psychiatrist, acupuncturist, yoga teacher, and the author of The Anatomy of Anxiety. She takes a functional medicine approach to mental health considering the whole person and addressing imbalance at the root. Dr. Vora received her B.A. from Yale University and her M.D. from Columbia University, and she is board-certified in psychiatry and integrative holistic medicine. She lives in New York City with her husband and daughter.

She is the author of the new book The Anatomy of Anxiety: Understanding and Overcoming the Body’s Fear Response

You can learn more about Dr. Vora and her work at ellenvora.com

The Anatomy of Anxiety: Understanding and Overcoming the Body’s Fear Response

This is a groundbreaking approach to understanding how anxiety manifests in the body and mind — and how we can overcome it.

More than 40 million Americans suffer from anxiety in any given year, a number that has only increased as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. Like most mental health issues, conventional medicine tends to view anxiety as a “neck up” problem; that is, a problem of brain chemistry and psychology.

In The Anatomy of Anxiety, Dr. Ellen Vora offers nothing less than a paradigm shift in the way we understand anxiety and mental health, suggesting that the symptoms of anxiety are the result of various physiologic inputs — it is a whole-body condition, not simply a brain condition. In her clinical work, Dr. Vora has found time and again that the discomfort of anxiety can often be traced to seemingly unrelated imbalances, such as low blood sugar, inadequate sleep, overuse of technology, and inflammation. The good news is that this body-based anxiety, or, as Dr. Vora terms it, “false anxiety,” is eminently treatable.

Once the physiologic roots of anxiety are addressed, Dr. Vora reframes the remaining discomfort not as a pathology to label but rather a signal to heed. This “true anxiety” alerts us to the fact that something else is out of balance — in our bodies, our lives, our relationships, in the world. This anxiety, Dr. Vora suggests, is vital to our wellbeing; it keeps us focused on our goals, helping us recalibrate when we’re out of alignment with our life’s work. We can learn simple strategies for tuning into this anxiety and allowing it to protect and guide us.

As informative as it is practical, The Anatomy of Anxiety reframes our understanding of and relationship with anxiety, allowing for healing, growth, and joy.

To learn more about the book and pick up a copy, click here!