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Anxiety and Overwhelm

Our brains and nervous systems are wired to respond to threats and danger. This reaction is designed to be a short-term response that activates us to fight or flee a situation. Once the danger has passed, the body is meant to return to a calmer state.

But when the endpoint of a threat is unknown or it is something we can’t control or get away from (a pandemic, climate change) our threat-response system can get “stuck on," always on alert and ready to respond.

In those moments, logic and reason are simply no match for the body’s innate survival response and we can spiral down the anxiety rabbit hole of worry and disaster thinking.

This cycle can be exhausting and the longer it goes on, the more deeply embedded and habitual it becomes.

When we work together we start with your nervous system, not your narrative. We don’t focus on how you got to where you are; we focus on what your nervous system needs right now to feel calm and safe. You will learn how your brain and nervous system work, along with simple, practical tools to interrupt and repattern your body’s anxiety responses.

A brain-focused coaching approach

Skills are just the beginning, though. Like changing any habit, repatterning the anxiety response takes awareness, practice, and patience. To be most effective, those skills need to be implemented in targeted ways to address specific situations or behaviors. Using a brain-focused approach, I provide compassionate coaching support to help you identify and address the habits, behaviors and situations that contribute to or are impacted by anxiety. 

These might include:

  • Prioritizing your own needs or self-care
  • Difficulty delegating tasks or saying “no” to requests
  • A lack of work-life balance
  • Unfulfilling work situations
  • Inadequate exercise or sleep
  • Poor food choices or stress eating
  • Overthinking and poor decision making
  • Perfectionism and self-critical thinking

The Safe and Sound Protocol (SSP) is a 5-hour therapeutic listening program that helps to re-tune the nervous system to a greater sense of safety. This may be appropriate for some clients depending on their medical/mental health history.


Judith M Grupenhoff is an Integrative Mental Wellness Coach and Educator, not a psychotherapist. The tools and approaches I use are intended to help clients learn to better manage their nervous systems and to support them in the process of behavior change. Skill-building and coaching support can be an effective adjunct to other forms of treatment, but they are not a substitute for appropriate medical or mental health care if it is indicated.



Questions? Want to know if this work is right for you?
I offer a free 20-minute consultation.

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