The Happier Approach: Quieting your High Functioning Anxiety

Latest Episodes:

Wintering: Extended Conversation with Katherine May Feb 03, 2023

Show notes

We hope you enjoy this super special bonus episode, here to tide you over until our next season begins in a few months. This is my extended conversation with Katherine May, author of the book Wintering: The Power of Rest and Retreat in Difficult Times. We talk about how to get through our winters, what we love about winter, and why different people need to rest in different ways.

Listen to the full episode to hear:

Nancy's extended conversation with Katherine May, author of Wintering and the forthcoming book Enchantment: Awakening Wonder in an Anxious Age, available in March 2023.
Extra insight from Katherine May, who we interviewed for Episode 6 of this season.
Tips for folks with HFA who want to learn to be kind to themselves as they go through the winters of their lives.

Learn more about Katherine May:

Go to katherine-may.co.ukhttps://katherine-may.co.uk/
Buy Katherine's book, Wintering: The Power of Rest and Retreat in Difficult Times on her website, or pre-order her forthcoming book, Enchantment: Awakening Wonder in an Anxious Age, out in March 2023.
Listen to Katherine's podcast, The Wintering Sessions, wherever you get your podcasts.
Follow Katherine on Twitter @_katherine_may_

Visit: https://NancyJaneSmith.com
Learn More About Self Loyalty School: https://selfloyaltyschool.com

Rest For All Seasons Jan 20, 2023

Show notes

Here it is, our final episode in our season all about rest! Remember in the first episode when Nancy talked to her friend Stephanie Pollock about the seven different types of rest? Well, for our last episode, we're coming full circle and talking to Dr. Saundra Dalton-Smith-- the physician, author, and researcher, who literally came up with that concept! We'll learn all about the seven different types of rest and how we can treat ourselves kindly when we feel exhausted.

Listen to the full episode to hear:

- Nancy's personal relationship with the seven types of rest.

- Nancy's journey to accepting that rest isn't just about sleep.

- Insight and information from Dr. Saundra Dalton-Smith, author of the book Sacred Rest.

- Tips for folks with HFA who want to better understand their rest deficits.

Learn more about Dr. Saundra Dalton-Smith:

- Go to drdaltonsmith.com to learn more about Saundra's work, how you can work with her, and buy her book.

- Take the rest quiz to find out what your personal rest deficits are at restquiz.com.

Visit: https://NancyJaneSmith.com
Learn More About Self Loyalty School: https://selfloyaltyschool.com

High Functioning Anxiety and our Rules for Rest Jan 06, 2023

Show notes

One thing you should know about people with High Functioning Anxiety-- we love our rules! Even when they don't help us live happy and healthy lives. In particular, I have A LOT of rules around rest. When I can rest, how I can rest, if I've earned the rest I'm taking. You get the idea. In this episode, I talk with one of my clients, Michelle, whose rules for rest are similar to my own. We talk about how we're learning to loosen up our rules, one step at a time.

Listen to the full episode to hear:

- Nancy's personal relationship with her rules for rest.

- Nancy's journey to accepting that she is worthy of rest and to loosen up her rest rules.

- Insight from one of Nancy's clients, Michelle, who is also learning to loosen up her rules around rest.

- Tips for folks with HFA who want to try to loosen up their own rest rules.

Visit: https://NancyJaneSmith.com
Learn More About Self Loyalty School: https://selfloyaltyschool.com

Rest In Practice Dec 16, 2022

Show notes

Hey guys!
So we're supposed to have a new episode for you today, but as it often does, life happens. And my producer Nicki, well, she's quite sick. So in the spirit of this season on rest, we are practicing what we preach and waiting until the new year to publish our last two episodes of the season.
Our next episode will be out on January 6th. Have a happy holiday, and make sure you take some time for rest. Until next time!

Visit: https://NancyJaneSmith.com
Learn More About Self Loyalty School: https://selfloyaltyschool.com

Rest: Wintering Dec 02, 2022

Show notes

Have you ever been through a period of your life where you felt like nothing was going right? And during that period, did you think: "Oh my god, what is WRONG with me?? I have to get out of this as fast as I can!!" Well, Nancy's been there. But after talking with Katherine May, author of the book Wintering: The Power of Rest and Retreat in Difficult Times, she learned that these difficult, dark periods are just a part of life. And it's the grace that we show ourselves as we get through them that really matters.

Listen to the full episode to hear:

- Nancy's personal relationship with wintering.

- Nancy's journey to accept wintering as an important stage of life.

- Nancy's conversation with author Katherine May about the importance of rest in difficult times.

- Tips for folks with HFA who may be going through a winter themselves.

Learn more about Katherine May:

- Go to https://katherine-may.co.uk/

- Buy Katherine's book, Wintering: The Power of Rest and Retreat in Difficult Times on her website, or pre-order her forthcoming book, Enchantment: Awakening Wonder in an Anxious Age, out in March 2023.

- Listen to Katherine's podcast, The Wintering Sessions, wherever you get your podcasts.

- Follow Katherine on Twitter @_katherine_may_

Visit: https://NancyJaneSmith.com
Learn More About Self Loyalty School: https://selfloyaltyschool.com

Rest: The Dreaded Napping Experiment Nov 18, 2022

Show notes

Most people think that napping is great! A little break during the middle of the day. But Nancy HATES naps, with a fiery passion. They don't help her feel refreshed, and she just wakes up feeling yucky. But! She has a sinking suspicion that if she gave the whole napping thing a try her way, then maybe she could make napping work for her. So Nancy embarks on the dreaded NAPPING EXPERIMENT... DUN DUN DUN. And chats again with Dr. Sara Mednick to learn: what's so great about napping?

Listen to the full episode to hear:

- Nancy's personal relationship with napping.

- Nancy's journey to accomplish the NAPPING EXPERIMENT... DUN DUN DUN.

- Insight into why napping could work for you with sleep expert Dr. Sara Mednick.

- Tips for folks with HFA who want to try napping for themselves.

Learn more about Dr. Sara Mednick:

- Go to https://www.saramednick.com/

- Buy Sara's book Take a Nap, Change Your Life on her website, or wherever books are sold.

- Follow Sara on Twitter @Sara_Mednick

Visit: https://NancyJaneSmith.com
Learn More About Self Loyalty School: https://selfloyaltyschool.com

Rest: Vacationing with High Functioning Anxiety Nov 04, 2022

Show notes

When most people think of vacation, their thoughts are simple: awesome, great, I love to go on vacation, and this will be THE BEST. For people with High-Functioning Anxiety, vacation can be a lot more complicated than that. Resting sounds delightful, but it can cause anxiety to go even higher! Nancy shares why she both loves and hates vacations. Plus, she answers listener questions and gives concrete advice about how to actually have fun on your next vacation, even if you have High Functioning Anxiety.

Listen to the full episode to hear:

Nancy's personal relationship with vacation.
A Q&A where Nancy answers questions about how to handle vacation when you have high-functioning anxiety.
Tips for folks with High Functioning Anxiety who actually want to relax on vacations.

Visit: https://NancyJaneSmith.com
Learn More About Self Loyalty School: https://selfloyaltyschool.com

Rest: Imagination, Mindfulness, and Rest Oct 14, 2022

Show notes

Nancy has tried and tried again to be a consistent meditator. Everyone says it's the key to getting rid of anxiety! But the "traditional" ways of meditating that she's tried-- sitting on a pillow for 5 minutes a day thinking about *nothing*-- have NOT worked for her. That's why she got in touch with Jessica Snow. Jessica is a spiritual teacher and writer of guided meditations whose approach to mindfulness is anything but rigid. Jessica shares some tips for using your imagination to help make mindfulness work for you and even shares a short guided meditation with Nancy.

Listen to the full episode to hear:

- Nancy's struggle with meditating and how the traditional rules of meditation clash with her high-functioning anxiety.

- A conversation about imagination, mindfulness, and rest with Jessica Snow.

- Tips for folks with HFA who want to harness the benefits of mindfulness.

Learn more about Jessica Snow:

- Go to youaremagicla.com to sign up for Jessica's newsletter, listen to her guided meditations, watch her videos, and sign up for her workshops.

- Follow Jessica on Instagram @meditation_jess

Visit: https://NancyJaneSmith.com
Learn More About Self Loyalty School: https://selfloyaltyschool.com

Rest: Sleep Sep 30, 2022

Show notes

Nothing hits harder over the age of 30 than a bad night of sleep. When Nancy thinks about rest, she automatically thinks about sleep, and how hard it can be to give ourselves the space to actually allow ourselves to get the full amount of sleep we need. Nancy talks about her personal "sleep rules" and how she's learning to bend them. And we talk to Dr. Sara Mednick, a cognitive neuroscience, author and sleep researcher about the truly magical things that our bodies do while our eyes are shut.

Listen to the full episode to hear:

Nancy's personal journey with sleep and how she's learning to overcome her ingrained "sleep rules."
A conversation about the science of sleep with Dr. Sara Mednick.
Tips for folks with HFA who want to harness the power of sleep.

Learn more about Sara Mednick:

Go to https://www.saramednick.com/
Buy Sara's book The Power of the Downstate on her website, or wherever books are sold.
Follow Sara on Twitter @Sara_Mednick

Learn more about Self Loyalty School:

https://selfloyaltyschool.com/

Visit: https://NancyJaneSmith.com
Learn More About Self Loyalty School: https://selfloyaltyschool.com

Intro to Rest Sep 16, 2022

Show notes

In the first episode of our new season (!) Nancy wades into a topic that's both frustrated and fascinated her over the years-- rest. She grapples with why it's so hard for people like her with HFA to truly rest, and talks with her friend, Stephanie Pollock, about why rest is such a hot topic these days. This is just the first of our eight episode season all about rest-- so stay tuned for more!

Listen to the full episode to hear:

- Nancy's personal relationship to rest, including why COVID has made resting even harder.

- A conversation about rest with Nancy's friend Stephanie Pollock.

- A sneak peek at what we'll be covering in the realm of rest this season.

Learn more about Stephanie Pollock:

- Go to https://stephaniepollock.com/

- Listen to Stephanie's podcast, "Everyday Leadership for Smart Women": https://stephaniepollock.com/podcast/

- Subscribe to her newsletter: https://newsletter.stephaniepollock.com/

- Follow Stephanie on Twitter @Steph_Pollock

Learn more about Nancy:

- https://nancyjanesmith.com
- https://selfloyaltyschool.com

Visit: https://NancyJaneSmith.com
Learn More About Self Loyalty School: https://selfloyaltyschool.com