Chronic anxiety isn’t just in your head — it’s in your nervous system.
It lives in patterns shaped by past stress, trauma, and the way your body has learned to survive. Over time, your system can get stuck in a constant state of vigilance — scanning, bracing, reacting. And yet, when most people seek help, the focus is on symptom management, not nervous system regulation. But the science is clear: healing begins when we work with the body, not against it — retraining the brain, calming the system, and restoring a felt sense of safety.
The Symptom-Management Trap
One of the hardest parts about living with anxiety is how invisible it can be. You can look totally fine on the outside — maybe even high-functioning — while inside, you’re bracing against an inner storm. You finally reach out for help, open up to a doctor or practitioner, and you’re often given a prescription and sent on your way.
I’m not against medication. For some people, anxiety meds are life-changing. They can create space, safety, and function when everything feels overwhelming. But my concern is that medication is often where the conversation stops. There’s rarely time, space, or support to ask why we’re anxious in the first place.
Why is your nervous system on high alert?
Why do you wake up with dread or panic at night?
Why does your body feel wired, but your mind is exhausted?
Why does caffeine make things worse, but without it you can’t function?
True healing doesn’t begin until we get curious about the roots — and those roots are rarely explored in a system focused on speed and efficiency.
A System That Struggles to Go Deep
Some countries offer universal healthcare. Others rely on private systems. Some have both. But across the board, the deeper healing work that anxiety requires is often out of reach — not because it doesn’t exist, but because it lives outside the mainstream model of care.
Longer appointments. Nervous system education. Trauma-informed therapy. Nutrition counseling. Functional medicine. Breathwork. Community healing circles. These are the tools that go deep — and they’re often not covered, funded, or promoted by the systems we have.
And so, whether you’re in a country with free healthcare or one where everything comes with a price tag, you may still find yourself navigating this alone, struggling to find the support you intuitively know you need.
The Bigger Picture: Food, Pharma, and Culture
I recently listened to an interview with Brigham Buhler on the Modern Wisdom podcast. Buhler is an ex-Pharma rep, healthcare entrepreneur, founder and CEO of Ways2Well, and co-founder of ReviveRx Pharmacy. One of the most eye-opening parts of Buhler’s interview was how he connected the dots between what we eat, how we’re treated, and how we feel. In countries like the U.S. (and increasingly others), food is processed, refined, and stripped of nutritional value — all in the name of convenience and profit. That matters. Because what we eat shapes our gut health, our inflammation levels, our energy — and yes, our anxiety.
The gut and brain are deeply connected. A dysregulated gut can throw off neurotransmitters, disrupt hormone balance, and keep the body in a low-grade stress response. Many of us are unknowingly feeding our anxiety — not just with food, but with overstimulation, sleep deprivation, isolation, and chronic stress.
And then, when the anxiety becomes unbearable, we’re told, “You have a chemical imbalance,” handed a pill, and ushered back into the same patterns.
This isn’t just a Western problem. It’s a global trend — one that reflects a disconnect between how we live and how we’re meant to live as human beings.
What’s Missing — and What We Can Do About It
So where does that leave us?
If you’re living with chronic anxiety — no matter where you are in the world — the journey toward healing can feel overwhelming. Whether you’re in a country with universal healthcare, a privatized system, or limited access to mental health support, you may find that the care available to you focuses more on short-term relief than deep, lasting change.
But here’s what I’ve come to understand through my own healing and in guiding others: the first steps toward healing don’t require perfect systems or unlimited resources. They begin with awareness. With choice. With small, repeatable actions that reconnect you to your body, your breath, and your sense of agency.
Here are some ways to begin:
1. Come Back to Your Breath
No matter your circumstances, your breath is always with you. It’s one of the few tools you carry everywhere — and it can profoundly shift how you feel.
Slow, conscious breathing helps calm the nervous system, reduce stress hormones, and bring you back into the present moment. Even just 3–5 deep breaths can interrupt the momentum of anxiety and create a feeling of groundedness. Here is a free class on DoYogaWithMe that takes you through slow breathing techniques.
But breathwork isn’t limited to slow breathing. In fact, rapid breathing techniques — like kapalabhati or breath of fire — can be incredibly helpful when your energy feels stuck or your anxiety manifests as a kind of mental fog. These techniques increase circulation, elevate mood, and help release built-up tension in both body and mind. Just a minute or two of rapid breathing, followed by stillness, can create a noticeable shift. Here is a free class on DoYogaWithMe that focuses on rapid breathing.
2. Notice What You’re Taking In
Your mental and emotional state is shaped not just by what happens around you, but by what you allow in. This includes food, media, conversations, environments, even your own inner dialogue. Begin to gently observe: What supports me? What drains me? Awareness is the first act of freedom.
3. Support Your Body with Nourishment
Good nutrition supports a calmer mind. Wherever possible, eat real, whole foods that nourish your body and nervous system. Limit processed ingredients and added sugars, which can fuel inflammation and anxious energy. You don’t need a perfect diet — just a more mindful one.
4. Move in Ways That Feel Good
Movement helps process emotion, release tension, and regulate your nervous system. It doesn’t have to be intense or structured. Walk. Stretch. Dance. Do yoga. Swim. Breathe and move at the same time. Let it be intuitive and enjoyable. Even five minutes makes a difference.
5. Seek Support Beyond the Surface
If your healthcare system doesn’t offer the depth of care you need, look beyond the conventional. Many people find healing through therapy, mindfulness practices, somatic work, group circles, or functional and integrative health approaches. We have many free or paid classes that help with stress and anxiety on DoYogaWithMe, and if you’re looking for something that goes deeper and is more interactive and supportive, check out my two 21-Day programs that are designed to help with chronic anxiety. Even one trusted guide can shift your path.
6. Find or Build Connection
Anxiety isolates — healing reconnects. Whether in person or online, seek out spaces where you feel safe to be yourself. Join a supportive group. My Learn About Anxiety Community is a great place to start (it’s free, but you’ll need to create an account). Open up to a friend. Listen to others’ stories. When we feel seen and heard, the nervous system softens. You don’t have to do this alone.
7. Be Compassionate With Yourself
Chronic anxiety is not a character flaw. It’s your body’s way of trying to protect you — often for very good reasons. Instead of fighting it, try offering yourself compassion. Healing is a long, often non-linear path. Some days will feel better than others. That’s normal. Keep going gently.
Final Thoughts
Anxiety doesn’t make you broken. It makes you human. It’s a signal — a call for change, for support, for reconnection. And while the world’s systems may not yet be fully equipped to help us heal in the way we need, that doesn’t mean healing isn’t possible.
You can start today, wherever you are.
With your breath. With awareness. With small choices that lead you back to balance.
You are not alone. And you are not powerless.
We’re all in this together — learning how to live in a way that’s more aligned, more grounded, more whole.
Let’s keep walking that path, one step at a time.