Feeling Great: The Revolutionary New Treatment for Depression and Anxiety

So whenever my ego tries to tell me that I’m “over the hill” or not quite “good enough,” I try to remember what Robert said. That reminds me of what’s really important in my life and what gives me the deepest feelings of satisfaction and joy—it’s not being “special” but hanging out with other flawed people who share their failures and vulnerabilities, as well as their successes, so we can all learn and grow together. That’s my “high-level” solution!

First, let’s think about Karen’s guilt. You’ll recall that Karen told herself “I’m a bad mom” and “It’s my fault that her childhood was ruined.” These thoughts triggered Karen’s guilt. Now ask yourself these two questions:

1. Are there some advantages, or benefits, of Karen’s guilt?

2. What does Karen’s guilt show about her and her core values that’s beautiful, positive, and arguably even awesome?

For anxiety, resistance always results from something called magical thinking. This is the idea that although your anxiety may be painful, you subconsciously believe it protects you or your loved ones from something even worse.

The magic button will cause her to feel happy, but it won’t change any of the facts in her life. In essence, she’ll still be a mediocre student. The only thing that will change is her feelings. She’ll feel joy instead of severe depression and inadequacy.

But that means letting go of her “need” to be an academic superstar. To recover today, she’ll have to accept and love herself just as she is, even though she’s not living up to her expectations of who she thinks she should be.