Break The Anxiety Habit with Dr. Jud Brewer and Charles Duhigg

About this episode

This episode explores how anxiety can become a habit and offers strategies to break the cycle.

What if your anxiety isn’t just something you feel, but something you’ve been practicing? In this episode, I talk with psychiatrist Dr. Jud Brewer and Charles Duhigg about the science behind why anxiety sticks, how your brain confuses worrying with problem-solving, and why willpower alone isn’t enough to change your patterns. We break down how anxiety can become a habit loop and why so many high achievers unknowingly reinforce it through overwork, worry, and constant mental effort. Tune in to learn how to replace unhelpful patterns with ones that actually support your focus, energy, and mental health. Check out our sponsors: Shopify - Sign up for a $1 per month trial, just go to shopify.com/anxiousachiever Notion - Notion is an AI powered, connected workspace for teams. Try custom agents now at notion.com/achiever In this Episode, You Will Learn 00:00 Is anxiety something you experience or something you practice? 02:00 Why overworking can become your default response to anxiety. 04:00 How the habit loop explains worry, distraction, and anxiety patterns. 08:00 What’s the difference between planning and worrying? 10:00 How perfectionism and overpreparing become reinforcing habits…

People in this episode

Host: Morra Aarons-Mele

Guests: Dr. Jud Brewer, Charles Duhigg

Topics covered

• anxiety
• habit loops
• mental health
• productivity
• overwork

Keywords

• anxiety
• habit loop
• mental health
• overwork
• productivity
• worry
• meditation

Sponsors

Shopify, Notion

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