you Have you ever wanted to do something? Go to an event, try something new, speak up in class, but the second you think about it, your brain hits you with a million what ifs. What if I say the wrong thing? What if they think I'm weird? What if I fail and everyone sees? And before you even realize what's happening, you talk yourself out of it, again. If that sounds like you, I want to help you break free from that cycle. Because anxiety, it convinces you that staying stuck is safer. But that's just not true. And today we're going to talk about why and how you can finally start moving forward. Hi, and welcome back to Blackout the Noise. This is the go-to podcast for teens and young adults who are ready to quiet the noise of anxiety, self-doubt, and overthinking. I'm Jessica Davis, a licensed therapist, mindset coach for teens and young adults, and the creator of The Courage Method, which is a framework designed to help you take control of your thoughts, trust yourself, and build the confidence to move forward. Through relatable advice and real strategies, my goal is to help you cut through the mental chaos rebuild your confidence and take on whatever comes next. If anxiety has ever made you second guess yourself, avoid something you really wanted or kept you stuck in the endless loop of what ifs, you're in the right place. I also want you to know you don't have to fight anxiety alone. That's why I put together the anxiety survival toolkit. So when doubt tries to hold you back, you have real strategies to help you move forward. It's full of practical tools you can use any time. So go grab it for free in the show notes. Also, just a quick reminder, this podcast is here to support and guide you, but it is not a substitute for professional mental health care. If you're in a crisis, please reach out to a therapist or contact emergency services. I know how overwhelming anxiety can feel. Overwhelming anxiety can make you feel like the smallest things seem impossible. But no matter how loud that doubt gets, I want you to remember this. You are capable of more than your anxiety wants you to believe. All right, let's cut through the noise and get started. You ever have one of those moments where you know exactly what you need to do, but instead you do nothing? Maybe it's a homework assignment that you've been putting off for days. Maybe it's that text message that has been in draft for who knows how long. Or maybe it's something even bigger, taking the first step towards something you really want. But instead of starting, you tell yourself, I'll do it in five minutes. Then five turns into 10, 10 turns into 30, and suddenly everything feels overwhelming. So instead of starting, you distract yourself. Scrolling, watching TV, even cleaning. Doing anything but the thing you actually need to do. And when the deadline gets close, that's when the panic really starts to set in. Now it's a race against time. The frustration kicks in, the negative thoughts pile up, and you start to ask yourself, why do I always do this? Why can't I just start? This cycle happens more than people realize. It's not laziness, it's not a lack of motivation, it's anxiety keeping you stuck. It convinces you that avoiding the hard thing will make you feel better, but avoiding it only makes the fear stronger and your confidence weaker. But here's the part that anxiety doesn't want you to know. That feeling doesn't have to control you. You don't have to stay stuck. Anxiety is like a broken record. It plays the same doubts, the same fears, the same what-ifs over and over and over. And if you don't catch that pattern, you'll keep playing the same track on repeat. Let's break it down into two steps using two letters of the courage method, C and A. C, catch negative patterns. Anxiety isn't just worry. Worry is temporary, it's tied to a situation, and once that situation passes, so does the worry. But anxiety, it lingers. It convinces you that every mistake is proof that you're not capable. It magnifies your doubts until they feel like facts. It's not just, I'm nervous about a test. It's, I'm bad at school and I'll never figure it out. It's not just, I'm stressed about talking to this person. It's, I'm awkward and people don't like me. Anxiety rewires your thoughts until you don't even recognize the pattern. And that's why the first step is catching it before it controls you. Try this. Next time you feel self-doubt creeping in, pause and ask yourself, is this thought helping me or holding me back? Is this anxiety or is this reality? If it keeps you stuck, don't let it run the show. Someone once said, courage isn't about never feeling fear. It's about refusing to let fear be the reason you stop. A, act despite uncertainty. Once you catch the negative pattern, here's the hard part. You have to act before anxiety convinces you not to. And I get it. Taking action when you feel anxious feels impossible. Anxiety wants you to wait until you feel ready. It tells you don't try. What if you fail? It convinces you that avoiding the fear is safer than facing it. But here's the truth. Waiting until you feel ready is why you feel stuck. I'm gonna share a personal story. When I was 16, I got into a major car accident. And when I say major, I mean, I hit someone. And I didn't just hit anyone. I hit a guy from my school. And to make matters worse, he had a crush on me. So clearly that crush literally ended probably on impact. Not trying to be funny, but just being serious and truthful. And on top of that, when you think the situation couldn't get any worse, the bus that I used to ride came up maybe a minute after that. I was devastated. I didn't want to go back to school. I literally thought, how can I face my classmates after this? How can I walk the halls knowing everyone was going to talk about it? I begged and pleaded to my mom to let me stay home. And you know what she told me? As hard as it is today, if you don't go, that same fear will be here tomorrow." And she was right. Those worries weren't going anywhere. So I went. And did people say stuff? Yes, they did. Did it suck? Absolutely. But you know what else happened? People stood up for me. People told me to leave me alone. And that day wasn't nearly as bad as my brain told me it would be. And more than that, it showed me that I could handle it. That's what I want for you is confidence isn't built by waiting. It's built by proving to yourself that you can handle hard things. If you want to stop letting anxiety run your life, you have to stop waiting for fear to disappear. You have to act anyway. Try this. When you feel fear creeping in, pause and acknowledge it. Say I see you, but you don't get to make this decision for me. Pick one small action that moves you forward. Not a hugely, just a step. and then take that step before your brain tries to talk you out of it. You don't have to be fearless. You just have to do it scared because the more you prove to yourself that you can handle it, the stronger you become. Right now, think of something you've been avoiding. Maybe it's a conversation, a task, a project, something you actually want to do, but anxiety keeps stopping you. Now ask yourself, if I wait, will this fear get better or will it just show up again tomorrow? You already know the answer. The only way to break the cycle is to act despite uncertainty. Nelson Mandela once said, I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear. And that's so true. Before we wrap up, let's go over what we talked about today. Anxiety is a way of making you second guess yourself, keeping you stuck and overthinking. avoidance and doubt, but you don't have to stay there. Catch negative patterns. Learn to recognize when anxiety is trying to take over. Ask yourself, is this thought helping me or holding me back? And then act to cite uncertainty. Don't wait until you feel ready. Take one small action before your brain tries to talk you out of it. You'll hear a lot about courage throughout this podcast because it truly does take courage to fight against anxiety. Courage isn't about being fearless. It's about feeling the fear and moving forward anyway. And the truth is you already have the ability to be courageous. The hardest part isn't having courage. It's believing in yourself enough to use it. And when those what ifs show up again, when anxiety tells you to sit back, stay quiet, or wait until you feel more confident, remember you have a choice. You don't have to let fear make your decisions for you. Anxiety doesn't get the last word. You do. If today's episode resonated with you, please share it with someone who you think might benefit from it. And don't forget to hit subscribe so you never miss an episode. And when anxiety feels overwhelming, you don't have to figure it out alone. That's why the anxiety survival toolkit is there. So you have the tools to fight back when negative thoughts and self-doubt try to take over. You can grab it for free in the show notes. Remember, You don't have to have it all figured out. Just take the next step. Thank you so much for listening. And until next time, keep moving forward, trust yourself, and never forget you have what it takes to block out the noise.