There’s a word for intense fear of change. Metathesiophobia.

That’s when your fear of change is so strong and affects your life so intensely that you’ve developed an actual phobia around change. If that has become the case, then you’d avoid any change in your life as much as possible and stay in a constant state of agitation or vigilance about potential change.

But change is inevitable. Time brings change. People change. Children change. Circumstances change. Cultures change. Even beliefs can change.

Yet you could live a life denying change. You could keep treating your kids like kids, instead of seeing them grow into their own beings. You could fight your body changing and aging with all sorts of anti-aging products. You could see cultural change and fear it so much that you become paranoid about its impact and fight against it, surrounding yourself with people who share your beliefs. And share your fear.

In this episode of SelfWork, we’ll tackle this very important distinction: how you’re fearing something because of the limited information you have about it, not realizing how your own assumptions about it are keeping you afraid.

Click here to order the PHD Workbook!

Click here to find out more about Dr. Margaret's PESI course on perfectionism and depression on November 2, 2026! It's virtual!

Having a panic disorder is bad enough.

You may be able to anticipate it happening; for example, if you tend to panic when you see a spider or a snake.

But other times, panic attacks – the sudden onset of intense symptoms of anxiety, such as trouble breathing, your heart racing, feelings of wanting or even needing to flee, tunnel vision, sweating, trembling – these very unwelcome and unexpected feelings come upon you like a freight train suddenly roaring toward you - going its fastest speed. It can truly feel as if you’ve been invaded by some other being and the attacks themselves can be very frightening, especially if you have no idea what they are.

Yet what can easily begin to happen - after you’ve had a few of these highly unpleasant and even humiliating attacks – you can begin to fear them. You can see ahead and realize that you might have to deal with one at a time when you have responsibilities, duties, things to do.

And so… you become panicked about panic.

In this episode of SelfWork, we'll focus on five surefire ways to calm your nervous system and deal with "panic about panic."

Dr. Saunders' YouTube video on these five calming techniques!

Goodreads recommendations for "best self-help books for panic disorder"

Click here to order the PHD Workbook!

Click here to find out more about Dr. Margaret's PESI course on perfectionism and depression on November 2, 2026! It's virtual!

Today we'll focus on how to listen to someone so that they feel truly understood and seen.

And it may not be a kind of listening that you know about. It's a method called "affect labeling" - meaning labeling the emotions of the person you're listening to. And our expert today is Doug Noll, who teaches this method all over the world.

This episode will teach you this new way of listening that is amazingly effective!

Order The Perfectly Hidden Depression Workbook - A stand-alone workbook exploring the ten traits of Perfectly Hidden Depression, with guided exercises to help you decide what to keep from your drive and perfectionism, and what to let go.

Be a part of the conversation and join Dr. Margaret’s newsletter for one weekly email featuring the latest blog post and podcast episode.

Have a question or comment? Send a voice message for possible use on the podcast. By recording, you give permission for your voice to be used on SelfWork!