{"id":125083,"date":"2025-11-10T03:55:09","date_gmt":"2025-11-10T03:55:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/125083\/"},"modified":"2025-11-10T03:55:09","modified_gmt":"2025-11-10T03:55:09","slug":"are-you-living-in-fear-and-permanently-anxious-here-are-the-six-steps-to-take-back-control-of-your-life-dr-max-pemberton","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/125083\/","title":{"rendered":"Are you living in fear and permanently anxious? Here are the six steps to take back control of your life: DR MAX PEMBERTON"},"content":{"rendered":"

There\u2019s a particular type of patient I\u2019ve been seeing more of lately. They sit in my consulting room, wringing their hands, describing a creeping sense of dread that wasn\u2019t there before.<\/p>\n

\u2018I don\u2019t want to get on the Tube,\u2019 one woman told me last week. \u2018I know it\u2019s silly, but every time I\u2019m on a train, I\u2019m looking at everyone, wondering…\u2019 She trailed off, but I knew what she meant. The shocking stabbings on that Doncaster to London<\/a> train had shaken her badly.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve lost count of the number of conversations I\u2019ve had recently that begin with, \u2018Did you see the news about…\u2019 followed by another horrifying incident.<\/p>\n

The prisoner mistakenly released from Wandsworth. The knife attacks linked across multiple locations. It feels relentless, doesn\u2019t it? As though we\u2019re living through some sort of moral collapse, a descent into lawlessness where nowhere is truly safe anymore.<\/p>\n

But here\u2019s the thing that might surprise you: We\u2019re not. In fact, statistically speaking, we\u2019re living in one of the safest periods in modern history.<\/p>\n

Since 2005 robbery has fallen by 60 per cent in the UK. Burglary is down by two-thirds. Overall violent crime<\/a> has halved. Yes, halved.<\/p>\n

If I\u2019d told my younger self, fresh out of medical school in the early 2000s, that crime would plummet like this, I wouldn\u2019t have believed it.<\/p>\n

\"Social <\/p>\n

Social media algorithms, designed to keep us engaged, serve up the most shocking content because that\u2019s what makes us stop scrolling and read it<\/p>\n

So why does it feel so terrifying? Why are my patients \u2013 sensible, rational people \u2013 suddenly afraid to travel, to go out after dark, to let their children catch the bus alone?<\/p>\n

The answer lies partly in the nature of modern information. We\u2019re not just hearing about violent incidents in our immediate vicinity anymore; we\u2019re hearing about every single one that happens across the entire country, often within minutes of it occurring. Social media algorithms, designed to keep us engaged, serve up the most shocking content because that\u2019s what makes us stop scrolling and read it.<\/p>\n

Our brains, evolved to respond to threats, can\u2019t distinguish between a danger in our postcode and one 200 miles away.<\/p>\n

It all registers as: Threat nearby, be vigilant.<\/p>\n

What worries me particularly as a psychiatrist is how these news cycles can pour petrol on the flames of existing anxiety disorders. The catastrophic thinking that characterises anxiety (\u2018something terrible is going to happen\u2019) finds validation in every news alert.\u00a0<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve seen patients, who were managing their anxiety well, suddenly spiral after a weekend of being bombarded by social media coverage of violent incidents.<\/p>\n

Their underlying condition doesn\u2019t create the fear out of nothing; the news stories provide a hook for it to latch on to, making everything feel more urgent, more immediate and more threatening.<\/p>\n

So what do we do? How do we function when our nervous systems are jangling with anxiety every time we step on to public transport or walk through a city centre at night?<\/p>\n

1.\u00a0Be honest about what you\u2019re consuming. If checking the news five times a day is making you feel worse, limit it to once. Choose a specific time, perhaps over breakfast, then step away. You don\u2019t need real-time updates on every incident.<\/p>\n

You\u2019re not missing crucial safety information; you\u2019re just marinating in fear. This is especially important for anyone with a history of anxiety \u2013 think of news consumption like alcohol for someone with a drinking problem. It needs boundaries.<\/p>\n

2.\u00a0Remember our brains are terrible at assessing risk. We worry about stranger attacks while happily driving cars which are statistically far more dangerous.<\/p>\n

We fret about plane crashes but not ladders, despite the latter killing far more people annually. This isn\u2019t stupidity; it\u2019s how we\u2019re wired. But recognising this bias helps our fears.<\/p>\n

3.\u00a0Build your confidence slowly. When my patients describe avoiding trains or public spaces, I encourage gradual exposure not complete avoidance.<\/p>\n

Avoidance makes anxiety grow. Start small: A short journey at a quiet time. Bring a friend. Use headphones and calming music. This isn\u2019t about being reckless; it\u2019s about not letting fear steal your life.<\/p>\n

4.\u00a0Acknowledge anxiety rather than fighting it. When you feel that spike of fear on the train, don\u2019t berate yourself for being silly. Instead, notice it: \u2018I\u2019m feeling anxious right now.\u2019<\/p>\n

Then look around. What do you actually see? Usually, it\u2019s ordinary people doing ordinary things \u2013 reading, sleeping, scrolling through phones, looking as bored and tired as you feel. This grounds you in reality rather than catastrophic possibility.<\/p>\n

5.\u00a0Talk to your loved ones, especially children, honestly but proportionately. Yes, bad things happen sometimes, but they\u2019re rare. We take sensible precautions \u2013 staying aware of our surroundings, trusting our instincts \u2013 but we don\u2019t let fear win. Because that\u2019s what these isolated perpetrators of violence ultimately want: To make us feel unsafe in our own communities.<\/p>\n

6. Consider what you can control. You can\u2019t prevent every possible tragedy, but you can be kind to the person next to you on the train. You can check in on anxious friends. You can build connection and community, which are the very best antidotes to fear.<\/p>\n

The world isn\u2019t falling apart, even when it feels that way. We\u2019re just hearing about every crack more loudly than ever before.<\/p>\n

I loved Alan\u2019s \u2018treachery\u2019\u00a0 \"Comedian <\/p>\n

Comedian Alan Carr with Claudia Winkleman, host of\u00a0The Celebrity Traitors<\/p>\n

I\u2019ll confess: I\u2019ve been utterly gripped by The Celebrity Traitors. And last week\u2019s final, which saw Alan Carr triumph, was a masterclass in exactly why we humans are such magnificently terrible lie detectors.<\/p>\n

Time and again, someone would voice a suspicion about a Traitor, only to be talked down by the group.<\/p>\n

Alan\u2019s victory reveals something crucial about how we assess trustworthiness.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Faithfuls came into that castle with 15 years of pre-existing beliefs about who Alan Carr is: relatable, funny, a bit ditzy, unthreatening.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Even when suspicions arose, the group couldn\u2019t shake their fundamental perception of him.\u00a0<\/p>\n

This is what psychologists call the \u2018halo effect\u2019: when one positive trait (in this case, likability) influences our judgment of someone\u2019s other characteristics, including their honesty.<\/p>\n

The genius of Alan\u2019s win is that he weaponised his own public persona. We struggle to believe someone who makes us laugh, who feels like a friend, could be systematically deceiving us.<\/p>\n

Alan didn\u2019t fit their mental template of what a Traitor looks like. But his entire career has been built on making people feel comfortable, at ease, entertained. Those same skills translate perfectly to this game.<\/p>\n

The brilliance of The Traitors is that it\u2019s not really a game show about deception. It\u2019s a behavioural experiment that reveals how easily our social instincts can be exploited.\u00a0<\/p>\n

We trust faces over facts, emotion over evidence, and pre-existing perceptions over present reality.\u00a0<\/p>\n

And Alan? He understood that the best disguise isn\u2019t a mask – it\u2019s being exactly who people already think you are.<\/p>\n

There are moments when NHS management decisions leave me genuinely speechless, and news that University Hospital Southampton Trust are scrapping free tea and coffee for staff is one of them.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Yes, it\u2019ll save \u00a350,000. It\u2019ll also tell exhausted nurses and doctors exactly how valued they are: less than the cost of a digestive biscuit.\u00a0<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve worked in hospitals where the only thing keeping you upright during a 13-hour shift is knowing there\u2019s a tea break coming.\u00a0<\/p>\n

That cup of coffee isn\u2019t a luxury \u2013 it\u2019s a lifeline. It\u2019s the two minutes you catch your breath between a cardiac arrest and breaking bad news to a family. It\u2019s the moment of human connection with colleagues when you\u2019re all running on empty.\u00a0<\/p>\n

But here\u2019s what really grates: this same trust will undoubtedly spend far more than \u00a350,000 on management consultants, on glossy strategy documents, on restructuring exercises that achieve nothing. Yet it\u2019s the tea that has to go.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Morale is in the gutter. Recruitment is dire. And management\u2019s response? Make them pay for their own bloody tea! You can\u2019t preach about wellbeing and staff retention while literally taking the tea out of their hands. Some savings simply aren\u2019t worth making.<\/p>\n

The NHS is issuing a \u2018flu jab SOS\u2019 and frankly, I wish they\u2019d used stronger language.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s the brutal truth: flu kills. The vaccine isn\u2019t perfect, but it\u2019s the best defence we have. If you\u2019re eligible\u2013 over 65, pregnant, or have underlying conditions \u2013 book it today. Not next week. Today.\u00a0<\/p>\n

This isn\u2019t about you being tough enough to weather flu. It\u2019s about not ending up on a trolley in A&E while exhausted staff try to save your life.<\/p>\n

Dr Max Prescribes: 3 Good Things \"\" <\/p>\n

Recent research shows practicing gratitude may help reduce stress, improve sleep and support physical health, and may also strengthen relationships.\u00a0<\/p>\n

This week, I\u2019m prescribing the \u2018Three Good Things\u2019 exercise: before bed, write down three things that went well today and why they happened.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Small daily moments of gratitude can have a lasting impact on mental health and may even help train the brain to naturally look for more positives than negatives.\u00a0<\/p>\n

They don\u2019t need to be momentous \u2014 warm water from the tap, a text from a friend, the bus arriving on time. The noticing is the medicine.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"There\u2019s a particular type of patient I\u2019ve been seeing more of lately. They sit in my consulting room,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":125084,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[55291,2039,2040,163,85,46,231,442,522,523,2662],"class_list":{"0":"post-125083","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-mental-health","8":"tag-alan-carr","9":"tag-dailymail","10":"tag-femail","11":"tag-health","12":"tag-il","13":"tag-israel","14":"tag-lifestyle","15":"tag-london","16":"tag-mental-health","17":"tag-mentalhealth","18":"tag-nhs"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/125083","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=125083"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/125083\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/125084"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=125083"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=125083"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=125083"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}