Escape Anxiety: 8 Steps to Freedom Through Meditative Therapies (Hardcover) (ISBN-13: 9781590793015)

It's estimated that forty million Americans suffer from anxiety disorders--but that's just the tip of the iceberg. Millions more suffer in silence. Suzanne Jessee was one of them. Hospitalized at age thirty with severe depression, anxiety, and panic disorder, she was determined to overcome the mental paralysis and addictive behaviors that ruled her life. Not only did she personally triumph over these debilitating disorders, but she set out to study, train, and work in the world's leading treatment centers and has helped thousands of others to recover from severe anxiety.

Through her research and stories of her experience, Escape Anxiety: 8 Steps to Freedom through Meditative Therapies Jessee gives the causes and patterns of these complicated and often misunderstood mental health problems and offers a program of natural treatments to regain health and happiness.

Accompanied by a PBS special, Escape Anxiety is an exclusive look at the revolutionary treatment program Jessee successfully pioneered at the Betty Ford Center and other top addiction treatment centers. Her 8-Step Escape Anxiety program is designed to provide holistic, natural techniques to manage extreme stress and depression in order to escape their destructive consequences.

At the heart of her program is Jessee's innovative method of Neurogenesis Meditative Therapy(TM) (NMT). Combining proven therapeutic techniques such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy with ancient mindfulness practices, her methods empower anxiety sufferers by liberating them from unhealthy "thought myths" and helping them create sustainable, life-changing habits. Backed by recent scientific proof that meditation has a transformative effect on the physical brain, Suzanne demystifies the practice of meditation and demonstrates its power as a viable alternative to synthetic medications for treating anxiety. Each of the following steps of Jessee's program to break the patterns of anxiety is accompanied by exercises the reader can do at home, including a specially designed script for meditation:

Step 1: Conquering Codependent Control Issues
Step 2: Dismantling Perfectionism
Step 3: Releasing Resentment and Forgiving Others
Step 4: Surrendering Shame and Resentment: Forgiving Yourself
Step 5: Defusing Catastrophic Thinking
Step 6: Mastering Self-Regulation
Step 7: Making Conscious Choices About Your Emotions
Step 8: Rewriting Your Internal Dialogue

After years of personal experience helping patients at the Betty Ford Center and other clinical settings, and recognition for her success from the top experts in the field, Suzanne Jessee now offers an affordable and accessible in-home treatment program to heal those who suffer from the devastating effects of anxiety disorders.