Tim JP Collins is an anxiety expert. After suffering an intense anxiety attack while delivering a speech for his company, Tim realized he had to delve deep into the cause of his debilitating problem. After years of soul searching and self-therapy, Tim has enabled hundreds of anxiety sufferers to become empowered with the knowledge of how to deal with their condition head on. Tim isthe host of the Anxiety Podcast and is a sought-after speaker on the topic.
Contact Info
Website: www.TimJPCollins.com
Book: The Anxiety Journal by Tim JP Collins
Podcast: www.AnxietyPodcast.com
Facebook / Instagram / Twitter: Tim JP Collins
Most Influential Person
Tim Ferris (Talked a lot in his blog about meditation and slowing down and mindfulness)
Effect on Emotions
By allowing me to process them. I think a lot of the time we try to distract ourselves with music or television or exercise and mindfulness means that we actually can fully be present for whatever it is we're feeling.
Thoughts on Breathing
I notice that when I was most anxious, I was breathing in my chest. Or breathing up and down is another way to put it; your shoulders are going up and down.
One of the things I do to reconnect and ground myself is I rest my hand on the top of my belt or where my belt would be. I just make sure that I'm breathing diaphragmatically; belly breathing in and out, not up and down.
Suggested Resources
Book: The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle
Book: The Anxiety Journal by Tim JP Collins
Free Resource - Anti-Anxiety Toolkit
App: No apps (Paper and Pen)
Bullying Story
I was bullied a decent amount as a chubby pre-teen and teenager. I had my fair share. When I connect back to that anxious feeling in terms of the feeling in my stomach, I think back to when I was at school.
I used to take the bus to high school and there were certain characters who were in the school and then recently graduated. They'd be 17 or 18 years old and they'd hang around at the school.
A lot of the time the conversations were things like, 'I'll get you after school'. And so I would spend the day, (and I'm 6 foot 3), and I'd stand out a little bit.
I'd spend the whole day panicking and being scared and trying to hide and avoid them and sneak onto the bus without being seen and sometimes I'd get away with it and sometimes I wouldn't.
That was a fairly persistent thing in my life and for sure I think that people who experience anxiety are maybe more predisposed to being sensitive individuals. I think people with anxiety tend to be more aware of what's going on which can be positive and can be to your detriment. So more aware of conversations, of feelings, of threats.
For instance, when I was a teenager I'd walk into a pub and just by feeling the energy in the pub I could tell if we should leave because there was going to be a fight breaking out or something bad's going to happen. Friends would be saying, oh no, it's fine, we're in now. And give it ten or fifteen minutes and something would happen.
It was that energetic aggression that I could feel. So a lot of the time at school I was around that and sometimes I got physically punched in the face and I had to try and stand up for myself as a result of it.