The Age of Anxiety: AI, Doomscrolling and How To Cope in a World That Won’t Switch Off
The Feel Good Hour Podcast turns its attention to anxiety – not just as a word people throw around, but as something millions experience in real life through racing thoughts, physical tension, overthinking, fear, uncertainty and the feeling that the mind is constantly overloaded.
Hosted by broadcaster and wellbeing advocate Sam Griffin alongside life coach, hypnotherapist and best-selling author Nigel Jones, the episode starts by asking what anxiety really is and why so many people misunderstand it, before exploring whether we are now living in The Age of Anxiety.
Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/1RuUgHlvorQ?si=S2tELihTIuHzIDfO
The episode, titled The Age of Anxiety: AI, Doomscrolling and How To Cope in a World That Won’t Switch Off, looks at why modern life can feel so overwhelming – from AI job fears and doomscrolling to 24-hour information, family pressure, imposter syndrome, physical symptoms and the everyday moments when the mind feels as if it has grabbed the steering wheel.
Anxiety is now one of the most common mental health challenges in the world. The World Health Organisation estimates that 359 million people were living with an anxiety disorder in 2021, making anxiety disorders the most common mental disorders globally.
In England, NHS data shows that one in five adults had a common mental health condition in 2023/24, with generalised anxiety disorder the most prevalent specific condition.
Anxiety as the brain and body’s protection system, not a sign that someone is broken. The problem is when that system becomes overactive and starts treating everyday life like danger.
The episode includes practical tools from Nigel’s coaching, NLP and hypnotherapy work, including the Control Room, Challenge Hierarchy, Inner Librarian, Reticular Activating System, submodality work, mindfulness practices, and simple ways to interrupt anxious thinking patterns.
“These are tools I use in his one-to-one work with clients dealing with anxiety, fears and phobias, helping them understand what is happening in the mind and body and develop practical ways to feel calmer, more confident and more in control,” says Nigel.
Listeners will hear:
. what anxiety is and why it is so often misunderstood
· why modern life can leave the mind feeling overloaded
· how AI fears, doomscrolling and constant uncertainty feed the threat system
· the different types of anxiety people may experience
· why anxiety can feel so physical
· why anxious thoughts can feel so believable
· how imposter syndrome fits into anxiety
· how mindfulness can help bring the mind back to now
· one practical thing listeners can do right now to start taking back control
Nigel says: “Anxiety is not proof you’re broken. It is the brain and body trying to protect you. The problem is when that protection system becomes overactive and starts running your life. The aim isn’t to never feel anxious. The aim is to stop anxiety driving the car.”
Originally developed from a radio show format, The Feel Good Hour is now a monthly podcast focused on practical wellbeing and personal development. The show is designed to feel like listening in on a coaching conversation, with each episode taking one real-life challenge and breaking it down into what is happening, why it happens, and what people can do about it.
NEED HELP WITH ANXIETY, OVERTHINKING OR PHOBIAS?
As Mark Twain once said: “I’ve suffered a great many catastrophes in my life, most of which never happened.” That is anxiety in a nutshell. The mind runs ahead, writes the disaster movie, adds the dramatic music, casts you as the victim, and then asks your body to react as if it is all happening right now.
Nigel Jones is a specialist anxiety coach, hypnotherapist and NLP practitioner who helps clients understand anxiety, calm the body and change the patterns that keep anxiety going.
The anxiety loop
Anxiety often follows a pattern. Something triggers it, thoughts appear, feelings show up in the body, behaviour follows, and the whole loop can start reinforcing itself. Nigel helps clients identify the trigger, understand the thoughts and feelings connected to it, notice the behaviour that follows, and then interrupt, calm and change the pattern.
The approach starts from a simple idea: anxiety is not proof that you are broken. It is proof that your alarm system is switched on. The body is often doing its job, but the problem is that it may be responding to a thought as if it is a tiger attacking you, when in reality it may just be an email, a meeting, a social situation, a flight, a memory, or a future event that has not yet happened.
Anxiety is a friend, not the enemy
Anxiety is not there to ruin your life. It is there to get your attention. It is a message, a warning signal, and often unresolved fear asking to be understood and resolved. The problem is that the signal can become too loud, too frequent or attached to the wrong things. The aim is not to fight anxiety, suppress it or pretend it is not there. The aim is to understand what it is trying to protect you from, update the response, and give your mind and body a better way forward.
Types of anxiety
There are many forms of anxiety, including general anxiety, social anxiety, panic, overthinking, trauma-related anxiety and specific fears or phobias, such as fear of flying, public speaking, heights, driving, enclosed spaces and many other situations where the brain has learned to associate something with danger.
Anxiety coaching
One-to-one anxiety coaching gives you the space, structure and tools to understand your anxiety and begin changing the pattern. This can include practical techniques such as the Thinker-Prover, the Control Room, submodality work, the Inner Librarian, the Reticular Activating System, future pacing, grounding techniques and simple ways to bring the mind back to now.
Anxiety is not just a thought. It is a full body alarm system. The sensations are real, but the danger story may have been blown out of proportion.
If you want to feel calmer, clearer and more confident, and you are ready to deal with anxiety rather than keep managing around it, find out more about Nigel’s Anxiety Coaching here:
https://www.9kmby9am.com/coaching/coaching-anxiety/
About The Feel Good Hour
The Feel Good Hour is a monthly podcast hosted by Sam Griffin and Nigel Jones. Each episode tackles a real-life wellbeing challenge and breaks it down into practical tools, clear thinking and everyday action.
Website: www.feelgoodhour.com
Where to Listen
Website: www.feelgoodhour.com
YouTube: https://youtu.be/1RuUgHlvorQ?si=S2tELihTIuHzIDfO
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/3FR9lR0mSRnjMZodyeIpxn?si=mHaOO1-OT2q2oEiCAOjyqw
Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/feel-good-hour-series-3-show-2-anxiety-june-2026/id1850020626?i=1000770623295
Notes to Editors
- Hosts: Nigel Jones and Sam Griffin
- Format: Monthly podcast, recorded live
- Origin: Developed from a radio show format
- Audience: (UK, Europe, USA and worldwide)
- Focus: Practical tools for well-being, mindset and behaviour change
About Nigel Jones
Nigel Jones is a life coach, hypnotherapist and best-selling author of Walking Back to Happiness. He is the founder of 9KM BY 9AM, a coaching programme focused on helping people change habits, improve well-being and live with greater clarity and purpose.
Nigel works with clients on anxiety, mindset and behaviour change, including general anxiety, social anxiety, trauma-related anxiety and specific fears or phobias. His phobia work includes helping people with fears such as flying, public speaking, heights, driving, enclosed spaces and other situations where the mind and body have learned to respond as if they are under threat.
Using a blend of coaching, NLP, hypnotherapy and practical mindset tools, Nigel helps clients understand anxiety as an overactive protection system rather than a personal failing. His work focuses on interrupting anxious patterns, building confidence and helping people feel calmer and more in control in everyday life.
Website: https://9kmby9am.com
Anxiety Coaching: https://www.9kmby9am.com/coaching/coaching-anxiety/
Book: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1915147301/
About Sam Griffin
Sam Griffin is an experienced broadcaster and presenter, and a passionate advocate for well-being and women’s empowerment. She brings a strong journalistic approach to conversations around mental health and personal development, helping to make complex topics accessible, relevant and engaging.
