You’re sitting on your couch, minding your business, when your heart starts racing and your chest feels tight. There’s no test, no fight, no deadline. Just anxiety that appears out of nowhere.

In this episode, Jessica Davis, licensed therapist and creator of the C.O.U.R.A.G.E. Method, explains why anxiety doesn’t need a reason to show up and what’s actually happening in your brain when it does. She breaks down how to calm your body when your mind feels hijacked, why your brain thinks it’s protecting you, and what to do when you can’t find the “why” behind your anxiety.

✨ In This Episode, You’ll Learn:

• Why anxiety can hit even when nothing is wrong
• What your amygdala does and how it tricks your brain into panic
• The hidden triggers that cause anxiety to feel random
• Why anxiety isn’t the enemy, but a poor communicator
• What your body needs to calm down when your brain spirals
• Three grounding tools to stop the panic cycle and regain control

Got a question or feedback? Text us and share your thoughts—we’d love to hear from you!

RESOURCES:
Get your FREE Anxiety Survival Toolkit to help you when your anxiety is overwhelming!

Grab your FREE 90-Day Courage Challenge Cheat Sheet and start building confidence today.

📱 Follow Us:

Instagram | Facebook | Threads

🎙️ Presented by Davis-Smith Mental Health

This podcast was created by Davis-Smith Mental Health, offering counseling for teens & young adults in Illinois (only). We accept BCBS PPO, Aetna PPO, and self-pay clients.

⚠️ Disclaimer: Block Out the Noise provides personal insights and practical strategies to help manage anxiety and self-doubt. The content is intended for educational and informational purposes only and should not be used as a substitute for professional mental health care, advice, diagnosis, or treatment. If you are experiencing a crisis or need immediate assistance, please contact emergency services or a trusted mental health professional immediately.

If you find yourself constantly asking, “Are you sure?” or replaying conversations to make sure you didn’t say something wrong, you’re not alone. When anxiety takes over, it convinces you that you can’t trust your own judgment. You end up depending on reassurance from others to feel safe or certain, only to realize the comfort never lasts.

In this episode, Jessica Davis, licensed therapist and creator of the C.O.U.R.A.G.E. Method, breaks down why reassurance-seeking becomes such a powerful habit for anxious minds and how to break free from it. You’ll learn practical ways to rebuild self-trust, calm the constant “what ifs,” and find confidence in your own decisions again.

✨ In This Episode, You’ll Learn:

• Why reassurance feels good in the moment but fuels long-term anxiety
• How anxiety tricks you into believing certainty equals safety
• The hidden link between people-pleasing, perfectionism, and constant seeking of approval
• Tools to help you stop second-guessing yourself and start trusting your instincts
• How to handle the urge to text, ask, or over-explain when fear takes over
• What it really means to feel secure from within, rather than relying on others to validate you

Got a question or feedback? Text us and share your thoughts—we’d love to hear from you!

RESOURCES:
Get your FREE Anxiety Survival Toolkit to help you when your anxiety is overwhelming!

Grab your FREE 90-Day Courage Challenge Cheat Sheet and start building confidence today.

📱 Follow Us:

Instagram | Facebook | Threads

🎙️ Presented by Davis-Smith Mental Health

This podcast was created by Davis-Smith Mental Health, offering counseling for teens & young adults in Illinois (only). We accept BCBS PPO, Aetna PPO, and self-pay clients.

⚠️ Disclaimer: Block Out the Noise provides personal insights and practical strategies to help manage anxiety and self-doubt. The content is intended for educational and informational purposes only and should not be used as a substitute for professional mental health care, advice, diagnosis, or treatment. If you are experiencing a crisis or need immediate assistance, please contact emergency services or a trusted mental health professional immediately.

Have you ever sat down to study and realized you’ve read the same sentence five times and still have no idea what it says? Your heart’s racing, your mind’s jumping between “I need to focus” and “I can’t do this right now.”

If that sounds familiar, this episode is for you. Jessica Davis, licensed therapist and creator of the C.O.U.R.A.G.E. Method, dives deep into how to handle test anxiety when you’re exhausted, anxious, and running on empty. Instead of pushing harder, this episode teaches you how to protect your energy, calm your body, and finish strong without burning out.

In This Episode, You’ll Learn:

• Why exhaustion can look like failure and how to tell the difference
• What’s actually happening in your brain when stress peaks before exams
• How short, focused study sessions improve memory and reduce anxiety
• Simple ways to reset your nervous system and calm your body fast
• How to rest without guilt and let go of the “I should be studying” voice
• The importance of self-compassion when perfectionism takes over
• Why sleep is one of the most powerful study tools you have

Got a question or feedback? Text us and share your thoughts—we’d love to hear from you!

RESOURCES:
Get your FREE Anxiety Survival Toolkit to help you when your anxiety is overwhelming!

Grab your FREE 90-Day Courage Challenge Cheat Sheet and start building confidence today.

📱 Follow Us:

Instagram | Facebook | Threads

🎙️ Presented by Davis-Smith Mental Health

This podcast was created by Davis-Smith Mental Health, offering counseling for teens & young adults in Illinois (only). We accept BCBS PPO, Aetna PPO, and self-pay clients.

⚠️ Disclaimer: Block Out the Noise provides personal insights and practical strategies to help manage anxiety and self-doubt. The content is intended for educational and informational purposes only and should not be used as a substitute for professional mental health care, advice, diagnosis, or treatment. If you are experiencing a crisis or need immediate assistance, please contact emergency services or a trusted mental health professional immediately.

You tell yourself you’ll just check one thing, but suddenly, it’s an hour later. Your heart feels heavy, your mind feels cluttered, and instead of feeling calm, you feel worse. This episode isn’t about guilt. It’s about awareness, understanding how your phone quietly feeds your anxiety, and how to take your power back one small step at a time.

In this episode, Jessica Davis, licensed therapist and creator of the C.O.U.R.A.G.E. Method, shares why constant notifications and scrolling leave you overstimulated and disconnected, along with five realistic ways to reset your relationship with your phone.

In This Episode, You’ll Learn:

• How your phone and social media quietly activate your anxiety
• The real science behind notifications, dopamine, and overstimulation
• Why awareness, not restriction, is the first step to calm
• Simple strategies to reduce screen time without guilt
• The power of stillness and how boredom actually helps you reconnect
• A 15-minute daily challenge to help you regain focus and peace

Got a question or feedback? Text us and share your thoughts—we’d love to hear from you!

RESOURCES:
Get your FREE Anxiety Survival Toolkit to help you when your anxiety is overwhelming!

Grab your FREE 90-Day Courage Challenge Cheat Sheet and start building confidence today.

📱 Follow Us:

Instagram | Facebook | Threads

🎙️ Presented by Davis-Smith Mental Health

This podcast was created by Davis-Smith Mental Health, offering counseling for teens & young adults in Illinois (only). We accept BCBS PPO, Aetna PPO, and self-pay clients.

⚠️ Disclaimer: Block Out the Noise provides personal insights and practical strategies to help manage anxiety and self-doubt. The content is intended for educational and informational purposes only and should not be used as a substitute for professional mental health care, advice, diagnosis, or treatment. If you are experiencing a crisis or need immediate assistance, please contact emergency services or a trusted mental health professional immediately.

Ever feel like you’re changing too much or maybe not enough? Like you’re losing the version of yourself everyone once knew? You’re not alone.

In this episode, Jessica Davis (licensed therapist and creator of the C.O.U.R.A.G.E. Method) breaks down what’s really happening when your identity starts to shift and why change isn’t proof that you’re lost, it’s proof that you’re growing.

If you’ve been feeling disconnected, uncertain, or misunderstood, this conversation will help you make peace with change, reconnect with your values, and start trusting the version of you that’s still unfolding.

✨ In This Episode, You’ll Learn:

• Why identity shifts are normal and not a sign you’re lost
• How holding onto old versions of yourself keeps you stuck
• The truth about “losing yourself” and why it’s really growth
• How to use your values as anchors when everything feels uncertain
• The power of letting go when others don’t understand your growth
• A simple self-reflection exercise to realign your choices with your values

Got a question or feedback? Text us and share your thoughts—we’d love to hear from you!

RESOURCES:
Get your FREE Anxiety Survival Toolkit to help you when your anxiety is overwhelming!

Grab your FREE 90-Day Courage Challenge Cheat Sheet and start building confidence today.

📱 Follow Us:

Instagram | Facebook | Threads

🎙️ Presented by Davis-Smith Mental Health

This podcast was created by Davis-Smith Mental Health, offering counseling for teens & young adults in Illinois (only). We accept BCBS PPO, Aetna PPO, and self-pay clients.

⚠️ Disclaimer: Block Out the Noise provides personal insights and practical strategies to help manage anxiety and self-doubt. The content is intended for educational and informational purposes only and should not be used as a substitute for professional mental health care, advice, diagnosis, or treatment. If you are experiencing a crisis or need immediate assistance, please contact emergency services or a trusted mental health professional immediately.

Ever walk into a room and instantly feel like all eyes are on you — where you sit, how you sit, whether people are judging you? Your chest tightens, your mind goes blank, and suddenly, speaking up feels impossible. That’s social anxiety. And if you’ve ever felt stuck behind that invisible wall, this episode is for you.

In this special Q&A episode, Jessica Davis (licensed therapist and creator of the C.O.U.R.A.G.E. Method) answers three powerful listener questions about fear, judgment, and speaking up when anxiety takes over. You’ll learn what’s actually happening in your brain during these moments, how to calm your body when panic sets in, and why courage — not confidence — is what helps you break free.

✨ In This Episode, You’ll Learn:

• How to handle the fear of being judged every time you speak up or participate in class
• Micro-courage: the small steps that retrain your brain to feel safe in social moments
• What to do when presentations trigger full-body panic (and how to reframe nerves into energy)
• Simple grounding tools to help you stay calm when anxiety spikes
• The truth about control: why you don’t need to control anxiety to take control of your life
• The single question that helps you take back your power: What’s one thing fear doesn’t get to decide today?

💬 Listener Q&A:
1️⃣ How do I deal with the fear of being judged?
2️⃣ How do I calm down before and during presentations?
3️⃣ How do I stop anxiety from running my life?

💡 Key Takeaway:
Confidence doesn’t come from being fearless — it comes from choosing courage when fear is loud.

Got a question or feedback? Text us and share your thoughts—we’d love to hear from you!

RESOURCES:
Get your FREE Anxiety Survival Toolkit to help you when your anxiety is overwhelming!

Grab your FREE 90-Day Courage Challenge Cheat Sheet and start building confidence today.

📱 Follow Us:

Instagram | Facebook | Threads

🎙️ Presented by Davis-Smith Mental Health

This podcast was created by Davis-Smith Mental Health, offering counseling for teens & young adults in Illinois (only). We accept BCBS PPO, Aetna PPO, and self-pay clients.

⚠️ Disclaimer: Block Out the Noise provides personal insights and practical strategies to help manage anxiety and self-doubt. The content is intended for educational and informational purposes only and should not be used as a substitute for professional mental health care, advice, diagnosis, or treatment. If you are experiencing a crisis or need immediate assistance, please contact emergency services or a trusted mental health professional immediately.

Around this time of year, something shifts.

You might feel your anxiety climb, your energy crash, and your emotions spiral between motivation and exhaustion. If you’ve found yourself wondering, “What’s wrong with me?” — you’re not alone.

In this episode, Jessica Davis, licensed therapist and creator of The C.O.U.R.A.G.E. Method, breaks down the connection between anxiety and depression — especially how seasonal changes, school stress, and life transitions can make both feel heavier. You’ll learn three research-backed ways to reset your mind, re-engage with life, and rediscover a sense of control even when everything feels overwhelming.

In This Episode, You’ll Learn:

• How anxiety can disguise itself as depression (and why that’s more common than you think)
• The difference between consuming and creating — and how tiny acts of creation rebuild motivation
• A practical “effort + reward” strategy to retrain your brain’s motivation system
• Why your expectations shape how you experience life — and how to adjust them to reduce pressure
• The one mindset shift that helps you feel capable again, even when you feel stuck

Takeaway:
You don’t have to wait for motivation to start; you create it. Every small act of courage, even when life feels heavy, is proof that you’re still moving forward.

Mentioned in this Episode:

• Dr. Scott Eilers – on the link between purpose and depression
• Steve Bartlett – “The Diary of a CEO” on expectations and happiness

Got a question or feedback? Text us and share your thoughts—we’d love to hear from you!

RESOURCES:
Get your FREE Anxiety Survival Toolkit to help you when your anxiety is overwhelming!

Grab your FREE 90-Day Courage Challenge Cheat Sheet and start building confidence today.

📱 Follow Us:

Instagram | Facebook | Threads

🎙️ Presented by Davis-Smith Mental Health

This podcast was created by Davis-Smith Mental Health, offering counseling for teens & young adults in Illinois (only). We accept BCBS PPO, Aetna PPO, and self-pay clients.

⚠️ Disclaimer: Block Out the Noise provides personal insights and practical strategies to help manage anxiety and self-doubt. The content is intended for educational and informational purposes only and should not be used as a substitute for professional mental health care, advice, diagnosis, or treatment. If you are experiencing a crisis or need immediate assistance, please contact emergency services or a trusted mental health professional immediately.

So often we tell ourselves we need more time—but what we really need is more discipline. In this episode of Block Out the Noise, Jessica shares why waiting is a thief of progress, how a clear plan becomes your lifeline when emotions spike, and what it actually looks like to build momentum day by day. You’ll hear a powerful client story (night-and-day change in one semester), hard truths from Jay Shetty’s wife on discipline, and a simple formula you can use immediately: Discipline + Action + Plan + Support = Transformation.

✨ In This Episode, You’ll Learn:

• Why “later” keeps you stuck (and how to break the cycle today)
• The real role of discipline when anxiety and overwhelm show up
• How to build a plan that removes in-the-moment decision fatigue
• Mindset shifts that turn consistency into confidence
• What evidence-building looks like (and why it’s the key to self-trust)
• The honest truth about motivation vs. action (and how to start anyway)
• How the 90 Day Courage Challenge gives you structure, coaching, and community so you’re not doing this alone

Got a question or feedback? Text us and share your thoughts—we’d love to hear from you!

RESOURCES:
Get your FREE Anxiety Survival Toolkit to help you when your anxiety is overwhelming!

Grab your FREE 90-Day Courage Challenge Cheat Sheet and start building confidence today.

📱 Follow Us:

Instagram | Facebook | Threads

🎙️ Presented by Davis-Smith Mental Health

This podcast was created by Davis-Smith Mental Health, offering counseling for teens & young adults in Illinois (only). We accept BCBS PPO, Aetna PPO, and self-pay clients.

⚠️ Disclaimer: Block Out the Noise provides personal insights and practical strategies to help manage anxiety and self-doubt. The content is intended for educational and informational purposes only and should not be used as a substitute for professional mental health care, advice, diagnosis, or treatment. If you are experiencing a crisis or need immediate assistance, please contact emergency services or a trusted mental health professional immediately.