The Anxiety Compass Podcast

Send us Fan MailEver discovered someone has unfriended you on Facebook and suddenly found yourself questioning everything you've ever said or done? 😂One minute you're scrolling through Facebook memories, the next you're conducting a full-blown investigation into why someone no longer wants to be your friend!In this lighter solo episode of The Anxiety Compass, Sammy shares her recent social media detective adventure and explores why our anxious brains love filling in the blanks when we don't have answers.From being ghosted and overthinking friendships to the hilarious double standards of unfriending people ourselves, we're chatting about uncertainty, rejection and why we sometimes take things so personally.Plus, a little podcast update! Sammy and Nat are moving to fortnightly releases while they focus on their growing businesses. Don't worry, we're not going anywhere!Because sometimes the biggest lesson is learning that not every mystery needs solving.Have you ever been unfriended or ghosted and wondered what on earth you did wrong? This one's for you!Support the show👉 Grab your free Anxiety Compass download here 👉 Grab a copy of Sammy's Book, Anxiety, The Best Teacher You Never Asked For here Follow us @theanxietycompassConnect with Sammy @nutritionwithsammy or websiteConnect with Natalie @nataliemarieinbalance or book discovery call here 

Send us Fan MailIt's the thought that counts… right?!Then why do we spend hours searching for the perfect present, worrying whether we've spent enough, second-guessing our choices and analysing someone's facial expression as they unwrap it?What started as a lovely gesture has somehow turned into an Olympic event in overthinking!In this episode of The Anxiety Compass, Sammy and Nat unwrap the anxiety behind gift-giving, especially as the festive season approaches.Are we buying presents because we genuinely want to make someone happy, or are we sometimes buying approval, reassurance and a little validation along the way?We're talking about the pressure to find the perfect gift, the awkwardness of receiving something you don't particularly like, spending more than you can afford, the unspoken rules of Christmas and why disappointing someone can feel so uncomfortable.And of course, there's plenty of laughter as we share our own experiences with presents, expectations and the mental gymnastics of trying to get it just right!Because sometimes the biggest thing we're wrapping up isn't the present… it's our own expectationsSupport the show👉 Grab your free Anxiety Compass download here 👉 Grab a copy of Sammy's Book, Anxiety, The Best Teacher You Never Asked For here Follow us @theanxietycompassConnect with Sammy @nutritionwithsammy or websiteConnect with Natalie @nataliemarieinbalance or book discovery call here 

Send us Fan MailEveryone's talking about balancing their blood sugar these days… but what does that actually mean?Does it mean cutting out sugar? Eating every two hours? Avoiding carbohydrates? Or making sure you never touch a chocolate bar again?And what on earth does any of this have to do with anxiety?In this episode of The Anxiety Compass, Sammy and Nat unpack what happens to sugar once it enters our body, how glucose and insulin work, and why our blood sugar plays an important role in how we feel.We're talking about why low blood sugar can sometimes leave us feeling shaky, irritable or anxious, what it actually means to support healthy blood sugar regulation, and why it's not simply about giving up the foods you love.Sammy also shares her personal experience of changing how she times and combines her meals, and the difference she's noticed in how she feels.But there's another side to this conversation. With so many messages about what we should and shouldn't eat, are we becoming more anxious about food itself?Because understanding nutrition should help us feel more confident about our choices, not frightened of what's on our plates!Support the show👉 Grab your free Anxiety Compass download here 👉 Grab a copy of Sammy's Book, Anxiety, The Best Teacher You Never Asked For here Follow us @theanxietycompassConnect with Sammy @nutritionwithsammy or websiteConnect with Natalie @nataliemarieinbalance or book discovery call here 

Send us Fan MailEver been told you seem stuck-up, rude or a bit of a bitch… when really, you're just trying to work out where you fit in?Sometimes what looks like judgement on the outside is actually anxiety working overtime on the inside!In this episode of The Anxiety Compass, Sammy and Nat unpack the misunderstood side of social anxiety. Why do some of us walk into a room and immediately start scanning the people, the atmosphere and the nearest exit? And why can being quiet or observant make others think we're unfriendly?We're talking first impressions, fear of judgement, our nervous system's need for safety and the exhausting mental gymnastics of trying to fit in.Of course, there's plenty of laughter along the way, because sometimes our resting bitch face has absolutely no idea what our anxious brain is doing!Because sometimes the person who looks the least approachable is the one who wants to feel included the most.Support the show👉 Grab your free Anxiety Compass download here 👉 Grab a copy of Sammy's Book, Anxiety, The Best Teacher You Never Asked For here Follow us @theanxietycompassConnect with Sammy @nutritionwithsammy or websiteConnect with Natalie @nataliemarieinbalance or book discovery call here 

Send us Fan MailWhat does zinc have to do with anxiety? Turns out… quite a lot. Most of us think of zinc as the thing you reach for when you feel a cold coming on, but this little mineral has its hands in a surprising number of jobs throughout the body.In this episode of The Anxiety Compass, Sammy and Nat head East to the Chemical/Nutritional point of the Compass to unpack zinc and its role in brain and nervous-system function, taste and smell, appetite, growth and repair, immune health and digestion.We also explore something particularly relevant for anxious humans: what happens to our nutrition when anxiety changes the way we eat? If nausea, butterflies, food aversions or a disappearing appetite leave you eating less or relying on the same handful of “safe” foods are you still getting what your body needs?We chat about signs that may warrant looking at zinc status, why fussy eaters and restricted diets deserve a little more nutritional curiosity, zinc-rich foods, absorption, blood testing, and why simply taking a supplement isn't always the answer.Plus: which forms of zinc are commonly used, what “elemental zinc” actually means, why men need more zinc than women, and what copper has to do with all of this.And because this is The Anxiety Compass, the message isn't:“You're anxious. Go take zinc.” It's about asking better questions, looking at the whole picture and remembering that symptoms are clues, not diagnoses.Because anxiety affects appetite, appetite affects nutrition, digestion affects absorption and your body doesn't operate in separate little boxes.You are what you absorb.Support the show👉 Grab your free Anxiety Compass download here 👉 Grab a copy of Sammy's Book, Anxiety, The Best Teacher You Never Asked For here Follow us @theanxietycompassConnect with Sammy @nutritionwithsammy or websiteConnect with Natalie @nataliemarieinbalance or book discovery call here 

Send us Fan MailWhat if anxiety isn’t “just anxiety”?One year ago, we launched The Anxiety Compass with one big idea: anxiety isn’t always the enemy, sometimes it’s a messenger pointing us towards something that needs our attention.So, one year (and a LOT of conversations and laughs 😂) later, we’re going back around the Compass.In this anniversary episode, Sammy and Nat revisit the different areas that can contribute to how we experience anxiety, from nutrition and body chemistry to emotions, hormones, our environment, physical health, the nervous system and even our sense of connection and purpose.We look back at some of the biggest lessons from the past year, the connections that surprised us, and why two people can experience the same word anxiety for completely different reasons.Because the goal was never to give you another list of things to fear or “fix.” It was to help you become curious about your own body and ask:“What direction is anxiety pointing me?”Plus, we reflect on a year of The Anxiety Compass, what started as two friends having conversations about anxiety and mental wellbeing, and the incredible community that has come along for the ride. 🩵Here’s to another lap around the Compass, learning, laughing and finding our way back to true north. 🧭Support the show👉 Grab your free Anxiety Compass download here 👉 Grab a copy of Sammy's Book, Anxiety, The Best Teacher You Never Asked For here Follow us @theanxietycompassConnect with Sammy @nutritionwithsammy or websiteConnect with Natalie @nataliemarieinbalance or book discovery call here 

Send us Fan MailWhat if the fear of dying is actually stopping you from living?In this episode of The Anxiety Compass, Sammy and Nat tackle one of anxiety’s biggest, and often least talked about, fears: death.Sammy shares the story of the late Emmilia O’Sullivan, author of I Should Be F’N Dead!, whose extraordinary approach to life left a lasting impression on her. After brain surgeries, organ transplants, cancer diagnoses and treatment after treatment, Emmilia reminded Sammy something of something she has never forgotten:“You cannot live if you are too afraid to die.”Because you don’t need to be facing a life-threatening illness for fear to make your world smaller. Health anxiety, panic attacks, avoiding travel, constantly checking your body, staying close to home, Googling symptoms—the fear of something happening can quietly start dictating how you live.So where is the line between looking after yourself and becoming afraid of life itself?This is an honest conversation about death anxiety, health anxiety, control, uncertainty and learning to live alongside the fact that none of us gets a guarantee.Expect some deeper moments, plenty of Sammy and Nat tangents, and one big question: Are you protecting your life… or are you actually living it?🎧 Listen now to The Anxiety Compass.Support the show👉 Grab your free Anxiety Compass download here 👉 Grab a copy of Sammy's Book, Anxiety, The Best Teacher You Never Asked For here Follow us @theanxietycompassConnect with Sammy @nutritionwithsammy or websiteConnect with Natalie @nataliemarieinbalance or book discovery call here 

Send us Fan MailCould something you're exposed to every day be contributing to the way you feel?When we think of heavy metals, most of us imagine industrial exposure, contaminated workplaces or something that surely couldn't apply to us.But metals such as mercury, lead, cadmium and arsenic can potentially enter our environment in ways we might not expect.In this episode of The Anxiety Compass, Sammy and Nat head North-West on the Compass into Environmental Roots with Clinical Nutritionist and Functional Medicine Practitioner Maria Allerton, founder of True Foods Nutrition.We explore heavy metals, the ways we're exposed to them, and their potential relationship with the brain, nervous system and symptoms that can overlap with anxiety.But one of the most fascinating parts of this conversation is not just about what gets IN.It's about what gets OUT!Maria explains why two people with similar exposures may not necessarily handle them the same way, and why testing for heavy metals isn't always as straightforward as seeing a low number and assuming everything is fine.We unpack:Which heavy metals Maria commonly investigates and where exposure can come from How heavy metals may affect the brain, nervous system and mitochondrial function Symptoms that can potentially overlap with anxiety Why your ability to eliminate toxins matters What an HTMA (Hair Tissue Mineral Analysis) can (and can't) tell us Why Maria also uses urine challenge and stool testingWhy there may not be one test that tells the whole story The dangers of jumping into an aggressive “heavy metal detox” without understanding what's happening Practical ways to support the body's normal elimination processes And our Heavy Metal Rapid Fire roundMost importantly, this episode isn't about giving you one more thing to be anxious about. Heavy metals aren't the explanation for anxiety.But for some people, environmental exposures may be one more clue on the Compass worth exploring with an appropriately qualified practitioner.Because sometimes anxiety is the thing that gets our attention, and curiosity helps us work out what's underneath it.CONNECT WITH MARIA ALLERTONMaria Allerton is a Clinical Nutritionist and Functional Medicine Practitioner and founder of True Foods Nutrition. Connect with her online and on her website.  🧪 Learn more about Functional Medicine Testing: Functional Medicine TestsSupport the show👉 Grab your free Anxiety Compass download here 👉 Grab a copy of Sammy's Book, Anxiety, The Best Teacher You Never Asked For here Follow us @theanxietycompassConnect with Sammy @nutritionwithsammy or websiteConnect with Natalie @nataliemarieinbalance or book discovery call here 

Send us Fan MailDo you ever feel like everyone around you is moving WAY too slowly?You think fast. You move fast. You make decisions fast. And when somebody else can't keep up… the frustration kicks in. In this episode of The Anxiety Compass, Sammy and Nat jump aboard the Anxiety Express and explore a brilliant analogy: what happens when you're travelling through life on the express train, while the people around you are happily riding the scenic route?Do you try to drag them onto your train? Slow yourself down to match them? Stand at the platform getting increasingly annoyed? Or accept that sometimes you're simply travelling at different speeds?We explore the difference between being naturally fast-paced and feeling like you can't slow down, including how rushing, urgency, control and impatience can sometimes connect back to the nervous system and anxiety.We chat about: Why being fast-paced isn't necessarily a bad thing  The difference between choosing speed and being stuck in it Why other people's slower pace can make us so frustrated  Whether we sometimes try to calm our own anxiety by controlling other people  What constantly rushing can feel like in the body  When it's worth jumping off the express train and taking the scenic route  And when you should happily stay on your own bloody train 😂 This isn't an episode telling you to slow down.It's about recognising which train you're on, why you're on it, and whether you can change trains when you need to.Because not everybody has to travel through life at your speed. 🚂So… are you on the express or the scenic train?Support the show👉 Grab your free Anxiety Compass download here 👉 Grab a copy of Sammy's Book, Anxiety, The Best Teacher You Never Asked For here Follow us @theanxietycompassConnect with Sammy @nutritionwithsammy or websiteConnect with Natalie @nataliemarieinbalance or book discovery call here 

Send us Fan MailIf anxiety was an Olympic sport… what event would YOU win gold in?With the Brisbane Olympics heading our way in 2032, Sammy and Nat have decided it's probably time to start training.Not for swimming. Not for athletics.For the ANXIETY OLYMPICS. Because some of us have been training our entire lives for events like overthinking something we said three days ago, preparing for disasters that haven't happened, reading way too much into someone's facial expression and lying awake while our brain suddenly decides NOW is the perfect time to revisit every awkward thing we've ever done.In this lighter episode of The Anxiety Compass, we're having some fun with the weird, wonderful and sometimes downright ridiculous things an anxious brain and body can do.But underneath the laughs is something important.Anxiety isn't something to be ashamed of, and it isn't the enemy. These patterns are often our body's way of trying incredibly hard to protect us.So instead of judging ourselves for them, we're putting them on the podium. Which leaves just one question…If the Anxiety Olympics started tomorrow, what event are YOU bringing home the gold medal in?🎧 Join Sammy & Nat for one of our funnier episodes of The Anxiety CompassSupport the show👉 Grab your free Anxiety Compass download here 👉 Grab a copy of Sammy's Book, Anxiety, The Best Teacher You Never Asked For here Follow us @theanxietycompassConnect with Sammy @nutritionwithsammy or websiteConnect with Natalie @nataliemarieinbalance or book discovery call here