Dr. Hanscom contends that the concept of self-esteem is the mother of all cognitive distortions. Self-esteem is an attempt to create stories about the self that are based on judgment and ego. These stories are often cognitive distortions that suppress normal survival reactions, such as anxiety and anger. Obsessive thought patterns or unpleasant repetitive thoughts [...]

Dr. Hanscom went from being a fearless spine surgeon to depressed and suicidal. He describes his own journey out of chronic pain and anxiety. He describes anxiety as an ‘activated threat response.’ Unpleasant repetitive thoughts can keep a person in a state of threat, cause inflammation, compromise the immune system, and cause physical and emotional [...]

Dr. Hanscom shares that chronic pain has its roots in anxiety. Most surgeries related to chronic pain are being done on anxiety and are unnecessary. All chronic mental and physical disease have the same common origin of inflammation that is caused by an elevated threat response and anxiety. Two-thirds of Americans are raised in traumatic [...]