051 | How "Worldly Success" Can Lead to Anxiety

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SS051 Shepherd & The Shrink- How “Worldly Success” Can Lead to Anxiety

Cindy Davis has spent nearly three decades writing screenplays for animated feature films and designing new lands, parades, and attractions for various Disney theme parks. As an anxiety-sufferer herself, she has spent over two decades researching and experimenting with every anti-anxiety technique and tool that she could get her hands on. Cindy, along with her business partner, Renee Thompson developed Shrink in a Box to help others learn more about how they can cope with anxiety.

In this episode, Cindy Davis returns to the show to talk about her work with school kids and how her Shrink in a Box kit helps them manage anxiety. We talk about some of the pressures that high school students feel and these pressures lead to major identity crises with students. We clarify what ‘worldly success’ is, how it pushes us to seek personal glory, and why we should pursue spiritual goals instead. We also discuss the importance of forgiving yourself and how self-care is vital to working with your anxiety.


“What I find most of the people I talk with need is self-care, and by having their anxiety get so huge that they can't function anymore, they are forced to care for themselves. That seems to be the thing they need permission to take care of: themselves.”

- Cindy Davis

This week on Shepherd & the Shrink:

  • What is Shrink in a Box?

  • What pressures high school students experience today and where they come from

  • The nature of anxiety

  • How spirituality can help manage anxiety

  • What “worldly success” looks like

  • How anxiety stems from seeking personal glory

  • The importance of forgiving yourself

  • Why shame is such a destructive force

  • Preventing school student suicide

  • The identity crisis that is causing more anxiety

  • Why self-care is so important in managing anxiety

Resources mentioned

Connect with Cindy Davis

Thanks for tuning into this week’s episode of Shepherd & the Shrink Podcast with your hosts Dr. Matt Hook and Dr. Martin Fletcher, the show where theology meets psychology. If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe and leave a review wherever you get your podcasts.

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Martin Fletcher