Book Freak 152: A New Way to End Anxiety and Stop Panic Attacks Fast
Advice from Barry McDonagh's "Dare"
Dare: The New Way to End Anxiety and Stop Panic Attacks Fast, by Barry McDonagh presents a four-stage approach to treating anxiety and panic attacks. It emphasizes the “DARE” response, an acronym that stands for Defuse, Allow, Run Towards, and Engage. The method encourages confronting anxious thoughts and sensations directly, rather than avoiding them, to diminish their power and impact. McDonagh’s approach is based on his personal experience and aims to provide sufferers with practical tools to regain control of their lives. He writes, “Think of The DARE Response as your special mental toolkit that you can use each and every time you feel anxious. By applying it (even imperfectly), you’ll always be moving in the right direction and healing your anxiety.”
The Four Steps of the DARE Response:
- Defuse: “Defusing all anxiety with a strong attitude of ‘so what’ / ‘whatever’ is the first important step in The DARE Response. It quickly disarms the buildup of tension and gets you moving in the same direction as the nervous arousal instead of resisting it. It’s a great start, but you now need to use the next step of the response to discharge the anxiety even further.”
- Allow: “Now that you’ve started to respond to anxiety in the right way, it’s crucial you keep going by releasing all resistance so that any anxiety that’s still present can dissipate even faster. You do this by accepting the anxiety that you feel and allowing it to manifest in whatever way it wishes.”
- Run Towards: “You run toward your anxiety by telling yourself you feel excited by your anxious thoughts or feelings. […] Let the raw energy of your nervous system express itself fully. Let it excite you rather than terrify you.”
- Engage: “The fourth step in The DARE Response is short but crucial as it completes the whole movement from start to finish. […] Once you’ve defused the initial fear and allowed the anxiety to be present, you should then ride out the declining wave of anxiety by occupying yourself with an activity that really engages your mind.”
