14 - Radical Acceptance: What Finally Worked for My Chronic Anxiety
The Real Work with Maggie SterlingShow Notes
Radical acceptance is the missing piece in healing chronic anxiety and nervous system dysregulation. After 20 years of struggling with anxiety, trying therapy, EMDR, brain scans, and every treatment available, acceptance became the breakthrough that changed everything. In this episode, Maggie explains why acceptance must come before therapeutic interventions like CBT, EMDR, or somatic work. Without acceptance as the foundation, these modalities often become tools of resistance rather than healing. The conversation covers the practical differences between acceptance and allowing, how mental resistance perpetuates the very suffering we're trying to escape, and why radical acceptance opens the door to genuine transformation. Key topics include the role of resistance in keeping anxiety active, why acceptance doesn't mean resignation or staying stuck, and the connection between accepting your current reality and creating the life you actually want. Work with me
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