The Narrowing: What Anxiety Is Trying to Tell You

A clinical psychologist explores the deep connection between anxiety and the body—and how understanding it can open us to growth, clarity, and healing.

Anxiety has a way of shrinking the world.

It narrows our attention, tightens our bodies, loops our thoughts. In its grip, we fixate on threats, replay conversations, and scroll endlessly—not because we want to, but because we’ve forgotten how to look elsewhere.

But what if the opposite of anxiety isn’t calm? What if it’s curiosity?

In a new book, clinical psychologist Alexandra Shaker offers a way out of anxiety’s grip, a way that leverages your natural ability to refocus your attention. She lays out the key steps below: