Tackling Anxiety Triggers with Jesse Katches

Explicit content warning

03/08/23 • 68 min

In this week’s episode of Off the Cuff with Danny LoPriore, my guest is content creator, mental health advocate and self-development enthusiast, Jesse Katches. Growing up, Jesse struggled with OCD and anxiety and panic attacks. I sat down with Jesse to talk about anxiety triggers, staying fit, relationships, and much more. It’s all happening right here On the Cuff.

“For me to call 911, it was very extreme. And so I ended up doing it. They talked to me on the phone. Right when the paramedics got there, I was completely fine. They checked me. They made sure but, at that moment, I was like something in my life needs to change right now because I can’t go on living this way.” – Jesse (18:44)

My conversation with Jesse is full of useful tips and tricks bundled with humor. Jesse talks about how to tackle anxiety triggers and offers the simplest solution ever: Address the reason the attack came up in the first place instead of avoiding it.

“You’re essentially training your body to say, I had a panic attack at the theatre. Now I am avoiding it. So that confirms that there is a real threat at that place. Instead of saying, wait I had a panic attack there but it’s something deeper; it’s something deeper routed, It comes from something else; that theatre is not the problem.” – Jesse (1:01:50)

During the podcast, Jesse coins one of the best phrases to describe and counter anxiety; Anxiety is not a call to avoid. It’s a call to action.

“For me it’s less about avoiding triggers, more about exploring why they have come up. I have started to view anxiety overall as a call to action in a sense. Because every time I felt anxiety and experienced a lot of it, it was when there are deeper rooted problems and traumas that I haven’t addressed. So, if I’m feeling anxiety now there is something within me that I need to explore and that I need to grow in.” Jesse – (1:02:30)

In This Episode:

(06:20) On how much of himself is in the content he creates.
(09:20) Growing up with health anxiety and OCD.
(10:55) Reflecting on his relationship and the loss of his oldest brother.
(15:40) – Danny talks about his first panic attack.
(17:28) – The day he decided to make a change for the better
(21:17) – Talking fitness goals, workout routines, and Peloton.
(22:16) – Describing Kinesiology.
(22:48) – Danny recalls his first ad deal.
(32:17) – The tips and tricks of being successful.
(35:40) – Talking therapy, therapists, and physical exercise.
(38:30) – On being engaged and soon to be married.
(41:25) – The two sides of Jesse Katches.
(51:00) – Danny talks about his weight vows.
(55:06) – Discussing conflict in relationships.
(1:01:06) – How to avoid anxiety triggers.

Our Guest

Jesse Katches is a mental health advocate, content creator and self-development enthusiast. He suffered from OCD and anxiety growing up and now counsels’ people through his website and online courses on how to recover and lead a fulfilling life.

Resources & Links

Off The Cuff

Jesse Katches

During the podcast, Jesse coins one of the best phrases to describe and counter anxiety; Anxiety is not a call to avoid. It’s a call to action.

In This Episode:

(06:20) On how much of himself is in the content he creates.
(09:20) Growing up with health anxiety and OCD.
(10:55) Reflecting on his relationship and the loss of his oldest brother.
(15:40) – Danny talks about his first panic attack.
(17:28) – The day he decided to make a change for the better
(21:17) – Talking fitness goals, workout routines, and Peloton.
(22:16) – Describing Kinesiology.
(22:48) – Danny recalls his first ad deal.
(32:17) – The tips and tricks of being successful.
(35:40) – Talking therapy, therapists, and physical exercise.
(38:30) – On being engaged and soon to be married.
(41:25) – The two sides of Jesse Katches.
(51:00) – Danny talks about his weight vows.
(55:06) – Discussing conflict in relationships.
(1:01:06) – How to avoid anxiety triggers.

Our Guest

Resources & Links

Off The Cuff

Jesse Katches

Previous Episode

Let’s Talk Narcissism with Dr. Jaime Zuckerman

In this week’s episode of Off the Cuff with Danny LoPriore, my guest is psychologist, relationship coach, and nationally known expert on narcissism, Dr. Jaime Zuckerman, also known as Dr. Z. She works with people nationwide, helping them understand the complexities of narcissistic relationships, providing tools and customized behavior plans to help people make healthy choices. As you may have guessed from the bio, today’s topic is narcissism.

“Because of how a narcissist operates, it is very rare they are going to go into therapy. It’s just not going to happen. Unless it's court mandated or it’s a custody dispute, or substance abuse. They are rarely going to go into therapy. And if they do go into therapy, it's usually with somebody else like their partner, and they manipulate the sessions. It's very rare that you find a narcissist who stays in therapy and does the work. It is a personality disorder.” Dr. Zuckerman (03:33)

Dr. Z and I have a thorough conversation about this mental condition, how narcissistic people think, react, and behave and why many people self-diagnose or misdiagnose themselves or another as being a narcissist. The topic is a sensitive one yet to add levity, the conversation at times, takes on a humorous tone, but the topic of discussion remains unchanged as we delve further into how narcissistic people view the world and perceive their surroundings.

“You are an object to them. You don’t have a separate mind, values, opinions. You’re an object and you’re in the way. Narcissists look at people as objects and they have a distinct purpose and once that purpose is done, you’re done.” Dr. Zuckerman – (30:55)

A big part of our discussion talks about relationships. So many people find themselves in narcissistic relationships and they are uncertain as to how to move forward especially with kids involved. They even start to doubt their own judgements and decisions, something that Dr. Z talks about at length in today’s episode.

“A deliberate attempt to make the other person crazy. It’s an attempt to make the other person not only doubt their own thinking, but they start to not trust their own judgment, they start to not trust other people’s judgment. They only trust the narcissistic partner's judgment. So, their reality is shaped and formed literally by the narcissistic telling them what is true and what isn’t true.” Dr. Zuckerman – (33:41)

In This Episode:

(01:34) Talking about different medical courses doctors take.
(02:55) Do narcissists know they are a narcissist?
(03:32) Is narcissism a mental illness issue?
(04:59) What type of therapy works for narcissism?
(07:10) Are people born narcissists?
(10:40) Is there a narcissist gene?
(15:40) The dilemma of self-diagnosis.
(20:00) Discussing medications and their side effects.
(27:50) Do narcissists struggle with anxiety and panic?
(28:30) The difference between sociopaths and narcissists.
(32:12) Is gaslighting a symptom?
(38:05) The age when narcissism can be diagnosed.
(41:31) Getting out of a narcissistic relationship.
(51:47) Talking John Fetterman and general politics.
(56:10) Talking about having and raising kids.
(57:21) On whether Dr. Z had an imaginary friend.

Our Guest

Dr. Jaime Zuckerman is a nationally known expert on narcissism. She is a narcissistic abuse relationship coach and licensed clinical psychologist. Dr. Z works with people nationwide, helping them to understand the complexities of narcissistic relationships, providing tools to navigate these dynamics and offering customized behavior plans to help her clients make healthy choices and get to where they want to be.

Resources & Links

Off The Cuff

Dr. Jaime Zuckerman

Next Episode

Trauma, Triggers, and PTSD with Natalie Gutierrez

In this week’s episode of Off the Cuff with Danny LoPriore, my guest is licensed psychotherapist Natalie Gutierrez. Join me as I sit down with Natalie to talk about the different types of PTSD, the art of meaning confrontation, how she works with trauma victims of all ethnic backgrounds, and how she came up with the idea and title for her new book, ‘The Pain We Carry: Healing from Complex PTSD for People of Color’.

“It's not that we are the pain. We are carrying pain, but we are not the trauma that has happened to us. We carry it.” Natalie – (35:15)

During my conversation with Natalie, we talk about some very heavy topics on which she reflects with immense detail and maturity. On one occasion Natalie reflects on internalized racism and how it pours into institutional racism that we see around us such as in schools.

“I understand internalized racism to be the messages that we internalize about ourselves regarding race. So, I think it starts first with the messages that we hear systemically. The laws or the laws systems that just kind of create the ideology of race, the construct of race also for oppression, ideological oppression that then pours into institutional racism.” – Natalie (22:44)

In this episode, I also reflected on how trauma can be both a good and bad thing based on my life experience in the psych ward in which Natalie informs the need to grow around the trauma rather than glorify it.

“We don't want to glorify trauma and we can also grow around it. And to varying degrees for some people, it creates the, I don't want to say resilience because I know that word is tiring and old depending on what we do with it, it can inform how we grow from it.” Natalie – (52:46)

In This Episode:

(01:24) – Welcoming Natalie to Off the Cuff and discussing family origins.
(03:25) – On what made her choose to help people with trauma and PTSD.
(07:54) – On friends and parents asking her to psychoanalyze them.
(10:54) – Reflecting on how more therapists today have gone through their own trauma in the past.
(16:07) – Talking about therapy as more homework than being in the office.
(19:18) – Taking accountability for your own actions.
(22:44) – Talking about internalized racism and institutional racism.
(26:46) – Elaborating on where generational trauma comes from.
(33:22) – How Natalie came up with the title of her book.
(36:22) – Natalie talks about the different forms of PTSD.
(39:10) – Talking about complex trauma and emotional triggers.
(42:16) – Explaining the art of confrontation.
(44:17) – How social media affects how people think about themselves.
(46:02) – Natalie answers whether she is happy so far today and asks Danny the same.
(51:18) – Danny reflects on going to the psych ward and not the insane asylum.

Our Guest

Natalie Gutierrez is a licensed psychotherapist with a specialty in Trauma. She works with people who have suffered complex trauma, relational trauma, and sexual trauma. She is trained in EMDR and uses Internal Family System and an eclectic approach to healing.

Resources & Links

Off The Cuff

Natalie Gutierrez

The Pain We Carry by Natalie Gutierrez

https://www.amazon.com/Pain-We-Carry-Healing-Handbook/dp/1684039312