Anxiety is a natural response to the uncertainties and challenges we face in life. When we are anxious, relief can seem a world away. But, through cultivating self-awareness and practicing mindfulness, anxiety can be managed, transforming it from a source of suffering into an opportunity for growth and self-discovery.

To discover the philosophical approach to treating anxiety, Harvesting Happiness Podcast Host Lisa Cypers Kamen speaks with a philosophical counselor, author, and professor emeritus of philosophy at Brooklyn College, Samir Chopra PhD.

Samir shares the fears that are at the core of our anxieties and philosophical strategies for managing anxiety in his book, Anxiety: A Philosophical Guide. He asserts that the world is constructed in such a way that the choices we must make, make us especially anxious.

Samir Chopra PhD: A Philosophical View of Anxiety

• The psychotherapeutic model versus the philosophical counseling model of anxiety treatment. {4:17}
• Philosophers are the original Psychotherapists. {12:10}
• Strategies for managing anxiety. {19:52}
• Most forms of anxiety stem from the fear of losing love. {27:04}

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About Lisa’s guest:

Samir Chopra is a philosophical counselor and professor emeritus of philosophy at Brooklyn College and the Graduate Center of the City University of New York. He is the author and co-author of many books, including Shyam Benegal: Philosopher and Filmmaker, A Legal Theory for Autonomous Artificial Agents, and Eye on Cricket: Reflections on the Great Game. His essays have appeared in the Nation, the Los Angeles Review of Books, Aeon, Psyche, and other publications.

“When we reject parts of ourselves, we project that judgment or lack of acceptance onto others.”  - Lisa Cypers Kamen

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