If You’re Feeling Uncertain & Anxious, You Need to Hear This | Dr. Julie on The Mel Robbins Podcast

Dr. Julie visualizes global mental health with white and wild rice to show that one in four people experience a mental health problem each year; understanding your pain as a common human experience reduces shame and opens the door to curiosity instead of self-judgment.

Painful feelings like anxiety, sadness, or anger are signals about needs or situations, not defects; instead of numbing or fighting them, ask, “Is this warranted? Is it proportionate? What is this emotion trying to tell me I need?”

In crises (like her cancer diagnosis), Dr. Julie reframes herself from “prey” (running from threats) to “predator” (actively pursuing a goal); you can’t remove fear, but you can choose language and focus that puts you on the front foot, taking concrete next steps instead of remaining paralyzed.

You can’t control which thoughts appear, but you can control what you give the “stage lighting” to; in social situations, deliberately shift your spotlight from inward self-monitoring (“How do I look?”) to outward curiosity (“What is this person saying? What can I ask?”) to feel less anxious and more engaged.

Avoiding what feels hard or anxiety-provoking shrinks your life; using a simple values exercise (rate what matters most in domains like health, relationships, work, and how aligned your actions are) helps you decide when to do uncomfortable things because they serve deeply held values, not momentary comfort.