Breaking the Shame Around Anxiety with Susan Kay

In this episode, we’re talking with Susan Kay, a psychiatric nurse practitioner with over 40 years of experience treating anxiety, panic, and mood disorders.


Susan opens up about her own lifelong journey with anxiety—from childhood panic attacks to the hard-won wisdom that comes from facing fear head-on. Together, we explore:

• Why anxiety often begins early and hides behind shame
• The connection between fear, the nervous system, and avoidance
• How to stop letting anxiety drive your decisions
• The power of small, brave steps and saying “bring it on”
• When medication, therapy, and community can all play a role
• The deep relief that comes from being seen, heard, and loved

It’s an honest, compassionate conversation that reminds us we’re never alone in our struggles—and that healing often begins the moment we start talking about it.


About Susan:


Susan Kay is a pediatric and adult psychiatric Clinical Nurse Specialist with many years of experience treating both inpatients, residential and outpatient populations. She provides psychotherapy both short term and intermittent as well as psychiatric evaluation and medication management. Her designation as a Psychiatric Clinical Nurse Specialist has now changed to Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner by the American Nursing Credentialing Center.


Susan is seeing pediatric and adult populations in an outpatient setting. She offers primarily psychiatric evaluation and medication management is her specialty. She has extensive experience treating affective disorders, ADHD through the life cycle, Autism Spectrum Disorder, OCD and psychotic disorders.


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*Information shared on this podcast is not medical advice. If you have a concern about your physical or mental health, please seek support from a proessional.