Personal Work with Dr. Tom Gedman--

Overcoming Performance Anxiety

The Triumphant Conclusion

Last week you heard Part 2 of our personal work with Dr. Tom Gedman, which included T = Testing and E = Empathy. This week you will hear the dramatic and inspiring conclusion of the session, including A = Assessment of Resistance and M = Methods.

Dr. Tom's beloved pal

Start of Part 2

A = Assessment of Resistance

We began with the Invitation Step, asking Dr. Gedman what he hoped to accomplish in today’s session. His list included:

1. Develop some clarity on the direction of my business.
2. Become more authentic in my video recordings promoting my clinical work.
3. Increase in self-confidence.
4. Feel accepted by David and Rhonda.
5. My ability to push ahead during recordings instead of stopping and backing down because it isn’t “good enough.”

Dr. Gedman said that he’d gladly push the Magic Button to make his negative thoughts and feelings instantly disappear, but agreed to look at some of the positives in them first by asking these types of questions of each negative thought or feeling.

1. Is there some truth in this negative thought?
2. Could this negative thought or feeling be appropriate or even healthy, given my circumstances?
3. How might this negative thought or feeling be helping me?
4. What does this negative thought or feeling show about me and my core values that’s positive and awesome?
5. Could there be some negative consequences of giving up this negative thought or feeling?

The Positives in My Negatives

Negative thought: “I can’t be authentic on videos. I look like such s smug phony.”

1. I want to be other-centered, and focused on how I might be able to relieve the emotional struggles and health problems of my patients.
2. I value being authentic and genuine.
3. I want to help people who resonate with my message.
4. I don’t want to hide. I want to be open with my flaws.
5. I value honesty and integrity.
6. I value humility.
7. I value compassion.

Negative feeling: sadness

8. I care a great deal about my dream.
9. I don’t want to fail and let my family down.

Negative feeling: shame

10. Motivates me to work harder
11. Shows my love for my family.
12. I’m aware that I’m letting down the very people I want to help.

Negative feeling: inferior, inadequate

13. Show that I respect and admire the many people who have superior skills at talking live in front of a camera.
14. Shows that I’m aware of what others have accomplished.
15. Shows I don’t feel superior to others.

The idea behind the Positive Reframing is to help the patients see that their negative thoughts and feelings are not the expression of what’s “wrong” with them, but what’s right with them. This paradoxically reduces the resistance to change and opens the door to the possibility of rapid recovery.

You can see Dr. Gedman’s goals for each of the negative feelings on his Daily Mood Log if you click here. As you can see, instead of trying to eliminate his negative thoughts and feelings by pushing the Magic Button, he has decided to dial them down to lower levels with the Magic Dial.

Of course, these are only goals. We will need methods to challenge and smash his negative thoughts so we can reduce his negative feelings.

M = Methods

Rhonda, Tom, and David used a variety of methods to work on several negative thoughts Tom wanted to work on first, including numbers 1, 2, and 4 from Tom’s Daily Mood Log..

1. I can’t be authentic. I look like a smug phony. 100%
2. I waste so much time on my videos. I should be quicker. This should be easier. 100%
3. David and Rhonda will judge me for what I’m doing. 80%

We used several methods including Explain the Distortions, Survey Technique, Externalization of Voices (with Self-Defense, Acceptance Paradox, Counter-Attack Technique,) and more

You can see Dr. Gedman’s end-of-session scores on his nine negative feelings on his Daily Mood Log if you click here. As you can see, eight of the feelings fell all the way to zero, and his feelings of inadequacy fell from 100 all the way to 5.

Toward the end of the session, we discussed Tom’s medical and psychological philosophy, which might appeal to some of our podcast fans, especially if you live in England. First, he uses TEAM-CBT in individual two-hour sessions to help help people who are struggling with feelings of depression and anxiety. He finds this work thrilling because you can often see amazing changes within a single session, just like we saw in Tom’s work today.

Dr. Gedman also hopes to develop TEAM-CBT groups as well. This can be difficult because you need many referrals, but in my experience, TEAM groups can be incredibly effective, and cost-effective as well.

In addition, Tom also has a Functional Medical Practice which focuses on developing healthy nutritional and eating habits, consistent exercise, limiting the intake of toxins, developing loving relationships via the Five Secrets of Effective Communication, and enhancing spirituality.

If you would like to contact Dr. Gedman and learn more about his clinical practice, he can be reached at www.DrTomGedman.com.

Toward the beginning of these show notes, I reminded everyone of how anxious and insecure our beloved Rhonda felt at the start of our work together, when she took over for Fabrice. And now, she seems to be the poster child for charm, warmth, humor, and charisma.

That doesn’t usually happen automatically. Rhonda, like Tom, did her hard personal work, using the Daily Mood Log and several TEAM-CBT methods. But one thing that has been especially helpful to her, after initially “beating” her insecurity, has been the constant exposure work, with hours of weekly podcast recordings.

I, too, have had the chance to do constant, ongoing exposure for my own extreme feelings of inadequacy in front of live audiences or cameras, since I teach every week at my Stanford psychotherapy training class, as well as frequent  workshops, In addition, I have recorded almost daily for the Feeling Great App, which should be released in the first quarter of 2024. This exposure work has helped me cement and extend my gains in overcoming my own performance anxiety.

I plan to contact Tom to recommend the same. Perhaps in England they have program similar to Toastmasters, where you can have the chance to speak in public frequently and get valuable feedback from peers and colleagues.

I want to give a big hug and thanks to you, Tom, for sharing your intensely personal and real personal work with all of us today, and thanks, too, for reminding us of our own humanity and the magic of humility and the “Great Death” of the “Self.”

Thanks for listening today!

Tom, Rhonda, and David