Anxiety Is Not a Disease, It's a Temptation

How the $15B anxiety industry distracts us from the truth about suffering, willpower, and the battle in the mind.

A painful uneasiness of the mind has infiltrated nearly a quarter of the population.
Its victims are paralyzed by thoughts of what might go wrong.
The treatment of this condition is now worth over $15 billion.

Christ in the Wilderness (1872) - Ivan Kramskoi

We call it anxiety—and while most of us have felt it, many forget what it’s like to live without it.

Surely there must be a better solution. SSRIs can’t be the only answer.
But in a world driven by profit, $15 billion is too good to give up.

Tired of Being Lied To?

This article is for those of us who are done being misled, medicated, and numbed.
For those who want to take their minds—and their freedom—back.

Anxiety Is Not a Life Sentence

Anxiety is not a curse passed down from our ancestors.
It’s not a genetic destiny.
It’s not a chemical prison.

It’s a signal—an internal warning that something is out of alignment.
And like any signal, it can be understood and resisted.

Yes, it’s easier said than done when you’re under its weight. But if you dig deeper—beyond what anxiety is and ask why—you’ll find something that the $15B industry doesn’t want you to know.

The Lie We’ve Been Sold

We’re told that anxiety is a survival mechanism—a leftover instinct from our days in the wilderness.
But that’s not true.

Anxiety is not our fight-or-flight response.
It can trigger it, yes—but it isn’t the same.

Anxiety isn’t a disease either. It’s a label—a name we’ve given to a pattern of symptoms we don’t fully understand.

It’s like calling the orbit of planets a “solar system.”
We see the motion, we label the system, we even describe its rules — but we don’t ask why that order exists in the first place.

Physics tells us how gravity behaves.
It doesn’t tell us why gravity exists at all.

Likewise, psychology tells us how anxiety appears — worry, trauma, genetics, substance abuse — but those aren’t causes.
They’re descriptions.
They describe the pull — not the source of the force.

If we want to be free, we have to go deeper.
We have to ask:
What is anxiety really pulling us toward?
And why do we let it keep pulling?

So Why Do We Worry?

The answer: weak will.

As many credit the order of the universe to the strong will of God,
It follows that disorder—the chaos of the mind—is the result of a weak will.

Strong will brings order. Weak will breeds chaos.

Anxiety is Addiction

Anxiety, like alcoholism, is a condition of indulgence.
Only instead of indulging in alcohol, the anxious indulge in worry.

And like alcohol, worry poisons the body.
Too much, too often—and it becomes deadly.

If anxiety is addiction, the cure is resistance.
To beat anxiety is to battle temptation.

The Truth They Don’t Tell You

Yes, it’s hard to stop worrying.
But anxiety is curable—because it’s not a fixed disease.
It’s a disorder of the will.

And will is not genetic. It’s trained.

If you’re willing to fight—truly fight—against tempting thoughts, you will not live in anxiety.
It’s not the thoughts themselves that hurt you—
It’s the allowance of those thoughts to grow that does.

Here’s How You Fight

Let’s say you’re standing on a ledge and feel the sudden urge to jump.
That thought only becomes dangerous if you dwell on it—if you entertain it.

Most people let it pass.
They resist.
That’s all it takes.

The Solution

You want to stop worrying? You must train your resistance to all temptation.

Think of your will like a muscle.
You can’t just strengthen one part—you have to train the whole system.

If you only train your quads, but ignore your glutes, hamstrings, and calves,
your legs will still be weak. The same is true of your resistance.

A Practical Path

Start here:

• Abstain from drugs and alcohol

• Fast from enjoyable foods

• Take cold (or timed) showers

• Delay gratification

• Observe your body’s reactions without obeying them

When the dashboard lights up with anxiety, remind yourself:
You’re the driver. The engine is fine. Let the body regulate.

Use A Mantra

When intrusive thoughts return, resist with silence and focus.
A simple, powerful tool: the Jesus Prayer — used for centuries by Christian monks:

“Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.”

Repeat it quietly, internally.
Give your mind nothing else to hold onto.

Let that mantra become your resistance.

The Light Will Go Off

And one day—without you even noticing—
the check engine light will turn off.

Not because the body fixed itself,
but because the driver took back the wheel.