I'm starting to think this woman was a genius!

[uru]

Currently reading her book. She seems so ahead of her time.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uHMJ2AaTglk

[emily67]

Currently reading her book. She seems so ahead of her time.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uHMJ2AaTglk



thanks for sharing.

maybe i'll start reading it too

[cymraig_chris]

She was. Nominated twice for Nobel Prize. Experienced anxiety, panic, unreality etc etc herself, cured herself. She was a research scientist and a GP. Australian. Stunning person. A true pioneer.

She was the one who stated "none of these symptoms are important medically"

Face
Accept
Float
Let time pass.

Her entire interview is somewhere on YouTube, I believe this is from the old BBC show Pebble Mill at One.

Yes. A genius who understood anxiety like no other, way ahead of her time, way ahead of most people today.

[PlantsForHire]

Currently reading her book. She seems so ahead of her time.


Incredible insight into the panic cycle. Thanks for sharing! I'll definitely check out more of her interview.

[uru]

Chapter 10 (I think) felt like she was describing me personally.

[MyNameIsTerry]

She was. Nominated twice for Nobel Prize. Experienced anxiety, panic, unreality etc etc herself, cured herself. She was a research scientist and a GP. Australian. Stunning person. A true pioneer.

She was the one who stated "none of these symptoms are important medically"

Face
Accept
Float
Let time pass.

Her entire interview is somewhere on YouTube, I believe this is from the old BBC show Pebble Mill at One.

Yes. A genius who understood anxiety like no other, way ahead of her time, way ahead of most people today.

Like they say though, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. If we look at history, it tells a slightly different picture e.g. Albert Ellis created REBT before Weekes started and Aaron Beck's CBT started in the late 60's around the same time and his was influenced by REBT and based on former therapy models in Cognitive Therapy and Behavioural Therapy, some of these are still used today like ERP and that was based on Pavlov's work. From the descriptions of "floating", it's quite similar to Mindfulness in meditation style and whilst that came to the West in the 1970's, it originates from the teachings of a Buddhist school that predates Weekes by a couple of millennia.

She also can't claim the others as her creations either because they all existed already e.g. acceptance predates her in various religions as well as being in Buddhist schools, facing your fears to beat them will have predated her as it's common sense, and letting time pass will be the same.

So, I don't see Weekes in that light. What I do see is someone who pioneered taking these common sense approaches & translating the science into something the common man could understand at a time when getting to someone using CBT/REBT was probably the reserve of rich people.

These days her knowledge has gaps. For instance, some of what she says about OCD is very dated and methods doing the opposite are actually used with great success instead. You certainly won't find some of those teachings being used in OCD circles by sufferers because we know they don't work. However, she did catch onto some that did but these approaches did come out of the early CBT movement so perhaps what she did well was pull things that were needed?

I would also like to think that a medical professional wouldn't make such an out of date claim as all the symptoms of anxiety not being medically relevant. That type of thinking has kept mental health issues in stigma, although she wouldn't have been meaning it in that way. But now medical science has moved on greatly as we have a better understanding of organic causes of anxiety as well as new acceptance of how the brain works in things like neuroplasticity and the advent of new technologies like fMRI. Weekes would keep pace or she would end up being lumped in with dubious "gurus" that make money off her work.

I think she still has a lot of relevance in the panic & GAD sectors though but like all things mental health isn't about one size fits all, you take what you need and ignore the gaps (find something else that plugs them) and forget the out of date thinking of previous generations.

The steam engine was once the pinnacle of modern science. We've moved on a bit since then but the original concepts hold true. Pioneers and creators in all fields will always be succeeded and we should move with the times.

[Sylver1975]

Reading her book when I first experienced GAD was a revelation, it was like someone finally knew just what I was feeling. It very much was the point when things clicked into place and I was able to turn the corner and manage my anxiety.

I have a CD of hers but her voice keeps reminding me of Dame Edna Everage which is a little off-putting! :D

[angels22165]

Face, accept, float, let time pass - is this just for panic attacks? Which I can understand but what about GAD in generally when you hit a blip and can feel yourself slowly spiralling out of control to a dark place gripped in fear to do anything, surely face,accept,float,let time pass cannot apply and the only help is medication to make you feel normal again. What do people think?

[uru]

Face, accept, float, let time pass - is this just for panic attacks? Which I can understand but what about GAD in generally when you hit a blip and can feel yourself slowly spiralling out of control to a dark place gripped in fear to do anything, surely face,accept,float,let time pass cannot apply and the only help is medication to make you feel normal again. What do people think?

She is very pro medication. She even criticises those who won't take it.

[angels22165]

Ahh okay so she means this whilst on medication, this I can understand will help a lot x

[Lan69]

I love listening to her voice, it calmed me down lots when I was in a really bad place. I used to go for a walk listening to her and her book was like my bible

[lindadiana]

I first got her book self help for your nerves in the 80s,i had tried everything that was on offer at the time,i went to meetings where all members have mental heath problems,i remember seeing a woman about 55 ish she hadn't been out the house at all for over twenty years,until that meeting i remember her shaking and I thought at the time is that my future,i was around 24 I think, at the time.see in those days you didnt get much help or made to understand why you feel like you do,the internet can be a good way of reading up on what panic attacks are,but back then we had nothing,nobody guided us anywhere except the library maybe,my parents paid for me to see a private pyhciatrist,he gave me massive doses of vitamin b6 and b12,they did help help a fair bit,but talking with the man didn't do anything at all,my aunt told my mum about the Claire weeks books,so that's when I first read it,it was truly like at last id found my answer,im shaking heart racing waiting to dei,or whatever might happen next,im scared but its all adrenaline,no doctor had ever told me this before,so because it made sense,i started to think everytime I had a panic coming on id get the book out,it was my bible too,it did lead to my getting off diazepam for 8 years,raising my first three kids and to lead a more normal life,although I never quite conqured going out alone,im not aggorohbic,as I like to go out,just not alone,fear of what ifs you know.over the years after that many things happened like losing my son,my parents etc,but I still think her words are very wise and still do refer to them in my mind to this day,its why I come on here too,like many of us do,its a comfort if you read that your not alone it makes more sense,its far easier to open up on here than at a meeting face to face with about fifty others sat in a circle of chairs I can tell you.

[Pipkin]

All,

Try this YouTube link. It's a compilation of all the shorter Pebble Mill interviews with Claire Weekes. It might be a bit dated but it's really good. She speaks with such conviction that it inspires confidence.

https://youtu.be/DqvwYLOtTdw

Pip X

[jadedreams]

I really like her as well, have read "Hope and Help for Your Nerves" and also listened to the videos on youtube. It definitely seems she understands anxiety well, sometimes I can apply her advice and sometimes not so much. It's a work in progress with me.