Anxiety disorders are the most common mental illness in the US, affecting 40 million adults ages eighteen and older. With the COVID-19 keeping us all isolated, depression and anxiety have become even more felt. Addressing this very important conversation that we all need now more than ever, Carrie Miller interviews Amy Lyles—a Licensed Professional Counselor Supervisor, Registered Play Therapist Supervisor, Ropes Course/Challenge Course Facilitator, Registered Yoga Teacher and Sound Therapist. Here, Amy shares with us a couple of strategies that could help someone with anxiety, depression, or some form of dementia get through this particular time, alleviating some of the pain they are experiencing in a holistic approach. She then takes us deep into yoga and sound therapy, reminds us of our gifts to help others, and inspires us to create a positive change starting with our minds. 

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Listen to the podcast here:

Holistic Approaches To Overcoming Anxiety During This Time Of COVID-19 With Amy Lyles

We stand up and speak the truth about what’s healthy in this world, especially when it comes to brain health. You won’t find any sugar-coating in this space. I have the privilege of introducing a special guest. She’s a Licensed Professional Counselor Supervisor, Registered Play Therapist Supervisor, Ropes Course/Challenge Course Facilitator, Registered Yoga Teacher and Sound Therapist. She served in public education, private practice as a yoga therapist and in agency setting for decades. Welcome, Amy Lyles.

Thank you. I’m glad to be here.

I’m excited to talk with you because you are such a beacon of light to others and throughout your entire career. You’re the founder of a nonprofit, is that correct?

That’s correct.

The Greater Mercy here in Wimberley, Texas. I was reading on the website on the About page the first couple of sentences read something that hit home to me. You had mentioned, “The Greater Mercy is all around us. It binds us together with nature and each other. The Greater Mercy holds us all, even when we have turned our backs on each other and nature.” Amy, can you please tell us what’s the meaning behind those words?

We’re experiencing that in our world. What’s happening is proving to us that we’re all interconnected. You don’t know how one thing is going to lead to another, but they’ve shown, pollution has gone down. We’ve slowed down and different things have happened. Our interconnectedness, maybe we had lost sight of that a little bit. One of our missions is to remind that in our young people to help them understand that we’re all connected, which means we’re here for them too as they become our future leaders.

Helping those generations to come. It’s a well-spoken truth. We’re in the midst of COVID-19 and there seems to be much turmoil with people like losing loved ones or individuals losing jobs and homesteads. Crime is at an all-time high arising and the depression and anxiety that has filtered throughout this world are incredible. It can be overwhelming to me and to everyone else. Anxiety disorders are the most common mental illness in the US. It’s affecting 40 million adults ages eighteen and older. Depression is most common in ages 18 to 25. Do you find that in your practice?

Yes.

How do you counsel an individual with anxiety to get through this particular time?

It’s different for everyone, but when you think about what anxiety is,