(Ep. 18) Brian’s Healing Journey

What if the breakdown that terrifies you is actually the beginning of waking up?In this deeply personal episode of Triggered & True, co-host Brian Freise finally tells his own story in full — the one he's only shared in pieces until now. After 43 years of numbing his emotions without even the vocabulary for emotional pain, Brian experienced what he calls his "great awakening" — what others might name a nervous breakdown — a season of anxiety and panic so consuming he couldn't explain what was happening inside him. Laura Duncan walks through it alongside him, adding the science and compassion that reframes the entire experience.Brian is honest about the hardest parts: the panic that felt like death was stalking him, the shame of standing in a hospital parking lot wondering if he could really walk through the doors, the relief of being met with compassion instead of the judgment he expected, and learning that medicine could be a helper on the road to a deeper healing rather than a mark of failure. He and Laura connect it all back to the Compassion Method — how you can't selectively numb pain without numbing joy too, why understanding your own brain calms the wave, and how learning to comfort your inner world lets love finally flow in. As Brian puts it: to know yourself is to love yourself.In this episode: 🔹 Brian's "great awakening" — why he reframes a breakdown as the start of waking up 🔹 Why you can't selectively numb emotions: numb the pain and you numb the joy 🔹 The shame of asking for help — and being met with compassion instead of judgment 🔹 Medicine as a helper, not a failure — and why there's no purely medical fix for a wounded inner world 🔹 Pairing logic with emotion: how understanding the brain makes feelings walkableA note on this episode: Brian's story touches on anxiety, panic attacks, hospitalization, and a moment involving suicide. It's told with hope and care, but if any of it feels close to home, be gentle with yourself as you listen — and if you're struggling, please reach out to someone you trust or a local support line.📩 Get your free Weekly Dose of Compassion — two short notes in your inbox every week. One to speak over yourself. One from Laura: https://www.lauraduncan.com/pl/2148814868🔗 Learn more: https://triggeredandtrue.com https://lauraduncan.com