When we're constantly coming from this unconscious state, we never take time to really look at how am I responding?

How can I do this differently?

And then how can I celebrate me?

How can I realize that damaged is not doomed and the rest of my life is mine?

And that's the beauty of healing at work.

Thank you. life is mine. And that's the beauty of healing at work. I'm Maura Erin Smealy, and this is The Anxious Achiever. We look at stories from business

leaders who've dealt with anxiety, depression, or other mental health challenges, how they

fell down, how they pick themselves up, and how they hope work can change in the future.

You know, when we think of the workplace, a lot of us might have good vibes. We might love our job and our coworkers.

For a lot of us, though, work is a place where there can be tension, drama, and discomfort.

I wanted to talk to today's guest, Susan Schmidt, because she flips the script on what we think about the workplace can do for us emotionally.

In fact, Susan says the workplace is

actually a caring, healing lab, a place where we can learn to heal from past hurts, anxieties, and fears.

For every encounter at work we have with a stressful situation, mean boss, or just stupid stuff,

our workplaces, today's guest notes, are places where people

have chosen us. They've invited us in. And work teams offer a learning lab to get better at

interpersonal communication and resolve our deep-seated issues, even the ones from childhood.

Schmidt co-wrote the book, Healing at Work,

a guide to using career conflicts to overcome your past and build the future you deserve.

And she talks about something called ASDP,

which stands for adult survivor of a damaged past.

Here's our conversation.

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