Healing from the Inside Out | Breaking Free from OCD, Anxiety & Stress
Jul 19, 2025
Healing from the Inside Out: The Key to Lasting Change
By Matt Codde, LCSW – Restored Minds
Are you feeling stuck in your healing journey, constantly managing symptoms but never truly breaking free? You’re not alone. In today’s Restored Minds episode, Matt Codde explores the powerful difference between healing from the inside out and healing from the outside in—and why the former is the path to real transformation.
What Does "Healing from the Inside Out" Really Mean?
“Healing from the inside out” isn’t just a catchy phrase. It describes a fundamental shift in how we understand and approach fear, anxiety, and emotional distress. Many of us believe fear is caused by something outside of us—a trigger, a situation, or an external event. Matt Codde explains that this outside-in approach keeps us stuck, constantly reacting to new projections of our fears.
However, true healing begins when we recognize that fear is an emotional field within us, not something imposed from the outside. All the external triggers—whether it's touching a doorknob, social situations, or new environments—are simply projections of the fear we already carry.
Why the Outside-In Approach Keeps You Stuck
When you work from the outside in:
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You focus on controlling external triggers.
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Symptom mitigation becomes the goal, not real recovery.
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New fears can easily take the place of old ones.
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You may notice temporary symptom relief, but not lasting change.
Think of it as trying to change the movie by burning the screen, rather than fixing the projector. Unless you address the source—the emotional energy and beliefs within—you will keep encountering the same problems on different screens.
The Inside-Out Approach: Where True Recovery Begins
Real healing happens when we turn inward and directly confront the emotional states stored within us: fear, shame, guilt, anger, and more. These aren’t just symptoms to manage—they are the blocks to inner peace.
Matt Codde encourages us to let go of labels and diagnoses that reinforce the belief our fear is externally caused. Instead, recognize that:
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Fear exists within you, not outside of you.
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Your triggers are actually your body’s attempt to release these stored emotions.
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By facing your internal emotional landscape, you move beyond symptom management into a new state of being.
Changing Paradigms: From Managing to Transcending
Many traditional therapies and well-meaning experts focus on symptom management and coping strategies. If your goal is to simply manage your experience better, these can help. But if you’re searching for lasting change and true freedom from fear and anxiety, it’s time to adopt an inside-out paradigm.
True recovery is not the absence of fear, but building the capacity to transcend it. This means cultivating higher emotional states—peace, acceptance, neutrality—as your default, rather than living from fear.
How to Start Healing from the Inside Out
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Stop externalizing fear. Notice when you’re blaming situations or people for your anxiety.
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Turn inward. Identify and sit with the emotions you’re holding. Let them rise and pass, rather than pushing them down or fighting them.
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Examine beliefs and identity. What stories or labels are reinforcing your current emotional state?
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Focus on transformation, not just symptom relief. The goal is not to desensitize yourself to triggers but to raise your overall state of being.
Ready to Transform?
If you haven’t reached the results you desire, it may not be a matter of effort—but a matter of using the right paradigm. Healing from the inside out unlocks lasting change, allowing you to move beyond fear and into a state of genuine wellbeing.
Ready to break the loop and take back control of your life? Explore more resources at RestoredMinds.com, where Matt Codde offers support and guidance for your journey.
If you found this helpful, please share, subscribe, and leave a review on iTunes or Spotify—you’re helping others discover this life-changing perspective as well!
