About the Writers

(Click on the thumbnails to see full-sized photos.)

Jenna Glatzer is a full-time writer and editor-in-chief of Absolute Write (www.absolutewrite.com).  She's written for magazines such as Woman's World, Woman's Own, Salon.com, and Writer's Digest, and she's the author of Outwitting Writer's Block (Lyons Press, spring, 2003) and The More Than Any Human Being Needs To Know About Freelance Writing Workbook (Absolute Write, 2000).  She is 26, and lives with her favorite musician and favorite cat in New York.

Paul Foxman, Ph.D is the director of the Center for Anxiety Disorders and a regional coordinator of CHAANGE, a nationwide anxiety treatment network.  He received his B.A. from Yale and his Ph.D. from Vanderbilt University, and has been in private practice for more than 25 years, specializing in treating anxiety disorders, stress, and relationship problems.  He is the author of Dancing With Fear (Jason Aronson Press).  He has also overcome an anxiety disorder.

Lori (Downs) Holdread: I am forty years old and have two teenage kids. I grew up in El Paso, Texas, married at eighteen, moved to Louisiana, and then moved back to El Paso. I was an art major for my first stint in college, and took my degree in elementary education on my second go-round. I taught in the public schools in El Paso for five years, and after moving to Trinidad, Colorado, in 1997 I worked at the local junior college as a staff developer, curriculum specialist, and tutor coordinator. I am a voracious reader, and love to travel, dance, sing, and paint. I am newly remarried and my kids are about to be up and out, so I am thinking about what that means. I love people and life, and am looking forward to the second half of mine.  You may contact me at Lori.Downs@tsjc.cccoes.edu.

Susan Blakeston: I’m twenty-six years old. Originally from England, I moved to the U.S. in 1999 (trust me, sunny California is much better than the UK!). I love to read. I also love to sing and dance (unfortunately, I’m not much good at either). I left an abusive boyfriend in January after he beat me up, and I ended up going to jail for hitting him back. Fortunately all of the charges were dropped, but my entire fear and panic about vomiting is OVER! It's amazing.

Briget Murphy: Originally from southwestern Pennsylvania, I now live in Midtown, Memphis, Tennessee. Divorced for almost three years and panic-free for about five years (after suffering from panic disorder for almost 20 years), I'm enjoying life immensely! I work at a small, private university, and I'm pursuing a Bachelor of Arts degree in Behavioral Science. I am happy to have been included in this anthology, and it is my hope that it helps many people! To contact me or read more about my interests/see photos, go to www.cbu.edu/~bmurphy. 

Niki Taylor is a writer/book reviewer/website-content manager from North Carolina. She has degrees in English and library science from East Carolina University. She was also in the university’s master of arts program in creative writing. After library work, she began her freelance career. Her work has appeared in Lambda Book Report, Aaj Magazine, Pediatrics for Parents, and The Writer. Her website is http://www.nikianntaylor.com. Those with questions and/or comments may reach her at nat0607@yahoo.com.

Kim Phelan: I am from New York City. I am vice president of a nonprofit organization called the Coalition for Hemophilia B; on the consumer advisory board of the Genetics Institute; and executive director of the Anxiety and Phobia Peer Support Network. I do volunteer work at the Mary Manning Walsh Home for the Elderly with Alzheimer’s, where I sing and help out with charity functions. I enjoy reading, music, and art. I can be contacted through my website at www.Anxietytofreedom.com or via e-mail at Kim@anxietytofreedom.com.

Jo Levy: I am a baby boomer born and reared in Massachusetts. Finding myself empty nested, I am fulfilling my dream of living on the ocean with my husband of eighteen years and two dogs. Professionally, I am a social worker, certified personal trainer, and substitute teacher. I nurture my soul by writing; I nurture my body by working out. At this point in my life, I owe all I am to my two incredible adult daughters, and I dedicate all my writing to them. I can be reached by e-mail at jobythebay@adelphia.net or via my homepage at http://members.tripod.com/jobythebay/.

Donna Van Leusden: Since the experiences outlined in this essay, I have rejoined life as a normal twenty-four-year-old woman. I am planning my wedding in October and have been working in marketing and communications for an international aerospace company. I enjoy traveling, reading, and writing. Although almost no evidence of my PTSD symptoms remain, I still remember the terrible pain, and my thoughts are with anyone going through something like it. You will get through this! Think of your life as a novel. With such an interesting character as yourself starring, who knows what might happen next? Work towards finding that out.

Jan Burnett: I am a member of the ADAA (Anxiety Disorders Association of America), and attend all conferences on this disorder. I’m also a big Oklahoma University football fan. You can reach me at cburnett@mmcable.com.

Tara Busser Blazer is the executive director at the Rockford Museum of Art, in Illinois. She is married and has a nine-year-old son.

Twyla Choate: I grew up in Forney, Texas, and now live in Elysian Fields, Texas. I am married with two sons, and am the administrative secretary at the Cumberland Presbyterian Church in Marshall. I enjoy computers, reading, writing, and my family. My goals include raising my sons and continuing to write online for the pure enjoyment of writing.

Gene Gilliam: For the past twenty-five years, I’ve been moored snugly in Point Arena, California, graced by many friendships and learning about various arts when I’m not working at being an electrician. I’m living my bliss with friends and my cat, Show Time, who may be more blissed than I, but not more blessed.

Jillian Sanders: I am a full-time music teacher of voice, piano, and theory. I live in the small town of Saskatchewan, Canada, but hope to move back to my hometown of Winnipeg, Manitoba. My husband and I still do the occasional live gig as a duo when we have a free weekend.

Ellen M. DuBois: I am a Massachusetts writer. I am engaged and have a dog who loves to critique my work. I have several cards in market review with SPS Studios Inc. (the publisher of Blue Mountain Arts), am published in volume two of God Allows U-Turns with my piece “The Angel in the Dumpster,” am a featured writer in the online magazine SpiritHunter, was a featured writer in the National Association of Women Writers Newsletter, and have two books under contract for e-book and paperback publication. One of my dreams is to keep writing to touch the hearts of others. Please visit Writings of the Heart, my award-winning writer’s resource site, at http://writingsoftheheart.homestead.com/index.html, and my inspirational site, http://writingsoftheheart.homestead.com/inspiration.html.  You can also learn more about my ebook, "I Never Held You"- an ebook about miscarriage, growth, healing and recovery (DLSIJ Press), at http://miscarriage.homestead.com/index.html. 

Traute Klein: My name is Traute Klein, a.k.a. Traute the BioGardener. I grew up in a Europe torn apart by World War II and its aftermath. Surrounded by a loving family, I overcame the horrors of hatred and destruction by concentrating on the beauties of life: art, music, and faith in the goodness of God. My family escaped to Canada to live in peace. In my teens I felt a definite call to teaching, and that call has been a compelling force in my life. My teaching career was cut short by a traumatic motor-vehicle accident, but I now reach as many people on the Internet daily as I ever taught in the classroom. All my life I have felt a commitment to living in harmony with the creator and his creation. My teaching is now focused on passing that commitment on to the next generation. I write regular columns on holistic living, natural remedies, and organic gardening. Visit my Healing Hug website at http://geocities.com/healinghug. 

Christine Evans: I enjoy working on my website, reading, arts and crafts, and romance and comedy movies. I have been very busy starting my own beauty salon.  I guess I have come a long way... I'm no longer scared of busy shopping malls and I can use freeways and even tunnels :). You can visit my website at www.anxietyselfhelp.com to learn more about the methods and techniques I have used to combat anxiety. I feel that my mission now is to offer education and support for those experiencing persistent anxiety, panic attacks, phobias, fears, and obsessive worry.

Teresa Robbins, LPN: I am a fifty-three-year-old nurse and teacher who has taken early retirement due to health problems. I am married to a truck driver, and we have two grown daughters. Our home is in Missouri, where we also live with a Lhasa apso and a yellow tabby cat named, of course, Morris. I have written articles and stories for online publishing communities for the past year and a half. I write for these sites:
My Editor Site at Suite101.Com: www.suite101.com/welcome.cfm/death_and_dying
My Sex Education Site: www.sexualityedu.com
My main areas of interest include articles on health issues, sexuality education, self-help, recovery programs, and death and dying. I also occasionally enjoy writing children’s stories based on my own childhood experiences. My hobbies include interior design, gardening, pet care, Southern cooking, American cultural history, online research, and web design. I have designed and managed the following personal Internet sites:
My original site: http://pages.ivillage.com/resa526/index.html
Teresa’s Online Journal, Struggling with Multi-Infarct Dementia: www.geocities.com/resa526/journal2002a.html
Creative Experiments in writing (my holiday site): http://msnhomepages.talkcity.com/BoomerSt/resa526/index.html

John Weldon: My name is John Weldon and I am a native of Southern California. I am a substitute teacher in the public schools; I currently hold a long-term middle-school special-education position. My interests include study of the social sciences and of the Russian language, which I’ve studied both at home and in Russia. I am a graduate of Cal State University, in Los Angeles, with a B.A. in social science. Contact me via e-mail at Jjwmail@aol.com or ibec756@yahoo.com.

Gaylene: My name is Gaylene, and I’m from Melbourne, Australia. I hope my contribution to this book gives readers hope that recovery is possible. I strongly recommend reading all of Dr. Claire Weekes’ books/journals, as well as Bronwyn Fox’s Power over Panic and Working Through Panic; you can’t go wrong with them. Take small steps with your recovery, follow your own pace, find yourself a good psychologist if needed, and look after yourself! I would like to say a very special thank you to my mother, who stuck by me during my recovery. I couldn’t have done it without you, Mum! And thank you to my friends, who have also stood by me through some of my darkest hours. And another special thank you to my loving, caring, devoted, and very understanding partner. I will get on that plane one day—I promise!

Sue Cleland, B.A., B.Soc.Wk., M.A.A.S.W.:

Jacqueline Hampton: “Dying is easy, it’s living that scares me to death.” —From “Cold” on Diva by Annie Lennox.  The most difficult thing about an anxiety, besides the disorder itself, is recovery.  As I make my way through mental and physical recovery, I like to think of a Zen proverb: “You must concentrate upon and consecrate yourself wholly to each day as though a fire were raging in your hair” (Taisen Deshimaru, in Preparation of a Samurai). I remember standing on the brink of suicide and the incredible people who pulled me back. You know who you are; thank you. These days I’m thankful to be alive and not living in constant fear. I understand what that Zen proverb means. I live it every day.  Recovery for me has meant the courage to return to my first love, writing. Now a successful writer, I am Barking Cats Freelance and can be reached at jrjax@yahoo.com and at www.barkingcats.org.

Elaine Mackin Schweizer: I am an artist and graphic designer. I live with my husband, Jean-Marie, and my laptop, Bunny, in Switzerland, where I am still learning how to speak with the natives. I shower gratitude on my father, Pat, and my stepmother, Nancy, for their deep love and support, and on my mother, T.R., who shows such courage and compassion in one entirely beautiful human being.

Alex Ryder is a pseudonym for a young man who is still in the military.

Corinna Fritz: I’m a thirty-two-year-old happily married, so-called stay-at-home, homeschooling mom of two beautiful girls. My hobbies include reading, writing, singing, crocheting, and drawing. Some of my drawings are posted at http://www.zing.com/album/pictures.html?id=4294850765. Once a week I drive into the heart of downtown Portland, Oregon, to take guitar lessons, which is something I never could have done a few years ago. One of my absolute most favorite hobbies is riding my dirt and street motorcycles. I’ve come a long way from where I was at my worst.

Renee Decter: I was first diagnosed with agoraphobia in 1981 at age thirty-nine. Since then, my recovery has led to my working as a counselor and administrator in an anxiety-recovery program; publication in the U.S. and Canada of an article I wrote on agoraphobia; running a home-based business; completion of a B.A. in sociology at UCLA in 1997; and attaining an M.A. in English in 2001. I now teach English at a community college.

Shelley Bueche is a freelance writer living in Austin, Texas. She is the mother of two elementary-aged sons and is married to a chemistry professor from Ireland. Shelley has occasional anxiety attacks during periods of extreme stress, but for the most part is able to conquer her fears. She spends the majority of her time as a canine home-school teacher and volunteer lunchroom monitor.  You can see her writing resume online at http://shelleybueche.freelancebank.com/. 

Xenia Madison: I live on the Central Coast of California with my husband and daughter. I have been clean and sober for ten years and have been consulting and helping people ever since then. As a life coach/empowerment strategist, I help people help themselves and embrace and live their potential. In March 2002 I began an ADHD women’s support group in San Luis Obispo County. I’m the founder and coach of ADD Outlook, which offers fresh approaches for brighter ADHD futures, and I’m a member of the International Coach Federation. My practice is transglobal; I work by telephone session and do some cybercoaching. I offer an array of program options that can fit the needs of just about anyone. For information about my telecoaching, call (805) 550-8330. For information about my support group, call (866) 426-8611. You can also e-mail me at addoutlook@msn.com.

Helena Wojtczak: Helena was born in 1958 and grew up in London. She holds a B.Sc. Honours degree in psychology and social science. She is single and lives in Sussex. Contact her at eastsussex.lady@virgin.net. 

Patty Miranda: I am an optioned screenwriter living in Maryland with my husband, two sons, and one very lovable, very round tabby named Sophie. My hobbies include beekeeping and sword swallowing. (Just kidding.) Is pestering Hollywood producers considered a hobby?

Roberta Brehm: I am twenty-eight years old, and work six days a week at the post office. I am active in a group called Anxiety Disorders—The Caregivers, which offers a mailing list for support people of individuals with panic and anxiety disorders. You can sign up at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ACSL

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