The Anxiety Encyclopedia

Lorien Megill and Katharine McNally
  • 5.0 (18)
  • Comedy
  • Updated Weekly

Co-hosts Lorien and Katharine talk about what's making them anxious, from bears to Botox and everything in between.

  1. Sep 15

    160. C is for Cryonics

    Okay, but what if Walt Disney's head IS frozen under Pirates of the Caribbean?! (It's not.) Sources: https://www.pbs.org/newshour/health/how-a-strange-rumor-of-walt-disneys-death-became-legendhttps://www.snopes.com/fact-check/suspended-animation/https://cryonics.org/cryonics-library/the-prospect-of-immortality/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cryonicshttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cryoprotectanthttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KrioRushttps://www.theguardian.com/science/2016/nov/18/the-cryonics-dilemma-will-deep-frozen-bodies-be-fit-for-new-lifehttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mind_uploadinghttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mind_uploadinghttps://cryonics.org/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alcor_Life_Extension_Foundationhttps://cryonics.org/cryonics-myths/https://www.sciencefocus.com/news/cryogenic-freezing-mouse-brainhttps://www.todayifoundout.com/index.php/2020/03/what-happens-to-the-bodies-if-a-cryogenic-company-goes-bankrupt/https://www.independent.com/2019/04/17/in-cryonics-lawsuit-son-fights-for-fathers-frozen-head/https://www.dailymail.com/news/article-10814587/How-TV-repairman-thousands-freezing-bodies-immortality-disastrous-results.htmlhttps://cryonics.miraheze.org/wiki/Chatsworth_incident

  2. Sep 1

    159. S is for Secret Societies

    You CAN sit with us while Katharine talks about groups you can't sit with. Sources: https://www.wired.com/story/leak-exposes-members-of-peter-thiels-secretive-dialog-society/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dialog_(organization) https://www.history.com/articles/the-knights-templar https://www.history.com/articles/secret-societies-freemasons-knights-templar https://beafreemason.org/ https://www.nationalgeographic.com/history/article/freemasons-history-conspiracy-secret https://www.history.com/articles/freemasons-facts-symbols-handshake-meaninghttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Masonic_conspiracy_theorieshttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Judeo-Masonic_conspiracy_theory https://www.britannica.com/event/Bilderberg-Conference https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/apr/14/politicians-bilderberg-meeting https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bilderberg_Meeting https://www.britannica.com/topic/illuminati-group-designationhttps://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20171127-the-birthplace-of-the-illuminatihttps://www.history.com/articles/illuminati-origins-bavarian-secret-society

  3. Aug 18

    158. F is for Fatal Insomnia

    Lorien shares an anxiety that could keep people up at night. Sources: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fatal_insomniahttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transmissible_spongiform_encephalopathyhttps://www.merckmanuals.com/home/brain-spinal-cord-and-nerve-disorders/prion-diseases/fatal-insomnia#Diagnosis_v8549039https://rarediseases.org/rare-diseases/fatal-familial-insomnia/https://neuroscientificallychallenged.com/posts/know-your-brain-fatal-insomniahttps://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC1781276/https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2025/04/team-hits-milestone-toward-prion-disease-treatment/https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20160118-the-tragic-fate-of-the-people-who-stop-sleepinghttps://www.bbc.com/future/article/20160118-the-tragic-fate-of-the-people-who-stop-sleepinghttps://www.cnn.com/2017/09/19/health/fatal-insomnia-family-curse-somethings-killing-mehttps://www.livescience.com/43049-fatal-insomnia-teen.htmlhttps://news.inbox.lv/15000sm-insomnia-claimed-the-lives-of-35-people-from-one-familyhttps://www.newyorker.com/books/page-turner/a-prion-love-storyhttps://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/sleep-deprivationhttps://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/23970-sleep-deprivationhttps://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/wellness-and-prevention/the-effects-of-sleep-deprivationhttps://www.sleepfoundation.org/how-sleep-works/how-long-without-sleephttps://www.healthline.com/health/sleep-deprivation/sleep-deprivation-stages#takeaway

  4. Aug 4

    157. T is for Tuberculosis

    Katharine is also inspired by John Green but maybe a little more meaningfully than Lorien was. Also, Katharine just took a vacation to Japan and a lot of things about that made her anxious and joyful. Sources: https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/tuberculosishttps://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/tuberculosis/symptoms-causes/syc-20351250https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuberculosis#History https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_tuberculosis Everything is Tuberculosis by John Green; 2025.

  5. Jul 21

    156. T is for Technology-Facilitated Stalking

    A tale of three (?) AirTags Sources: https://www.theguardian.com/world/article/2024/jun/25/tracking-device-domestic-violence-offenders-stalking-apple-find-my-friendshttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MAC_addresshttps://9to5mac.com/2025/09/29/tile-security-flaws-can-let-both-the-company-and-stalkers-track-your-location/https://www.wired.com/story/tile-tracking-tags-can-be-exploited-by-tech-savvy-stalkers-researchers-say/https://9to5mac.com/2025/09/29/tile-security-flaws-can-let-both-the-company-and-stalkers-track-your-location/https://www.womenslaw.org/about-abuse/abuse-using-technology/ways-survivors-use-and-abusers-misuse-technology/gps-monitoring-0https://www.stalkingawareness.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/SPARC_StalkngFactSheet_2018_FINAL.pdfhttps://www.stalkingawareness.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/SPARC-Stalking-Techology-Fact-Sheet.pdfhttps://www.stalkingawareness.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Identifying-Stalking-as-SLII-Strategies.pdfhttps://cyber.nyu.edu/2025/10/20/kicking-hitchhiking-stalkers-off-gps/https://uwpd.wisc.edu/apple-airtags-and-your-safety/https://www.wsj.com/tech/personal-tech/phantom-airtag-alerts-send-iphone-users-on-wild-goose-chases-11651799060https://www.cnbc.com/2023/01/14/the-biggest-security-pros-and-cons-of-using-bluetooth-gps-trackers.htmlhttps://cooler.bike/en-us/products/silent-smart-tag-ios-security-tracker?srsltid=AfmBOoo6FyxNeuKk0S9VpXNssASNj-FNf3INY43yKVkCMSJU0dLspGt4https://consumer.ftc.gov/articles/stalkerware-what-knowhttps://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/tv/story/2020-09-15/colton-underwood-restraining-order-cassie-randolphhttps://www.lifeandstylemag.com/posts/colton-underwood-stalking-cassie-restraining-order-details/

  6. Jul 7

    155. W Is for Whitewater Rafting

    Katharine takes Lorien along for the ride, coming for another fun summer activity. Sources: - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rafting - https://www.whitewaterrafting.com/rafting-info/history - https://www.whitewatervoyages.com/intro-to-whitewater-rafting - https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/sixth-grader-dies-annual-school-rafting-trip-poconos-rcna347380 - https://www.outsideonline.com/outdoor-adventure/water-activities/professional-raft-guide-career/?scope=initial - https://sageoutdooradventures.com/blog/is-white-water-rafting-dangerous/ - https://mild2wildrafting.com/rafting-blog/extreme-whitewater-rafting-in-us - https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2014/jul/18/white-water-rafting-near-death-experience - https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1987-08-06-vw-1596-story.html - https://parks.wa.gov/about/rules-and-safety/boater-education-safety/cold-water-safety - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Wesley_Powell

  7. Jun 23

    154. C is for Canada Geese

    Diseases, aggression, and bird strike, oh my! Sources: https://www.ncwildlife.gov/species/canada-goosehttps://www.audubon.org/magazine/10-fun-facts-about-canada-goosehttps://www.audubon.org/news/learn-tell-cackling-goose-canada-goosehttps://myfwc.com/wildlifehabitats/profiles/birds/waterfowl/canada-geese/https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/a-minnesota-towns-love-hate-relationship-with-giant-geesehttps://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/goose-attack-leaves-ottawa-cyclist-shaken-and-scarred-1.2686751https://aviancontrolinc.com/blog/federal-regulations-need-know-getting-rid-canadian-geesehttps://bird-x.com/blog/goose-attack/https://wildlifehelp.org/solution/district-columbia/canada-goose/how-deal-aggressive-geese/94https://www.popsci.com/diy/avoid-getting-attacked-by-a-goose/https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2022/05/rochester-canada-geese-management/629916/https://www.goosemasters.com/blog-post/what-diseases-are-associated-with-geesehttps://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/16638-e-coli-infectionhttps://www.audubon.org/field-guide/bird/canada-goose'https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bird_strikehttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeju_Air_Flight_2216https://www.britannica.com/topic/US-Airways-Flight-1549-incidenthttps://www.cnn.com/2024/01/07/travel/miracle-on-the-hudsonhttps://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/why-china-is-using-guard-geese-to-uphold-its-zero-covid-policy

  8. Jun 9

    153. H is for Hippos

    Katharine tells Lorien about those big, dangerous, goofy, majestic (?) river horse. Sources: https://www.natgeokids.com/uk/discover/animals/general-animals/ten-hippo-facts/https://animals.sandiegozoo.org/animals/hippohttps://www.awf.org/wildlife-conservation/hippopotamus https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7416829/ https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c869jj5dy4qo https://thewildsource.com/should-you-fear-hippos-on-safari-debunking-the-deadly-hippo-myth/ https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/south-african-killed-by-pet-hippo/ https://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/nov/14/pet-hippo-humphrey-kills-owner https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/nov/19/niger-hippo-attack-deaths https://www.britannica.com/animal/hippopotamus-mammal-species/Pygmy-hippopotamus https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/hippo-attack-avoid-survive-paul-templer

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5
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About

Co-hosts Lorien and Katharine talk about what's making them anxious, from bears to Botox and everything in between.

Information

  • Creator
    Lorien Megill and Katharine McNally
  • Years Active
    2023 - 2026
  • Episodes
    163
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Lorien Megill and Katharine McNally
  • Show Website
    The Anxiety Encyclopedia