I think there is merit to what gavriel is saying.
Is anxiety purely neurological? I’m not an expert, just a simple fellow. The way I explain things to myself is that there is something called a biopsychosocial aproach to mental health. So there are 3 parts. Biology, psychology, and the social context. If anxiety was purely biological then all we could do is take medication. But most people with anxiety are open to medication if needed and psychology/therapy. Albert Ellis was a famous cognitive behavioral therapist who stopped using the word anxiety. He said people were anxietizing themself by the beliefs they were telling themselves. He was an atheist but he’d agree that if telling yourself you have a strong G-d walking next to you helps you then by all means do it.
I also don’t think OCD is the only way anxiety can manifest itself. How about, OMG, if I make a wrong turn while driving I’ll end up in a bad neighborhood and the people will mug me. Is that OCD?
What I don’t like about using G-d to allieviate anxiety is that what if the anxious person then starts asking, “yes, but who says G-d esists…” We just went from one doubt (maybe I’ll be harmed) to another doubt. So, if there are more effective ways of dealing with the anxiety I’d go with them. But if bitachon works, do what works.
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