Performance anxiety affects an estimated one in three performers at some point in their career – but for 21-year-old Shannon D’Arcy, it went well beyond pre-show nerves. A singer-songwriter and student at the London College of Contemporary Music, Shannon was physically sick before every performance, including at the Indigo at the O2. Her story highlights how debilitating performance anxiety can become, and how one lesser-known therapy helped her turn things around.
When nerves become something more
Shannon’s anxiety wasn’t limited to the biggest stages. During end-of-term university rehearsals with her band, she experienced the same overwhelming physical symptoms.
“I got to the point where I wasn’t even enjoying the performances anymore,” she explains. “I’d worked so hard to get these opportunities, but instead of feeling excited, I just felt panic.”
Last year, while performing at the Indigo in the O2, Shannon says the anxiety became overwhelming.
“I should’ve been enjoying every second of it because it was such an amazing opportunity, but I was so anxious and physically unwell beforehand that I couldn’t really take it in.”
“I’d feel sick before rehearsals and performances and I would overthink absolutely everything,” she says. “It became exhausting.”
Trying a different approach
In November, Shannon decided to work with BWRT therapist Claire Gaskin after struggling with escalating anxiety around both performing and driving. BrainWorking Recursive Therapy (BWRT) is a neuroscience-based therapy developed in 2011 by UK therapist Terence Watts. It is designed to interrupt the brain’s automatic threat responses – the split-second reactions that happen before conscious thought kicks in – and replace them with a neutral or positive response. Practitioners say it can work rapidly, sometimes within one to four sessions, and it is used to address anxiety, panic responses, phobias and performance-related fears.
The difference was immediate
“Honestly, it’s been like night and day,” she says.
Earlier this year, Shannon returned to perform with the same band, in the same environment that had previously triggered intense anxiety, but this time, the experience felt completely different.
“I actually enjoyed it,” she says. “I still had nerves, but healthy nerves, the kind you’d expect before performing. I wasn’t physically sick anymore and I wasn’t spiralling in my head.”
Now finishing her first year at university, Shannon says the difference between term one and term two has been “amazing”.
“The difference in me is huge. I feel so much calmer and more confident in myself.”
Claire Gaskin says performance anxiety can become deeply tied to the brain’s automatic threat response. “For many performers, it’s not simply ‘nerves’ – the brain can begin reacting as though the situation is genuinely unsafe, creating intense physical symptoms like panic or nausea. BWRT works to help change that automatic response.”
The impact of BWRT also extended beyond performing. Shannon had also struggled with driving anxiety, often avoiding certain roads and situations altogether.
“I used to take the long way round to avoid certain driving situations,” she says. “I’d massively overthink things and worry about what other people were thinking of me while driving.”
Since therapy, she says that anxiety has significantly reduced too.
“Now I feel really relaxed when I drive. I don’t overanalyse everything anymore.”
Looking ahead, Shannon is preparing to travel to Las Vegas in October to perform at an awards show, an opportunity she says she can now genuinely look forward to.
“That’s the biggest difference,” she says. “Before, opportunities like this filled me with dread because of the anxiety. Now I’m excited for them and I actually get to enjoy them.”
Disclaimer: This article is based on an individual’s personal experience and practitioner commentary. It is provided for general information only and does not constitute medical advice. Outcomes from any therapy may vary between individuals.
