Former spy reveals which mental health disorder the CIA considers a 'superpower' and how to train it

A former spy reveals that the CIA is able to mold people with a specific mental disorder to be brilliant at their jobs anywhere in the world.

Thanks to Hollywood pop culture, the idea of a super spy has seemingly been skewed, according to a former CIA officer.

Andrew Bustamante, who spent seven years working covertly for the agency, revealed that the building blocks of a spy is considerably different than what we have seen in films.

Speaking on the Francesca Psychology Podcast last year, he revealed that there is a common mental health disorder that the agency considers a ‘superpower’ due to how well it factors into an individual becoming a competent operative.

This mental health trait is so valuable that the CIA, according to Bustamante, actively recruits individuals who have it.

But what is it?

The image of what the 'best' spy would be like is different to what movies portray (Getty Stock Image)

Speaking to Francesca Tighinean, Bustamante revealed that the condition is simply anxiety.

Explaining it, he said: “The best spies are not actually people who don’t have anxiety.

“The best ones are people with high anxiety, and CIA actively recruits people with anxiety because anxious people are naturally more attentive, naturally more suspicious, more observant, naturally have a stronger recollection.

“It is a superpower, anxiety is a superpower in the world of espionage.”

When you think ‘super spy’ you likely think of the suavity of James Bond or resourcefulness of Jason Bourne, not the anxiousness of Terry from accounting. But here we are.

However, if you are thinking being anxious alone makes you ready to be a spy... yeah, it's not that easy.

He went on to say, that this is just the beginning and an individual still needs to undergo vigorous training to be useful to the agency because if ‘anxiety goes unchecked it can be very damaging.’

Bustamante further explained how the CIA essentially weaponizes the disorder so the individual can be the best spy possible.

Andrew highlighted the CIA teaches people to manage their anxiety and put it to good use (Andrew Bustamante/YouTube)

He continued: “Anybody who has anxiety knows the spiral that comes with anxiety.

“So what the CIA does is they teach us how to recover, recuperate and maintain our energy reserves, our mental health, because they also know they are tapping into our anxious tendencies.

“That's another reason why sleep is so important, why diet is so important, why exercise is a priority for us because these are all things that counter and combat anxiety.”

So, it seems if you want to turn your anxiety into a superpower, the CIA is the place to go? Who would have guessed that.