taming the angry monster
i am such a worrier.
i fret. i agonize. i brood.
and here's the oddest element of my anxiety . . . it is rarely rooted in reality. i often worry about events i dream up and imagine. its the things that might happen - that could happen - that cause me to lose sleep at night.
its the what if's . . . that cause me so much angst.
they say the most dangerous place for anyone is the six inches between one's ears. and for me, i know this to be truth!
yet most self-help gurus will tell you to sit with your anxiety. to breathe through the panic. to let the thoughts go, one by one, like clouds drifting . . . .
how's that going for you? yea. me neither.
the unease we feel is energy. pure and simple. and believe it or not, its an energy that can be harnessed and used for good, not always evil. so while the experts are sitting, legs crossed, taking deep breaths . . . i am proposing that the next time you get stuck in your mind's prison, follow my 5 steps instead:
energy. frenetic and feverish. wildly unpredictable and ridiculously irrational. that's all anxiety is.
but putting it into action, thereby releasing the mad and manic element, reduces the potency. reclaims perspective. and can calm a raging storm into small, simple waves - easily surfed.
i fret. i agonize. i brood.
and here's the oddest element of my anxiety . . . it is rarely rooted in reality. i often worry about events i dream up and imagine. its the things that might happen - that could happen - that cause me to lose sleep at night.
its the what if's . . . that cause me so much angst.
they say the most dangerous place for anyone is the six inches between one's ears. and for me, i know this to be truth!
yet most self-help gurus will tell you to sit with your anxiety. to breathe through the panic. to let the thoughts go, one by one, like clouds drifting . . . .
how's that going for you? yea. me neither.
the unease we feel is energy. pure and simple. and believe it or not, its an energy that can be harnessed and used for good, not always evil. so while the experts are sitting, legs crossed, taking deep breaths . . . i am proposing that the next time you get stuck in your mind's prison, follow my 5 steps instead:
- write it down. put into words exactly what you are thinking. all of it. as it comes to you. record each and every bit. a friend gave me this bit of advice many years ago and though i think it was a diversionary tactic, as he was just tired of listening to me . . . it worked. writing your thoughts frees them from their place of torment and once viewed in black and white, they somehow lose their threat and potency.
- do something. remember the fight or flight instinct? well, this time, its fight by flight. its exactly what you don't want to do - move. and its exactly what you should do. run. bike. walk. do yoga. go to the gym. hike. whatever it is that you like to do - do it. whatever you are worrying about won't go anywhere. it'll wait for you. but once you release the negative energy surrounding it, you may not see it quite the same way.
- motivate. sometimes anxiety is the fuel to get something done. for example, those taxes that you got an extension for, and that same extension which is running out. or the checkbook that needs to be balanced. or job applications that must be completed. or homework that has to be done. not all worry is based on imaginary dangers - as the IRS can be quite a force to reckon with.
- wash your floor. my husband likes this the best. we agonize most over events we cannot control, the unpredictability, and the lack of control. call it a bit of undiagnosed OCD, but there is something wildly comforting in creating order where i can, to ease the demons of chaos. for me, this means a clean kitchen. and depending on the level of my angst, a clean living room, dining room, bedroom . . . etc. and if i still persist on brooding, at least i do it in an orderly environment.
- laugh. energy is released in various ways - but i find laughing the most pleasant of all. and if i have nothing to laugh at in the present moment, i will seek out my most hilarious friend, rent a silly movie, or amuse myself with the ridiculous antics of websites - like FML!
energy. frenetic and feverish. wildly unpredictable and ridiculously irrational. that's all anxiety is.
but putting it into action, thereby releasing the mad and manic element, reduces the potency. reclaims perspective. and can calm a raging storm into small, simple waves - easily surfed.
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How alluring to think about the creature I may discover myself to be were I to strip myself of my brooding, and liberate my hours and moments from the six treacherous inches between my ears!
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