I like things that make you view yourself and others differently.
The things that stop us from begrudgingly telling people that they have stress and anxiety to telling them what this potentially stems from and how it was helpful to others in the past.
How our heightened senses and fine attunement to the world around us can sniff out danger before it has the chance to unfold, to steer clear of "poisons" that might make us sick and to avoid toxic people who drain of Qi like the plague.
How usually the most successful people suffer from anxiety, but this makes them successful.
It allows us to view every possible outcome imaginable and formulate a plan to deal with each and everyone of them. Is that not a good thing in a sense? Is that not basically a super power.
Don't get me wrong, anxiety can be crippling af. It can have you so over prepared with things you can do to succeed or things you need to do that you end of sitting on the couch for hours on end watching "The Office".
It also can be a pain in the ass with risk taking. You want this, but we're already comfortable here and we will have to suffer more to get this even though it will be better for us, so let's just suffer here and be comfortable. Yes, that's a run on sentence, but that's an example of the circle struggle that your mind like to play.
Believe me, I understand how it can shut down an entire day and every step hurts if you have to do something.
If there's one thing that has helped me that has been in a couple of books I've read (this one and Atomic Habits I believe), is taking away choices.
It's not technically taking away choices, it's more so limiting them and stopping yourself from being overwhelmed by the smaller billions of choices you make before you even leave your house in the A.M.
- Should I have coffee or tea.
- Toast with butter? Jam? Peanut Butter? Nutella?
- Should I wear jeans or leggings?
- What should I do at the gym today?
- Whose email should I answer first?
Nope. Screw all that. Both of these books mention how the small choices that are practically meaningless wear down our amygdala.
That's why I meal prep every week. No choices to be made on what to eat.
I plan out my day (ish) the night before. Less choices.
I pack my gym bag and write my routine down the night before.
Less choices and things to think about doing or forgetting equals less anxiety.
Then there's sugar.
Multiple books talk about sugar and cutting it out. In my personal opinion, yes, cutting down my sugar intake and upping my veggies and fruits has done wonders for my skin along with acupuncture, but I can't cut it out completely.
My time of the month demands sugar. absolutely demands it. It's either eat a bag of M&Ms or have a breakdown. I choose sugar. I know TMI.
In the end, you are in control of what you want to do with your anxiety and stress.
You want to sit on the couch and binge watch "The Office", heck I'll join you.
Just don't let it stop you from achieving what you know you can. Use it as a spear in battle, not as a crutch.
You got this shit.
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