Was there a conversation that I had yesterday that unsettled or upset me a bit but not enough that I was aware at the time? Did I have a dream that led to me waking up feeling anxious?
Is it the change in season, the turning in of autumn. Will I survive the long winter emotionally?
Now that I am feeling anxious, I notice that little things are troubling me today. I am looking to misinterpret text messages and emails. My confidence has dropped. My motivation levels have dropped. Wow! What a difference a day makes.
Yesterday, I was feeling energised, motivated, confident. Like I knew what I was doing with my life! Ha! Not now!
Im sharing this, because I know I am not alone. This is a common experience, especially amongst women.
So, what to do? Shall I feed this anxiety, look around for things to worry about, watch the news and feel anxious about the state of the world? Shall I have irritable conversations with people today? Shall I lie on the sofa and watch trash tv so I don't have to deal with it?
There is a part of me that wants to do all of those things.
But fortunately today, there is a bigger part of me, that wants to change how I deal with my anxiety. I am choosing to let go of my anxiety.
I recognise that all feelings/emotions are transient. They will all pass. One of my meditation practices is imagining that all my thoughts and feelings are passing across my mind on a conveyor belt. Occasionally, I see one that I decide to believe. Today, it was "I am anxious. I am little. I am unempowered. I am vulnerable etc"
So I have decided to put those ones back on the conveyor belt and pick up another thought/affirmation. "I am safe." And another - "I am confident" and another "I am empowered; I am motivated; I am alive and vibrating with energy; I am passionate; I am loved; I am supported by the universe." Each time I pick another thought, I feel slightly stronger.
Each time I add to my anxiety by feeding it with another anxious thought, I feel slightly weaker.
So affirmations work for me. This does need a bit of time and attention. But I can do it while I'm doing other jobs, walking to work, loading the dishwasher, preparing food etc
Other things that work for me - physical exercise, it quietens my mind. Especially quiet repetitive exercise like swimming, walking, running.
I also find that doing a chakra clearing meditation (I have one recorded that will be for sale on my website very soon but I can email it to you beforehand if you would like - contact me for more details).
The last thing I would highly recommend, is to be loving with yourself. Maybe run yourself a nice hot aromatherapy bath; or have an early night with a hot water bottle; or have a quiet night in, listening to some uplifting (not melancholic) music; or going to a yoga/meditation class; or to watch an uplifting (not depressing/thrilling/horror) film.
These techniques can be used for any other emotion that you might be working with - eg anger, sadness.
Hope this helps - would love to hear about any other techniques that you might use!
