Coping With Anxiety

As I discussed earlier, avoidance is an easy way to deal with anxiety in your life. As long as you avoid anxiety causing situations, you are actually well rewarded. Avoid and no anxiety. However, it is one of the worst things to do because your fear about these situations will persist.

I know I could and should be doing several things to "be rid" of my problem. I say "be rid" but I will always have anxiety, it is just in how I cope with it. I shouldn't avoid, but that is the easiest for me. It comes with a great expense like losing friends as I have discussed earlier.

What we say to ourselves... called "self-talk" is a very big factor in anxiety controlling us instead of the other way around. Let's say I have to go to one of my children's choir concerts or gymnastics competitions... instead of saying to myself, I have to load the camera with film, I should leave early to get a good seat, etc...

I say to myself, I have to walk out to the car and I will trip and everyone will see it, I will get stuck at the 4 way stop and look foolish not knowing when to go, I will park in the wrong place once I get there, I will go in the wrong door and feel stupid, I will sit in a seat that is already taken, etc...

This thinking has "nothing" to do with the event itself. It is a thought process we go through knowing we have to go someplace that is going to cause anxiety. But the "someplace" isn't causing our anxiety, our thought process is.

There are effective ways to turn this thinking around if it is just practiced.

Until next time...