I wanted to share some insight I attained recently that I think could be helpful to anyone seeking to conquer their anxiety.
Imagine if you were presented with a choice that would end all of your anxiety and depression for good. You are given an opportunity to push a button and once pushed all your problems would disappear. Would you do it? Of course you would want to- duh! But something gnaws at you, seems to stifle you before your finger goes to that button. For, if you do push that button what it means is all your anxiety disappears, all your negative and bad feelings go away. What would be left then? Who will you become, what will your life be like? Think about this!
With the push of a button you could give speeches in front of people, go by any means of transportation anywhere in the world, go skydiving, bungee jumping and even talk directly and assertively to people you would have otherwise avoided. You could actually relax for the first time without even a smidgen of concern about getting anxious and having a panic attack. You could face head-on any buried or repressed feelings based on situations that occurred earlier in your life and even come to terms with them. You wouldn’t feel so angry or testy for no apparent reason. You would feel peaceful. You could sleep all night and feel refreshed each morning and look forward with optimism to the day ahead of you.
So now that we’ve covered some possibilities with the push of that button, are you willing to do it, right this minute? Well, what are you waiting for? The hesitancy to push that button brings to light our resistance. Why on earth would anyone resist pushing that button? We don’t want to push it right away or at least think about it first because of our fear. After all, the ramifications are pretty huge!
What is weird is that almost 4 years ago I purchased the StressCenter.com program and worked it over a period of weeks. I approached parts of it with great fervor and others I ‘put on the back burner’ because I didn’t feel ready to face some aspect of my life. I think it’s o.k. to not push that button until you are ready to but I also see that we must face risk in order to have reward. Facing that ‘button’ with each new week of the program presented a climb out of a pit of despair for me. But that pit was also a warm cocoon- a place of false safety. Whenever I pushed through something I was ignoring or thought was too big for me I also experienced a feeling of freedom. Then I realized that my self-made cocoon was actually a smelly little place no longer worthy of me or my time.
In the end, there is no button to push, of course. I discovered for myself that it was not being able to leave my house again that solved my anxieties. It was not driving a car, talking to someone I’ve avoided or getting on an elevator that was important. It has always been the resistance in me that was the most important thing to conquer. To get on the elevator is a no-brainer act really. But it is the thinking that I can’t because I might get anxious and it’s easier to avoid them that was most important to change. Change your mind and you change your life as what you think is what you get. All our limitations, our anxieties and behaviors are directed from how we think. There lies the rub: The choices we make in our thoughts dictate how we feel and what we inevitably do in living. Behind our thoughts lies choice.
Are you willing to push the button- make choices in your thinking that enhance you and build you up? You must be willing. Are you willing to roll up your sleeves and do the work necessary to recover? Are you willing to meet face to face your worst fears and see them for what they are? If so, then you already pushed the button and are on your way!
As a disclaimer, I don’t pretend to have all the answers nor am trying to be clever. My life is far from perfect and I still struggle with anxiety in my life from time to time. However, I find by sharing my experience I fulfill two desires: One being that I enjoy helping others who are struggling like I have. The other being that I always learn more by sharing with others than any other way. I hope my opinions are helpful and put anyone reading this in the right direction. Best of luck!
Sparkus
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