Understanding Anxiety — and 3 Powerful Tips to Deal With It
Many of us experience anxiety — and the key to addressing it might lie in understanding it just a little better.
Yesterday, in the middle of a session, my therapist made a statement which caught me off-guard. He said it nonchalantly, but it was one of the most eye-opening things I’d ever heard.
I was telling him about the severe anxiety I had been undergoing over the last week — I must have droned on for minutes without pausing, as I often do when venting. Although it wasn’t obvious to me at first, his gentle smile was all I needed to see the hole of rumination I was falling into.
He cautioned me again about the dangers of overthinking. But then he said something else; something I hadn’t heard before.
“Anxiety is a combination of past guilt and future worry. To counter it, live in the present moment.”
Wow.
Now, don’t get me wrong — I’ve certainly been told to forgive myself, to stop worrying, and to be mindful. But to hear everything so eloquently bundled into a concise, powerful statement was an epiphany. I felt I was among my emotions, thoughts, and actions in a way I hadn’t been before.
