I’m anxiety in human form.
It might be because I had Acute Myeloid Leukemia, and the fear of relapse grips me 24/7/365. Or maybe I was an anxious baby long before my health challenges.
It doesn’t really matter.
My anxiety is the Titanic — slow-moving, massive, and dragging me under.
If that describes your experience, here’s what to do.
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Are you ready?
Do something.
Oh, you thought I’d have an answer that turned off the thoughts in your head like you were flicking a light switch?
Sorry. I don’t.
I do have decades of trying to outwait my anxiety. Attempting to win a game of chicken by doing nothing — or next to nothing, and assuming the problem will go away on its own.
Close to 1 in 3 adults will experience an anxiety disorder at some point. If you’re one of them, you might be using a similar tactic as me.
After decades of trying, I can tell you the waiting game doesn’t end well.
You can’t soothe turbulent seas through sheer power of will. You just can’t. All you can do is learn to live on unsteady ground.
“Worry often gives a small thing a great shadow” — Unknown
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What change looks like is up to you
There’s no right or wrong way to start the process.
Hmmm.
Maybe there’s a wrong way. I’m not your Dad, but I wouldn’t recommend you go out and become a heroin addict.
On the other side of the coin, there are plenty of positive changes you can make:
- Identify your triggers
- Adopt a new journalling habit
- Go out and become a black belt in yoga
- Get cosy with Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
There’s no conclusion to this list because there’s no right or wrong way to manage your anxiety.
There’s only doing something… or doing nothing.
If your anxiety is the Titanic, like mine, you can’t stop it from dragging you into the water. You just can’t. The band is playing. The captain is looking stoic in his cabin. Leonardo DiCaprio wishes he’d floated near a larger plank of wood.
You cannot escape what is coming.
But take it from someone who’s spent decades fighting anxiety in the mistaken belief he could win. Even if the step is so small it barely makes a dent, the action you take is akin to slipping your arms through a life jacket.
When your anxiety attempts to sink you, that small step can be the difference between drowning or keeping your head above water.
…
Don’t follow your dreams. Follow my YouTube channel.
Subscribe to Bear Minimal for actionable life hacks that hit harder than a polar bear with a baseball bat (and I should know).
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This post was previously published on medium.com.
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Photo credit: Alwi Alaydrus via Unsplash
