Mindfulness Mode

Everyone experiences anxiety at one time or another and most of us would love to be able to erase it as soon as it appears. Although we don't often think of this, some anxiety is positive because it can motivate us to make necessary changes, or help us to push through our fears. Everybody knows that too much anxiety can cause health issues and irritability. In extreme circumstances, extended periods of anxiety can result in death, with heart issues or stroke being the most comment culprits.

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The title of this episode, Erase Your Anxiety, suggests that you should know how to remove anxiety from your life. If you’re like me, you’ll realize that sometimes you just notice the anxiety, realize it’s there for a reason, and you show gratitude. You thank it. Without you, “Anxiety”, I wouldn’t be pushing through to this next challenge in my life.

Just because you know and understand how to erase anxiety, that doesn’t mean you’re always going to do it. You’ll just feel confident and assured, because you know that you can erase anxiety if you want to. Mindfulness can help us with anxiety in several ways.

Four Ways To Erase Anxiety

1/ Notice & Identify
2/ Consider What To Change
3/ Take Action
4/ Re-evaluate

Identifying Our Issues

Identifying our own issues can be one of the hardest things to do. Usually it’s way easier to see and form opinions about what’s going on with other people, we just can’t view ourselves in the same way. Our ego is constantly trying to protect us, and sometimes even though our subconscious mind believes it is protecting us, the truth is that a lot of the time, it’s not protecting, it actually keeping us from moving forward.

Anxiety Is Widespread

Thinking back to some of my past clients, and I’ll only talk in general terms unless they have specifically given me a thumbs up to share details, when I look back, practically every one had some kinds of problems with anxiety. I remember a client who felt like everything at work was great, she was a natural at tackling projects and coordinating teams and working with her staff towards goals. Her problems came in her personal life, with her children, her ex husbands, and her current partner.

Deep Listening

Her non-work life was a constant turmoil. Through hypnosis, we came across some events that had happened during childhood that were actually pretty traumatic, but she had tucked them away in her memory and her conscious mind had no memory of this. After some sessions about letting go, forgiveness, and delving into issues in a comfortable and meaningful way for her, she said she felt ‘lighter'. She felt like her problems with her kids were like a helium balloon. Before our sessions, she had no idea how to let go of that balloon. After the sessions, she realized she could let go with ease.

I talked to her about a month ago, and she said her relationships with her ex’s had settled down, her kids were much more content and doing online schooling from home. She said it was like a dark cloud had been lifted off her life. And she added, “it felt like that dark cloud has been following me for a decade or more”.

Searching For Remedies

We experience anxiety and our brain searches for a remedy. A lot of people, think, “I just need to talk to a friend about all this”. They find their remedy socially. I think more woman than men move in this direction. After teaching in schools for more than 20 years, I’ve noticed that the women I’ve met are very quick to form social circles and they seem to socialize way more than a lot of the men. I think that’s true for me too.

There was a time when I was a kid, it was music that was my remedy. I practiced the piano every day, later, the accordion and the saxophone. I absolutely loved creating music, performing music, and entertaining people. I loved playing when people were around me, not so much when I was by myself. For me, that music turned into a career and I got a music degree, learned to play all the band instruments, and became a music teacher. Looking back, I think all that music helped lessen the anxiety that might have otherwise controlled my life. Music helped anxiety take a back seat.

Substances

A lot of people turn to a substance of some kind to deal with anxiety. That substance might be food, tobacco, alcohol, marijuana, or other drugs. Unfortunately, a lot of these substance solutions only work for a while, or there are negative aspects to them. I’m sure you know what I’m talking about. 

My inner bully often reminded me that I wasn’t good enough, or wasn’t smart enough, but I kept pushing it into the back seat without even realizing it consciously. I just kept focusing on what I loved, the music, my students, the concerts, plays, and musical skits, and all the other fun things I was doing. I was also a church music director and loved doing that too.

Anyway, maybe there’s a clue for you there! Find something you love and focus on it. Make it a part of your life if you can. If it’s something that can also be your career, that can be a positive way to go about it.

Have you ever noticed that once you get really into doing something you love, you forget all your troubles? That means you’re in the flow.

If you don’t remember anything from today’s episode, I hope you remember the four steps to learning how to erase your anxiety.

1/ Notice & Identify

Become aware of your anxiety as soon is it begins to happen. Ways to help you quickly identify your anxiety can include meditation, quiet time, spending time in nature, swimming, running, or some other physical activity. Journaling is another way that helps many people identify their emotions quickly and more effectively.

2/ Consider What To Change

Make some conscious choices of what you can do. Maybe do Wim Hof exercises. Wim Hof has helped thousands of people with anxiety and also with depression. How about starting a new hobby or project? Maybe you should entertain the idea of changing jobs, or moving to a different home. Open up your mind and some ideas will come to you while you are doing the activities I mentioned above in in bullet point one.

3/ Take Action

Taking action is the most important of my four steps. The reason I say this is because so many people, me included at times, we read books, talk to friends, think about solutions, figure things out, and then we’re so close to success and we don’t take that step where you actually have to take action. It’s usually fear that’s holding us back. You know what they say about FEAR – Forget Everything And Run or Face Everything And Rise – those acronyms are from Zig Zigler. I strongly urge you to take my advice, Face everything and rise. You will rise up and meet your goals if you’re willing to push through and take action.

4/ Re-evaluate

Has your action started to move you in the direction you’re looking to go? If you journal, you’ll be able to look back at your writing and see if this person you’re reading about is making sense. Are his actions working? Are you noticing that the writer, (and I mean you), is learning to identify anxiety? Are you methodically deciding what to change and then taking action? As humans, it's important to observe and re-evaluate our actions.

My First Coach

The first coach I ever hired was awesome. She was incredibly inspirational and she helped me deal head-on with some of the anxiety I was experiencing. She said, “Bruce, create habits that work for you. Habits that will help you feel empowered every day.” I started journaling daily, I started becoming more consistent with meditation, and I checked in with myself.

I learned to face my inner bully head-on. Now my coach didn’t call it my inner bully. She talked about my self-talk. I call it my inner bully, but it’s the same thing. She said, listen to what that voice is saying and when you need to, tell it to ‘take a hike’.

The Back Seat

I like to imagine that I’m driving my car and my inner bully is trying to take over and I have to tell him to stay in the back seat, in no uncertain terms. Give your inner bully a name. Get to know him. Take charge and tell him or her how things are going to be from now on.

You CAN learn to erase your anxiety. Use mindfulness along with the four points I've shared today, and with those tools my dream for you is that you will reach new heights of calm, focus, and happiness. Stay in the mode!

Suggested Resources

• Book: Meditation Is Not What You Think: Mindfulness and Why It Is So Important by Jon Kabat Zinn

• Book: Redefining Anxiety: What It Is, What It Isn't, and How to Get Your Life Back by John Delony

• Youtube Video: Reduce Stress and Worry Fast by Sharon Salzberg
  
  
• App: Insight Timer

Related Episodes

• Transform Anxiety Into Prosperity With Tim Shurr
• Wearable Systems to Counter Anxiety and Depression; Kat Houghton
• Unlearn Anxiety & Depression; Dr. Joe Luciani

Special Offer

Have you been trying to break through a mind block? Are you discouraged? It’s not hopeless. YOU CAN DO IT. I coach people just like you. I’m Bruce Langford, a practicing hypnotist, and you will get results with my help! Feel good about your life and accomplishments. Regain confidence. Book a Free Consultation to get you on the road to being grounded and centered. Email me: bruce@mindfulnessmode.com with ‘I Believe In Me' in the subject line.