In this week’s video and blog, we’re looking at the impact of uncertainty on anxiety (READ MORE…). After all, so much of anxiety is fear about the future.
I’m deleting lots in an effort to not be overly political while talking about politics but think it’s safe to say that hardly anyone is happy with what’s happening.
And while I’ll share some links below re self-care tools for anxiety, in this video, I’m suggesting we think about what we DO want.
Recognising that it’s a challenge, when we’re wired to focus on the negative (and there’s so much uncertainty – this really is an advanced practice), to break that anxiety loop of catastrophising and putting our energy into thinking of the worst case scenarios.
Not suggesting we downplay or ignore anxious feelings – we can use them to help us prepare and mitigate against some of the things we worry about. Once we’ve done this, we’re more likely to feel more relaxed and settled and we can think about what we WANT to happen.
Whether the focus of your anxious thoughts right now is Brexit related or something completely different, how does it feel to imagine a best case scenario, however unlikely it might feel?
You might want to use your body and breath to help you here, lengthening through the spine as much as is comfortable, connecting with the parts of you that are grounded (and, if you want to, your imaginary roots going deep into the heart of the earth), opening through the heart centre, bringing the shoulder blades closer together as you feel that strength and openness physically and emotionally.
When we open up, our bodies, via the Vagus nerve, send those signals of safety to the brain which then lets the whole system know, whatever might be happening with Brexit or anything else, we are safe right now. We can better connect with our resourcefulness.
We can imagine what we WANT for ourselves, our loved ones, our communities, our industries, the country, Europe, the world…
How does this feel?
Here are some additional links re working with anxiety:
Click HERE for a Psychologies feature my work was a part of (and find out what it’s like to work with me online) as well as thinking about how seeking help itself can be anxiety inducing. It’s a brave thing to do
Click HERE for some of my features around anxiety
Click HERE for what some former clients have said about how working with me has helped them with anxiety
Click HERE for more on my book, 365 Ways to Feel Better: Self-care Ideas for Embodied Wellbeing (which is filled with self-care tools for anxiety)
Click HERE for a BACP blog post I contributed to last week on the benefits of exercise for anxiety
Click HERE to access several free yoga, EFT, crystal and meditation videos, many of which can help with anxiety
And click HERE to access older Facebook Live videos and blog posts, many of which deal with anxiety
Big love,
