One of the most troubling things about anxiety disorders is that the person suffering from them so often feels quite helpless when the symptoms strike. Sweaty palms. difficulty speaking and concentrating, and increased heartbeat have become facts of life for the millions of people dealing with anxiety.
Does it have to be this way? The answer to this question is somewhat complex. On the one hand when an anxiety attack strikes, a person has little minute-to-minute control over the symptoms that arise. At this point it is simply too late to do too much about it.
However, prior to an anxiety attack there are steps a person can take to diminish the effects and ultimately reduce the frequency of their occurence. Some of these things may be challenging or require some lifestyle alterations. Are they worth it? I believe they are.
The question becomes have you had enough of dealing with anxiety that you actually want to do something about it. Perhaps you have, perhaps you have not. However at a certain point an individual needs to make a decision. At some point you have to decide.
The little (and sometimes not-so-little) manifestations of the condition can be paralyzing. But often when the episode is over, the person thanks their lucky stars the bout has ended and either goes about their day or retreats into isolation in fear that the symptoms may return.
Very infrequently does a person stand up and decide enough is enough. Stopping anxiety is, quite simply, a choice. Which is fortunate for, like anything else in life, anxiety can be faced and overcome… once a decision has been made to confront it.
What often holds people back isn’t the failure to decide to make a change but rather the failure to realize that they have a choice in the matter. The feel imprisoned by the condition and mostly seek to manage rather than eliminate the symptoms. This is out of ignorance of any other options.
You have options, I am glad to report. There are several ways to attack anxiety and ultimately stop anxiety. But the prescription for relief is not altogether easy. There are things, difficult things, that you will have to do. And often times they don’t mean running to an advice-doctor for help. It becomes kind of isolating because the things that you need to do are things that only you can do. There isn’t anyone you can pay to do them for you.
But, you see, that’s part of the excitement that comes with a new way of looking at life. In the past I know that I would wonder why this was happening to me. What did I do to deserve this? I spent most of my time feeling sorry for myself and not taking any ACTION to actually improve my situation. And that’s what I observe so often in people with anxiety. They think that if they could just spend their entire life in their therapist’s office that there problem would be solved.
And they don’t get any better.
It comes down to the question of how much of your life are you willing to waste? If you died tomorrow do you feel like your life would have been a success? Because anxiety in and of itself is rarely the problem. It is the failure to rise to the occasion and overcome obstacles that is the ruin of people with mental illness. I don’t say this to be hurtful, I say it because it was true for me and when I realized it and started doing the work, my life started to get better.
You can too! That’s the whole point of this site. I want you to take action over your own life. Don’t be a spectator to your own life. Don’t spend your whole life filling the coffers of advice-doctors. Do something. You might have to even re-learn how to think for yourself, but the freedom that a life affords is vastly superior to a life dependent on others to tell you you are OK.
I challenge you to do the work to get there.
