A Series on Anxiety: Part 2

Continuing from Part 1… After you've acknowledged the helpful purpose of the anxiety you feel, you can begin to use it as a propeller instead of a blocker. However, there is another important action you can take, one that researchers discovered has the biggest impact in reducing anxiety. 

It is… drumroll… giving YOURSELF love and compassion!  

This is mainly done by changing the way you talk to yourself. Your internal dialogue might be beating you up for feeling anxious, or desperately wishing it wasn’t there.   You can change it to self-acceptance and love as you “talk to yourself” as if you were a friend or child you loved dearly who was anxious. What would you say to them? What support would you offer?  Maybe a hug, maybe “it’s going to be okay”, maybe “you’re not alone”... Sometimes self-compassion may involve an action, such as taking a bath, going on a walk, taking time to stop and drink a cup of tea, an action that makes you feel loved and cared for.   

Being self-compassionate may not feel natural. It might feel more natural to criticize and berate yourself, especially because you’re just so tired of struggling. It might seem odd to talk to yourself or offer soothing gestures, but it is something that will transform you as you practice it over time!

In Part 3, I will address several practical actions that you can do to manage anxiety on a day-to-day basis, in addition to accepting it (part 1) and then giving yourself love and compassion (part 2).