One thing that helps me manage my anxiety
I’ve been experiencing an uneasy feeling in my body.
Recently, I was anxious about a new step I was taking in my business.
Quite anxious.
As I was exploring my anxiety, I noticed that I also had the thought: Because I’m anxious, something *must* be wrong.
My clients know that one of my favorite things is identifying thought errors — subtle errors in reasoning in the brain. And it became clear to me: “Because I’m anxious, something must be wrong” was a thought error.
My brain had simply made a mistake. It wasn't true that because I was anxious, something had to be wrong.
Actually, I could be anxious, but nothing could be wrong.
Which was exactly true in this particular moment: nothing was wrong at all. Rather, my anxiety was actually simply telling me that I was at my developmental edge — doing something new, and, yes, a bit risky.
I played with a new thought, instead: I can be anxious, and nothing can be wrong.
…
Here’s some advice that might help reduce your anxiety:
Have you ever heard the advice, in the self-development world, to just re-interpret anxiety as “excitement”? You aren’t anxious, you’re just buzzing with excitement!
I have often felt annoyed with this advice. No, I would think to myself, I’m actually anxious.
But this new thought actually did feel believable:
I can be anxious, and nothing can be wrong, I told myself.
I can be anxious, and it just means that I’m at my developmental edge.
So, I have been reminding myself a lot lately: I can be anxious, and nothing can be wrong. I’m just at my developmental edge.
And then taking a big breath, continuing to feel anxious, and moving forward.
…
As always, I’m rooting for you in the week ahead. You’ve got this.
Katie
p.s. Most of us have thought errors so subtle, and so personalized, that it can be hard (or impossible) to spot them on our own. That’s where working with a coach can be life-changing: just shifting a few key thoughts can completely change your experience of your own life. If you’d like to work with me, learn more here.
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