MY DANCE WITH ANXIETY

I know a great deal about anxiety both from a personal perspective and from a professional perspective.  There are so many articles about what it is, how to cope, medicine vs. natural solutions.  Yet with all of the information out there it seems that the way to work with it can be a difficult thing.  The fact is, while there is no real cure for anxiety disorders there are so many things that help relieve the aweful and overwhelming sense one gets when anxiety does occur.

Practicing mindfulness techniques is a very good tool and many have found it helpful.  Several of my students have shared that meditation helps.  So does having a hobby that you may be passionate about. Still, there are those who have found that traditional meditation makes their anxiety worse for them because they worry that they are not doing it right or that it doesn't bring them the immediate relief they are hoping for.  

For those who understand the benefits of meditation but find it difficult, I teach a type of meditation that brings them into a mindful state almost immediately.  In fact, it helped me so much that I became certified to teach it. I have listed three sites that hopefully will be helpful for you.

https://adaa.org/understanding-anxiety/myth-conceptions 

www.creativemeditations.us

www.zentangle.com

Please take care of yourself.  It is the most important thing you can do! I believe in you.

Namaste,

Andrea

May you have Peace  Click the link to the left for some quiet meditation music.  Enjoy!

I BELIEVE IN ME

I will admit that I have my moments of doubt.  Believing in yourself is a challenge and one we all have to work on.  Even me.  As I write this post the voice inside my head is trying to chip away at my confidence.   "What do you know about this stuff!?"it keeps telling me.  Plenty!  What?  You think I don't have stress?

How can we strengthen our belief in ourselves when there is so much negativity around us?

1.  Practice positivity about yourself.  Whenever that inner voice tells you that you can't,  immediately reframe your thought with you can.  Change words like impossible to I'm possible.   It is a simple notion I know, yet we often forget to practice positivity.

2.  Manage your stress.  Another easier said than done.  I think of stress as a bully!  Do not let it ruin your life. There are so many ways to manage stress and the internet is an excellent research tool.  Everyone has stress of some kind; some more than others.  There are countless articles about its effects mentally, physically, emotionally, and spiritually.  There are also many articles of what you can do to relieve it.  Diet and exercize are the most talked about and are extremely important.  I have a daily mindful meditation practice that helps me and more recently I began to practice zentangle which is a drawing meditation.  It has become my favorite way to practice mindful meditation and has been so helpful that in 2013 I became certified to teach it to others.  Some people love to sew or create art.  Whatever you like to do.....lose yourself in it.

3.  Surround yourself with positive thinking people.  There is no bigger downer than being constantly reminded that the world is going to hell in a handbasket. It isn't and don't let anyone tell you that it is.  Find a group that strives to make this world a better place.  Perhaps a local garden group?  Volunteer at a local Domestic Violence Center where the committment is to stop violence against others.  And for goodness sake, limit your exposure to the news.  I am not saying that you should bury your head in the sand but rather, don't watch it first thing in the morning or read it on your cell phone.  Watching it later in the day can save you hours of anguish. 

I could go one but instead I will just leave you with this.....I believe in me and I believe in you!!!!  Don't doubt it for a minute!  With a bit of practice we can do this together.

Namaste,
Andrea

SELF LOVE

Tomorrow is a day of celebrating the ones we love.  It is a long time honored tradition that has an interesting history.  Loving others has been the focus in more recent history and it is an honorable one.  Yet spending any time loving ourselves is often left undone.  Women are especially vulnerable to only having notions of selflessness, having been taught that being selfish is not only something women must never do but to even think about it is quite vulgar.  I say enough is enough.  Love yourself first.  Find ways to give to yourself the gift of self love.

I invite you to also take tomorrow and spend some time thinking about how to show yourself some love with the intent of taking a moment every day to do the same.  Listen to the meditation above.  As you listen silently repeat "I love myself deeply and completely".  I offer you this because I believe in you.  I offer you this because I believe you deserve to love yourself.

Namaste........