They say let go, let God. But somehow that doesn’t get rid of the squeezing pain in my chest. I believe the loving hand of God is watching and guiding us, but that doesn’t stop the blood from rushing to my head when panic sets in. I believe there are angels and spirits around us every day and everywhere looking out for us, but that doesn’t cure the nervous stomachs and stress headaches I have every day.
· I fear everything! Everything!
· I fear I’m going to get fired because the new guy is really great…
· I fear my husband’s new employer will go out of business…
· I fear my son will hate me when he grows up…
· I fear my husband will cheat on me…
· I fear that he will leave me…
· I fear I’ll never save enough to retire…
· I fear that cancer will take me from my son before he’s old enough to be on his own…
· I fear everything.
I want to never be afraid again. I want to be fearless. I want to stop panic attacks and end anxiety attacks in their tracks! I want to forget what worry feels like.
How do you fight fear? How do you stop a panic attack? How do you end worry?
There are so many ways. There are things you can do to prevent fears and stop worries. And there are things you can do when you are in the harsh grip of fear. Here are some things that I have found do work. No one thing works every time, but when one bullet doesn’t kill the serial killing night stalker chasing you… USE EVERY SHELL, EMPTY THE ENTIRE MAGAZINE, AND RELOAD! And if he’s still coming… NEVER EVER GIVE UP… you just keep on running. He’ll give up and you’ll be the last one standing. I promise.
Thirty-five ways to fight fear, stop worries, and end anxiety!
1. Pray. Pray hard. Pray until you fall asleep or pass out. Scream at God if you think he’s not listening. He is. And he can totally take it.
2. Take a break… step away from whatever madness you’re in the middle of for 5 minutes or 30. Count to 100. The issues will still be there, but maybe you’ll be more able to handle them.
3. Face your fear. Imagine that what you fear is definitely going to happen. Work out how you would deal with it. And ask yourself, “So what?” If I get fired so what? My husband is working right now, so maybe we’d lose the house. So what? We’d rent a tiny apartment. So what? We would still be together. We would still love one another. We would still be able to eat. We would still be able to live. So what?
4. Tell yourself that everything is going to work out perfectly. Even if you don’t believe it, it will confuse your subconscious worry-machine and invite your angels to help make it happen.
5. Make sure you get enough sleep. Anything less than 6 hours is not enough.
6. Use positive words and think positive thoughts. If you try hard enough, you are in 100% control of you mind. It takes an effort to replace the negative thought patterns created by years of mental programming, but it’s worth it. And if you do it long enough, you can reprogram yourself. Make your mind your Matrix and you are Neo!
7. Surround yourself with positive people.
8. Count your blessings and even write down all the awesome things about yourself. Write down your accomplishments. There are many. Each one is worth a lot. You are worth more than you know.
9. Do one thing. Know you don’t have to solve all your problems in one night. Just try doing one thing to move you in a more positive direction… maybe it’s brushing up your resume, or exercising, or apologizing. But just do one. Tomorrow you can work on number two.
10. Exercise. It helps if the exercise involves punching, kicking, and screaming, but if that’s not your bag of candy, try something else.
11. Think about a time when you had the same or a similar fear. Did your worry happen? What are the chances that what you fear will actually happen? If it did occur, how did you deal with it? How do other people deal with it? Someone, somewhere, definitely has. Look it up. Be inspired.
12. Get busy working on something. Be so busy your mind cannot be bothered with fear. If your mind is 100% engaged in repairing drywall or de-cluttering your spare room, you won’t have a second to worry about that thing that’s been eating away at your stomach lining.
13. Phone home…. Call mom, dad, a friend, a grandparent, your parole officer, whoever…. God’s always listening.
14. If your fears have anything to do with keeping up with the Joneses… remember that they are cheating on each other, they are compulsive liars, their children smoke crack, they are selfish and evil, they worship Satan, and they wear those expensive clothes to cover up their stinking puss-filled souls. Or whatever disgusting thing helps you feel just an inch taller. But truly know that they have their own bag of problems. Their path is different from yours. Your path was chosen by God. Trust Him.
15. Execute plan Z – a glass or two of wine at night does not a drunkard make.
16. Execute plan D - Talk to a doctor. If shrinks are not your thing, any regular general practitioner can prescribe some Valium.
17. Learn to meditate. Repeat a peaceful mantra when everything is quiet and still. Shut down the other voices in your head.
18. Get creative… dance… sculpt… program… color… write… paint… sing… even if you sound like a blender choking on too much ice for a daiquiri! It doesn’t have to be perfect.
19. Know our imperfections just mean you’re human… typos are meeningless. Everyone knows what you were tryin' 2 sae enyweigh....
20. Know we all make mistakes… you are still AWESOME!
21. Play with your pet. They love you… warts and all.
22. Take a bath or a shower. Brush your teeth. Slap on some deodorant. Know that even if everything else stinks… you smell FABULOUS!
23. Look your best… it will make you stand a little taller and feel a little better. Who’s that good looking person in the mirror? That’s right… it’s you!
24. No matter what is going on, know that things could be harder. Read about someone who has been through the circle of fire and come out shining on the other end… Read about someone who has had to struggle and their fight was the fire that turned them in to a hero… read about Nick Vujicic, or Don Piper, or Dan Caro… or insert your own hero. My grandfather abandoned my grandma and their four small children in the 50s. She not only survived… she thrived. She fought, and prayed, and turned into a beautiful and strong rose who worked like crazy, but managed to trust again, fall in love again, and had four more children.
25. Stop whatever you are doing and just relax your whole body. Imagine a cat curled in a warm summer window. Purr. Stretch. Lick your paws if that helps.
26. Live beneath your means. Live simply. Jesus did not have a TV, DVR, a cell phone, a LAN line, a PC, a McMansion, two cars, and a laptop… do you really need all these things?
27. Simplify your belongings. When your house stops looking like a hoarder's playground, go further. Maybe pretend you’re Amish.
28. Simplify your responsibilities. Don’t let a cluttered schedule overwhelm you. Do you really have to do all those things on your to-do list? If something doesn’t get done… so what? Seriously.
29. Breathe slowly and deeply. Empty your lungs as much as you can and then fill them completely.
30. Change the pace. If you’ve been sitting for a while, stand up. Go for a walk. If you’ve been working non-stop, sit. Be still.
31. Know that it’s okay to be afraid and that everything is temporary. This too shall pass. Sometimes you just have to wait it out. The rain always stops eventually.
32. Help someone. Sometimes helping other people with their problems can put our own in perspective or even just distract us long enough to feel a little better.
33. If you have a husband or wife… maybe a little boom boom would help you feel a little cheerier. Or at the very least, maybe they’ll make you a cup of tea or give you a nice massage.
34. If you don’t have a love… go get a cup of tea, indulge yourself in something that makes you smile.
35. Just smile… if you don’t feel a smile anywhere inside… just fake it. Just the act of smiling will often help lift your mood.
Tomorrow is going to be better. If not tomorrow… then the next day definitely. Hang in there little pilgrim. We’re all in this together!
And sometimes fear will bring you alive. Let it light your passions on fire… let it ignite your inner Spartan warrior!
Are you only here if God ensures blue skies and a perfect harvest? Or are you all in for whatever is in store?
If yes… and the fear still grips you… Scream into the storm now… face the hail, lightening, thunder, tsunami, and tornadoes… scream to God that you are ready and willing to fight the good Fight. Scream into the wind…. BRING IT ON! GIVE ME YOUR WORST!
Put on your boots… apply your SPF30… layer on the war paint... pray… and hike up your kilt and yell to the fates: I will never quit! I WILL NEVER GIVE UP! I WILL NEVER SURRENDER!
How Did You Die
by Edmund Vance Cooke
Did you tackle that trouble that came your way
With a resolute heart and cheerful?
Or hide your face from the light of day
With a craven soul and fearful?
Oh, a trouble's a ton, or a trouble's an ounce,
Or a trouble is what you make it,
And it isn't the fact that you're hurt that counts,
But only how did you take it? You are beaten to earth?
Well, well, what's that!
Come up with a smiling face.
It's nothing against you to fall down flat,
But to lie there--that's disgrace.
The harder you're thrown, why the higher you bounce
Be proud of your blackened eye!
It isn't the fact that you're licked that counts;
It's how did you fight--and why?
And though you be done to the death, what then?
If you battled the best you could,
If you played your part in the world of men,
Why, the Critic will call it good.
Death comes with a crawl, or comes with a pounce,
And whether he's slow or spry,
It isn't the fact that you're dead that counts,
But only how did you die?
Keep up the good fight… my friend.
Hugs...
True
