Hello,
Dear one.
I've been practicing with anxiety for as long as I can remember.
Because even before I had a formal practice,
I was trying to find creative ways to work with anxiety.
I was doing it before I even had the term anxiety to apply to it.
What are some helpful ways to work with anxiety,
To practice with it,
To be with it?
Let's explore together today.
Anxiety can take so many different forms.
Maybe it comes in the form of second-guessing all the time,
Or getting caught in a cycle of regret,
The kind of cycle that prevents us from taking action,
Or identifying with the could've,
Would've,
Should've mind in general.
Most of us might say that when anxiety arises,
There's a knee-jerk reaction of,
Oh,
I don't want that,
I don't like that.
How can I get rid of that?
But what if rather than having a practice,
In order to try,
Try because it's not actually possible to get rid of anxiety,
We embraced a path that allowed for the anxiety,
And maybe even honored it.
Visualize a time in your life now where some anxiety was present.
Don't pick one of those full-on panic attack moments.
Just pick something a little more neutral.
That kind of extended bass note in a song.
But if it had language,
It might be something like,
Am I okay?
Are things okay?
Will I be okay?
Was I okay?
Pick a time where you were present to that.
Even if you weren't naming it that in a specific moment,
It's just something you could feel in the background.
And now see yourself identified with this anxiety.
Feel yourself fully taking it on,
Being caught in it.
When you're caught in this way,
What is it that you would say you actually need?
Sometimes if our mind is spinning,
The same mind that spins asserts that what we need is just an answer to our questions.
But usually that's not truly what we need.
See if you can relate to some of these unmet needs that I've found to be universal.
To know that I'm lovable.
To be accepted.
To be seen.
To know that I'm worthy.
Just to name a few.
What kinds of unmet needs are there for you in a moment where you're identified?
With the anxious mind.
Can you get in touch with that now?
Again,
See yourself there feeling anxious.
Or maybe you're in a moment now where anxiety is present.
What do you long to know?
What's it like?
Try it on.
To practice offering that to this part of you who's feeling anxious now.
So it's like I'm inviting you to switch identities.
I purposefully asked you to identify with the part of you who gets anxious.
Now I'm inviting you to turn towards that part of you.
See that part of you clearly and speak to him,
Her,
Or them.
What do you feel called to say to them?
You've known this person their entire lives.
You see them and you love them unconditionally.
What do you want them to know?
How do you feel moved to support them?
Accessing compassion in this way is the medicine for the anxious mind.
From compassion you might notice that this part of you has always been doing the best they can with what they have in any given moment.
You might be able to see that what they define as mistakes aren't mistakes in your mind but maybe rather learnings.
Precious opportunities for growth,
Needful and important.
Know yourself know yourself as that which doesn't need to get rid of this part of you or the anxious mind in general.
Know yourself as that which doesn't need to get rid of anything.
Feel the anxiety like a current that arises in the sea.
Just one little current or maybe wave in a broad ocean.
Just one current or wave among many.
These currents don't disturb the sea.
They're made of the sea.
Welcomed by the sea.
You could even say cherished.
So now in this moment in this moment know yourself as that which cherishes naturally embracing everything exactly as it is without restraint.
