Come over to the right side – your path to recovery.
- Don’t trade short-term relief for a long-term anxiety disorder. Instead, say
“yes” to more things and remain in more anxious situations, without resorting to escape or avoidance.
Choose the right kind of hard.
- Choose “meaningful hard” rather than “meaningless hard.” Pain may be inevitable, but you can choose to make it productive and for something worthwhile. This time around, trade short-term anxiety for long-term recovery. Be willing to do something hard if it is in service of your wellbeing. And know that the suffering is temporary; things will get much easier the more you habituate.
Use better coping skills.
- Abdominal Breathing.
- Mindfulness (using your senses to focus on your present surroundings).
- Willingness (allowing the anxiety to be there so you can let go of the struggle).
- Coping statements (“I am willing to be anxious” or, “I can tolerate uncertainty”).
Experience the change.
- Stay in the situation until habituation occurs. Over time, you will be much more comfortable. You will also have a new belief system – that symptoms remit on their own without avoidance, escape, or safety behaviors. This new “learning” is necessary for changing your outlook, improving your mood, and getting the life you want.
Encourage yourself.
- Be grateful to yourself for choosing this path, be compassionate to yourself for this difficult journey, and be proud of your commitment to healing yourself.
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