I had something of a revelation recently.

I was thinking about the way that I have tried to deal with anxiety in my life. I also started to think about my life before I started to have anxiety issues.

I thought about how anxiety had blighted my life and how I used to be a more humourous, light-hearted person before 'this all happened to me'.

Then it hit me : "hold on...what am I saying ? I'm still humourous and light hearted - I still love to laugh at things and to enjoy the lighter moments of life". In fact, the more I thought about it, the more I came to realise that there are many things in life that I really love to do and to appreciate.

Then, it hit me like a bolt of lightning : I haven't changed at all - the way that I think about myself has changed. The more I thought about it, the more I realised that I have started to think of myself as a victim of anxiety, whose life has been permanently blighted.

When I think about my life more deeply, I realise that the 'real' me is still there. I am still as humourous and fun-loving as ever.

To someone who has not been though similar experiences, this may all seem a little obvious. But I have definitely fallen in to the trap of regarding myself as being controlled by anxiety and seeing myself as a victim of it.

Well, not any more.... I have a new picture of myself that I carry around in my head. I now see myself as the person I want to be : fun-loving, caring and grateful for all of the good things that I have in my life. I may well have anxiety symptoms at some time in the future, but I will regard them as the exception rather than the norm, knowing that I can cope with them and that I will return to being the 'real' me.

If you have anxiety issues, maybe it is worth taking a few moments to see if you have lost site of the 'real' you. The best of who you are is still in there and hasn't gone away at all, you just haven't noticed him/her recently. Maybe its time to get re-acquainted !



- posted by Nigel @ 10:47 AM