I was sitting at my desk trying to get going. I read through a few emails and came to one from a favorite blogger. As I read her weekly letter, I started getting “that feeling.” By the time I had finished her letter, noticed the 5 new posts she included, and saw the 3 free books she was offering at the bottom of her email, that feeling was in full force.
“That Feeling” = Tight chest, shallow breathing, head spinning, general feeling of high anxiety about all the things I should be doing, hadn’t done or missed doing.
About 6 months ago, I realized that when my body has this visceral reaction, I needed to pay attention.
It wasn’t just the physical I was experiencing. Because at the same time, my mind was going wild and I felt: Overwhelmed. Ashamed. Anxious. Behind. Embarrassed. Frustrated. Scared. Not Enough. And again Ashamed.
So I stopped, took a few deep breaths, remembered what I was supposed to, wanted to get busy doing, and thought I would take my own minute of re-connection to re-connect with you and share with you what worked for me, just in case you have ever felt like this too.
- Stop. This is where you readjust yourself physically. You MUST do this first, even before anything else. Physically stop and breathe. Close your eyes, sit up straight, gently move your head and shoulders to realign. Focusing on nothing but the air, breathe in deeply, all the way to your bellybutton. Do it again. And one more time. You should start feeling a bit of relief right away.
- Think. This is where you readjust your mind. Let go of all the negative you just veered off course into. Remind yourself of what you want to do. Your calling. Your passion. Let go of the comparison. (Yup, my guess is that’s at the root of this particular melt-down.)
- Act. This is where you do something positive to move yourself in the right direction. Start doing that thing you just reminded yourself about. The old saying, “just do the next right thing” really comes in handy here. You know what it is. You can do it. Start.
I hope these reminders helped you. They helped me. 🙂 Now I’d better get back to my regularly scheduled programming.
Love ya!
Christy 🙂
P.S. I’d love to hear your stories. What sends you into a panic? What is your trigger? How do you get out of it? Please leave your comments below, on FB or Tweet it!