Anxiety, my Constant Companion

I have defined myself as a "worrier." It is true, I worry about everything. I worry about things I can control and things I cannot. I worry about good things and bad. I worry about those I love and I worry about those that I can barely tolerate. I worry all the time!

There have been brief respites from the worry over the years, times where I was able to "Let go and let God." Those times rarely last long.

Anxiety has been with me longer than anyone other than my mom and brother. I remember worrying about things in Kindergarten.

I have developed a few strategies over the years:

• Prayer, time spent on my knees asking God to take over is the first/best thing to curb the anxiety.

However, I still need some of these other tips:

• Exercise, just simple stretching, isometrics do the trick. A nice walk is good, but just the act of stretching my muscles out releases the tension.
• Being present, this can include, but is not limited to:

1. Noticing the smells in the air, I love the smell of fresh laundry and I have found a candle that smells like laundry dried on a clothesline.
2. Listening to music, sometimes this is quiet and soothing and other times it is upbeat and energizing.
3. Tasting, trying to eat something that I truly enjoy. I personally enjoy fruit quite a bit and eating some frozen berries or grapes is a real treat.
4. Feeling the world around me, maybe this is a cozy fleece blanket wrapped around my shoulders, or the sun warming my skin, or here in Florida it is the cool breeze of the air conditioning moving around my office.

• I think about the Serenity Prayer:

God grant me the serenity

to accept the things I cannot change;
courage to change the things I can;
and wisdom to know the difference.

This means that I must learn to do what I stated above, "Let go and let God."

I am trying. I will continue to try, what is the saying? Practice makes perfect!