F.I.G.H.T. back…

Are you a worrier by nature?  Are you catastrophic?  Could you take a job in risk management, because you can and will plan for every possible eventuality based on the skimpiest of details that suggest that there may be a problem?

Sometimes anxiety causes us to worry about future events, or even to ruminate on past ones.   Revisiting this pattern repeatedly often fuels further anxious thoughts.

So, here are some practical tips to help you F.I.G.H.T. anxiety and worry as you go through your day:-

Fear:

Fear is a universal emotion.  There isn't one person on this planet who has not experienced fear, from the newborn to the elderly.  Anxiety and worry and many other emotions are fuelled by fear.  Fear of failure, fear of the unknown, fear of losing control, fear of facing reality, fear of pain etc. Acknowledge it and figure out the root of your fear.

Insight:

Try to be insightful about your own emotions.  Ask yourself what is causing you to be fearful?  Identify whether you have felt this fear before, in your past, as a child or adult.  You might find that your feelings are not new and that these feelings and behaviors have been well-rehearsed as part of your response to childhood events that left you feeling afraid and now fuel the need for you to be in control, or to beat yourself up.

Grace:

Give yourself some grace.  Why?  Simply because you offer it to everyone else, except yourself.  You are allowed to make mistakes and perfectionism can be rooted in trauma which can addressed through therapy.

Hope

Hope is believing that there is better to come. Sometimes when going through challenging times, it seems like it last forever, but know that with time, the pain will ease and you’ll begin to break through the darkness.

Trust

Look back at your life and remind yourself of the days that you thought you would never get through. Trust in your track record for getting through difficult times and know that there will be brighter days ahead.

So getting F.I.G.H.T.ing, because you can find peace, even in the middle of a storm.