04/03/2024
Anxiety series: part 1, “Allow” 😌 surprise guest appearance at the end 😂
When we tell ourselves we can’t feel anxious, it makes us more anxious and/or gets stored in our body as stress and presents in ways we don’t want it to later on.
Lean in and allow yourself to feel anxious for just a few moments letting your body move through it. Another way to think of it is “riding the wave.” This can sometimes help your body and brain to move through this temporary feeling instead of resisting it and creating a bottle neck that inevitably explodes. It will feel scary and out of control at first to do this so practice by trying it for a minute or two to build up your window of tolerance without distracting yourself or finding ways to numb out with food, entertainment, shopping, etc. Remember as you experience any emotion, including anxiety, Jesus is right there to be with you in the middle of the storm. He lived in a body and has felt the emotions we have felt like being tempted to fret and he empathizes with us. (Hebrews 4:15-16)
In future videos, we will talk about ways to calm yourself and to process anxiety but this first nugget is challenging us to learn to recognize when we are feeling anxious and allowing ourselves to ride the wave for a few moments. 🌊
Shoutout to my little baby helper Evelyn! 💖
