I love when my tea speaks to me. Yogi teas have little messages that speak to relaxation and self-care and as silly as it sounds I actually do draw good reminders and insight from them.
I would say that 5 out of 7 days of the week I wake up nervous. I scan the house and my day with anticipation until I am able to calm myself a bit and convince myself that I will be okay today. I know it is a backwards way of being, but anxiety is one of the crosses that I bare in this life. It is a constant battle.
Sometimes I fight against the vivid dreams I have or devastating thoughts that make my hands shake. In these moments I want nothing more than to lock the doors and hide under the covers until the sun goes down again. This reaction is not do-able because of the three children I have downstairs in the chaos of the kitchen. Their laughter is a relief and pulls me out of my head for a time.
This is the first year that they are all in school all day. Some days this is heaven-sent and other days I am filled with tremors. I am full of fight and battle against this giant. Most days I succeed due to good friends, an amazing husband, special children and a host of projects. In the wintertime, however, it is much harder. It’s hard to fight when I am so cold and the trees are so bare that even their dry branches reaching to the sky look sad.
If mental happiness equals relaxation then is relaxation also equal mental happiness? This is what I really want to know. I understand that the body gives signals to the brain before we even know what is going on so I would say, yes. This idea gives me hope. Today I will go to yoga and prepare for a stretch and relaxation. Mnetal happiness is not permanent for me, but if I plan relaxation I may feel relief. Let me try. If it doesn’t work I always have chocolate.
Christen,
Praying for you today. When I feel anxious or worried I take time to “Be still and know that He is God and that he has good thoughts towards me.”
Thank you for sharing your God given talents with us.
I also suffer from anxiety and while i have no long term solution i find meditating helpful. I’m not talking about knees crossed and making alm sounds, but sitting or laying and thinking about a different space. I have a cd that walks me through a garden and as i suffer with physical effects of anxeity, such as lock jaw, throat tension and body pain this helps me to relax these parts and when i am able to relax even in short bursts it does help me carry on my day. I hope you find some peace today 🙂
Anxiety is as real a disease as any physical one, and just as deserving of professional help. Please consider speaking with your physician about the possibility of medication. You and your family are certainly deserving of this. Ignoring these symptoms sends the wrong message to your family members
Christen,
It helps me get over the dreary season if I do things to feed my senses. force some bulbs, or branches with buds. Put on music you love, take a warm soaking bath. Indulge in fragrance for you, and your home. Have a great sweater or warm tea. Anything you love can become a morning habit that you can look forward to. Just seeing my kids pictures on the night stand or wall makes me smile.
Depression/anxiety are not easy to work with and can defeat us.
Taking care of yourself is the best thing you can do.
You are in my prayers. take care.
rick
Morning Christen:
Years ago, I too, was struggling. I decided to do volunteer work and wanted to work with children. I ended up volunteering at a `home` (an institute, really) for `battered children` who had been removed from their parents home; some as young as one.
Every Wednesday morning, for 5 years, I would go and read to the children and play with them. Trying to provide a calm and nurturing atmosphere was not easy, looking into the face of a toddler with a black eye, a bulbous bump on their head or a broken arm; it was difficult to swallow the horror and mask my sadness for them. But I did it.
What lifted me up was THEIR attitude. Even though they had been through SOOO much, they were still somehow lively and lived in the moment; not holding onto the past or frightened of the future.
Spending time with these children snapped me out of my depression; jeez, I thought, they are MY heros!! My problems certainly didn`t seem so big and grip me so tightly after spending time with those A LOT less fortunate than myself.
I would recommend volunteer work to anyone. You RECEIVE a lot more than you GIVE.
Chin up Christen!! One foot in front of the other!!
Best,
Tara