Notice how your mind is being used to visualize these things I’m asking you to visualize. Notice how the mind is simply a tool that the ego will try to hijack, but yet it’s a tool your true self uses as well. The difference is that your true self uses the mind correctly, while the ego uses your mind incorrectly.

When you FEEL you true self using your mind correctly, you will feel a sensation of witnessing. Your goal is to let “the witness” have ownership of your mind. The witness is actually the universal mind speaking through you. You will be finally conscious to reality, and not the falsehoods your ego has been perpetuating.

If you are thinking any scary thoughts, or fears, don’t you worry! This is just the frightened ego panicking. The ego is not your enemy though, O.K. – look upon your ego as nothing more than a frightened child that needs some direction. It’s never about killing your ego – it’s all about accepting and witnessing your ego, and taking it by the hand with love and kindness.

What we’re doing here is taking your ego by the hand and going for a walk. Explain to your ego that everything is going to be fine. Tell your ego things like, “Don’t worry – we’ll have lots of fun in the future, and I have not forgotten you.”

Tell your ego that you love him or her. Tell your ego that you are going to look after everything, and that it will never be alone. Then tell your ego that you are going to take control the reins for awhile, because it has been worrying much too much about the future, and feeling much to much guilt about the past.

Explain to your ego that it’s NOT going crazy in any way. Explain to your ego that it’s just a normal human trait to feel these emotions from time to time. Remember that all of this fear will pass. Remember that any time you are feeling frightened, it’s the ego in you that is trying to take the wheel for total control.

Gently, with a loving touch, ease your ego’s fingers off the steering wheel. Put a hand on your ego’s head and turn to look him or her in the eye. At this point of the thought process, imagine seeing your ego face to face. You may see a child which is very common. (this is what some in the recovery movement do to identify their “inner child” and forgive it with love. When recovery movements, therapies, or self-help literature speak of the inner child, they are actually describing of the ego)

All you want to do is loosen the grip your worried ego has and allow the true presence of yourself take over. When you have worry free days, and you feel happy, content, and not afraid, you are feeling positive about the future and present moment. You are not moved by guilt of the past, or remorse of the past either. You are not moved by guilt just because you thought badly of other people. When you have these great days, it’s your ego feeling satisfied with everything going on in your life currently, and your true self rejoices in the bliss of the moment because it’s always been there waiting patiently for your ego to understand that “everything is alright”.

Unfortunately, when your life situation is not ideal, and there is external stress to deal with, your ego can begin to feel overwhelmed and afraid. It then tries paint everything black and tries to block out your eternal bliss.  This is when you are miserable and anxious. Some people spill all their anger, fear, rage, and misery outwards, causing suffering and pain for all others around them. They feel some relief for a brief instance, and then their ego manages to quickly start “beating themselves up”, causing even more anxiety for themselves. Often when this kind of ego enslavement is in action the human will then resort to some sort of drug or alcohol “solution”, which is also brief, and followed by more guilt, physical discomfort, and more external drama perpetrated on other human beings. This is what the Bible and other faith-based teachings define as hell – and all along it never HAS to be this way.

Now for those who suffer from anxiety, we usually internalize our ego-based anger, sadness, fear, and loathing. This causes our anxiety disorders. Remember the old bumper sticker and poster of the 1970′s that had this saying?,

“Stress: The confusion created when one’s mind overrides the body’s basic desire to choke the living daylights out of some jerk who desperately deserves it”

This is an ego-based statement. It’s surely funny, but why is it so funny? Because it’s makes us laugh at our silly human egos. We all have moments in our lives when we are really angry (disconnected from reality) and we think to ourselves something like, “I’d like to punch that person out”.

Of course, the vast majority of people on earth don’t act on a thought like that, because deep inside we know it’s a ridiculous and hateful thing to do, and we’re afraid of what will happen as well. So when we have a chance to laugh at our own angry moments and negative emotions, it’s a great relief. I think I’ve mentioned before that laughing at yourself (or your ego actually) is great therapy when you are stressed out.

This funny saying is true in some ways for people who suffer from anxiety sometimes. We don’t spill outward our fear and anger because we don’t want to hurt or upset others. We take it inward and not outward. On a purely temporary point of view, it would seem that the person who spills out their grief and pain on others is better off – but not in the long run. In the long run these people suffer much more, and are usually left without any kind of human support later in life.

The trick to relieving anxiety for most people is to accept it for it’s temporary existance, literally laugh at your fear, ease off the self absorbtion with activity and movement, and stop taking ourselves so seriously. In other words, stop taking ego-based and false selves so seriously.

Have you ever seen some of the pictures of Buddha laughing. This is what the truth is. The truth is fearless and alive. We can laugh at ourselves as a way to disspate the ego which controls our mind processes during stress bouts.

Try chuckling and laughing at all things you’ve been worried about or sad about. I know how hard it is to that when you are in the middle of a stressful time, but it can help a little – if not briefly.

Rest assured that your anxiety will be gone soon, and always has in the past. It is NOT a permanent thing. With or without medication, you will get through the stressful times, and realize how silly your little ego is to so afraid.

So to update my current situation as I write this post. I still feel like I’m in the anxiety cloud and writing about anxiety is probably not the best thing to do at the moment, but honestly, and look at all times of anxiety as a chance to learn. Even as I have been in the full anxiety mode today, I deep down inside feel like there is hope, bright blue sky days, happy happy times, beautiful sunsets and sunrises, smiling faces, and stress free days, weeks, months, and years ahead of me.

This is the true mystery of the human mind – even when our egos are taking everything so seriously, and is making our days miserable, we can still feel that somewhat distant voice of reality that is never gone. It’s quietly speaking the truth about the beauty of life, and when the clouds of anxiety pass by, the blue sky of peace and tranquility will be waiting for us. Just writing this makes me feel better.

This is the first time that I’ve ever written a post while under extreme stress so it’s interesting. I’m not sure how long I will continue writing, but the words seem to keep coming out.

My wife is almost ready now to go out, and we putting our dogs (two Golden Retrievers) in our little GMC truck, and going to the dump (landfill) to get rid of some dirt and branches we cleared away a couple of weeks ago. It’s a perfectly blue sky day today, and you would have to wonder why I would feel anxious at all. I have a big house in an upscale neighborhood, a perfect job for me (which is blogging from home) and pays very well, our kids are both out of the house and doing very well. It’s late August and it’s warm and perfect. Our financial house is in order and we are in good health. We travel all the time because our job’s allow for this kind of freedom. We do that in a brand new motor home we bought last year. So how could I possibly feel anxiety? Good question. I don’t quite know either, but I have a guess.

It means so much to me that other people are doing OK in the world, and I can easily get very wrapped up in the “state of the world”. I also get very wrapped in United States politics, and the last 9 years has been difficult to watch. Seeing all of the problems Americans are going through has caused me alot of stress – basically I have caused myself allot of stress because I have chosen to let me ego take control and lament about the plight of others. It’s hard for me to see the suffering of others and write if off as part of the divine order of life on earth.

I know that there are other countries and other peoples who are suffering much more than Americans, but I have always felt that if American can get it’s act together, there is a chance for the rest of world. It’s like the flight attendant that tells parents to make sure they have their oxygen mask on first before helping their children. I use this as a metaphor for the United States and the world. If the U.S.A can get it together, they can help with influence in the rest of the world. Not with leathal weapons, but with compassion, leadership, and diplomacy. It’s a dream – a good dream, but for my own stress levels I have to accept that there is tragedy in the world, and that I will not see what I perceive to be a perfect world. This is the naive state that my adult mind still plays with sometimes.

This is how over-sized my own ego is. It will actually try and convince me that I should feel guilt for the suffering of others, because I have been so lucky. This is why I started Saneadvice.com, and why I don’t use my real name, and why there is no advertising on this site. I needed to create a web site that helps people through their anxiety issues, without me gaining from it, and without me taking credit for it.

(I have other web sites that are not about self-help and anxiety, and they are purely for making money. This is why my wife and I free and make a good living)

I think the reason I am so anxious today is because it is tax time, it’s the month end, and I’v been feeling tired and a little ill. I have been watching too much news as the United States Congress, Senate, and Whitehouse grapple with trying to fix their nation’s healthcare problem. I see some extreme so-called right-wing people trying to scare people for the sake of large profit hungry insurance companies, and medical services related companies. I see the elected politicians in the U.S. government taking contributions from these same private companies which is the ultimate in conflict of interest. Meanwhile I see over 35 million people in the United States who don’t have health care at all, and hundreds of thousand of others losing the health care they have. I see the great injustice of all this, and I get very angry. This is pure ego, and I’ll feel better when I just let it go. I can pray for these people. I can pray for the United States and World, and really that is the best I can do.

So this too maybe what has brought on this anxiety. Like I have said before, it’s usually a combination of things adding up over time which bring on anxiety problems, and it alway means I have been processing what I see the wrong way. In order to see the reality of life I can’t be constantly telling myself how messed up the world is, or people are. I have to stop judging so many things as bad, or “not right”, and I have to give up control all together. Just let things be as they are and accept it. Then I have to learn once again what is the truth.

The truth is that I don’t have to take myself so seriously, and I’m NOT going to “save the world”, and I’m not heading for a personal disaster. As all people who have experienced extreme anxiety know – our common sense feels like it’s impossible to grasp when we are “out there” consumed with fear.

I must say that now I feel much better because of what just happened in our living room. My wife’s computer was not working for her, and it was something very simple and I knew it. I got frustrated, and as I was trying to help her (as quickly as possible) I acted angry in my face expressions, and tone of voice. I fixed her monitor problem, and then I apologized for seeming angry, and explained that I was feeling stress.

She responded by saying, “Oh, I thought you were just being an insensitive prick.” I began to laugh out loud and so did she. There is an inside joke here and it goes like this.

I told my wife once that when I’m deeply anxious I get quieter, I eat less, I move by body (more exercise), I stop smoking, and I become more aware of how I am treating others. I told her that when I’m feeling better, I’m less sensitive to others, I over eat, I don’t exercise, I smoke, I don’t worry. She said jokingly,

“So let me get this right – when you are feeling good, you are a fat and lazy insensitive prick” We both started to laugh loudly. This is good comfort to laugh at yourself.

Well we must go to the dump now. This post has helped move things along in my discission on the ego and how serious we can get. We must learn to float and not get “bent out of shape” when things we see and witness don’t go according to our egos.

The answer to my stress today is very simple friends – my little ego is upset because it is not seeing exactly what it wants. When I give up this ego and learn to laugh at my ego, I will start to feel like “myself again”.

Sorry if anyone reading Saneadvice.com ever thought that I had “my shit together” completely, and that I never have extreme anxiety on some days. The reality is that no human ever totally conquers their ego. We can learn to live with our ego though, and we can spend most all our time relaxing in the moment.

Sometimes anxiety just means you need to reset your thinking because you have been thinking wrongly for awhile. Hitting reset button now!

So this post is called the “Seven Keys to Recovering from a Panic Episode”. Here I will list the seven thought processes you can undergo in order to stop a panic attack, greatly reduce stress overall, and then enter your “place of bliss”.

Follow these steps in order, and don’t move to the next step until you have fully absorbed and FELT the feeling, not just THOUGHT of the idea.

Key #1 – Acceptance

This first step is extremely important for you if you are presently in the midst of a panic attack or extreme anxiety. You need to calm yourself down by simply ACCEPTING your moment. No matter how bad your anxiety is in the current moment, just say to yourself that you accept the situation. Don’t judge your anxiety attack as bad, good, or anything in between. Just look upon your present anxious moment with a loving observer’s view point. Don’t beat yourself up – just close your eyes and FEEL acceptance of the moment. Once you feel acceptance, you will be amazed at how quickly your anxious thoughts begin to dissipate.

No matter what is causing your anxiety, this acceptance will work for you, but you must feel it. Focus your energy and attention on your body – your chest, your breathing, your legs, your arms, your shoulders, your hands, feet, etc – and feel the acceptance of your present moment situation. Don’t move on to the next steps until you have done this first step. Remember that you are not alone right now. There is the presence of pure love all around you no matter how much your ego and worried mind have tried to convince you otherwise.

All writings from all sages at some point mention the importance of acceptance. The very root, and core reason, for why us human beings suffer from anxiety is because we are resisting what is. We may be thinking about a possible “bad” outcome, or stressing about past issues. If you are able to simply exist in the very moment of your being, it is impossible to have stress symptoms. You can learn a heap about the art of living in the moment by reading Eckhart Tolle’s book A New Earth, and I encourage you to do so. I talk about the art of living in the now in one of the later keys.

For instance, if you have anxiety attacks triggered from driving, or being in public, just focus on accepting your current position. If you are stuck on the highway on a long and busy commute, and you feel anxiety pulsing through your body, tell yourself that you accept the moment, and remember that you are just fine. Just watch the road, your mirrors, and breath deeply. Accept and watch how your anxiety begins to drop and maybe even fade away completely.

Key #2 – Go Within

Going within is the next step once you have FELT acceptance. Once again, going within must be “felt” and not just “thought”. Remember that your ego, your mind, all external people, and all external form, is not the real you. The real you is within – deep within.

In this key (or step) you need to FEEL your inner body and feel all external form leaving your inner domain. Your body truly is a temple of God (or universal love if you prefer) and deep inside your physical form exists a silent and sacred place – basically your body is made up of from the same the particles, atoms, molecules, as the universe. What dwells inside of you is perfect and untouched by all external “happenings” and “events”.

Use your mind to visualize your body taking in it’s breath and exhaling it’s breath. Imagine all of your internal organs, bones, blood, and joints in their silent perfection, and notice how it only lives and breaths in this moment. Your body carries out it’s living miracle without worry or fear, and it is attached to universal love, kindness, and affection. It’s a perfect vessel regardless if it’s in a wheel chair, on crutches, overweight, underweight, bald, hairy, dirty, clean, sweaty, white, brown, black, pink, or green. This has nothing to do with what society calls beauty. This is the same for all humans living on earth, no matter what their living situation.

So remember all of these facts as you focus your energy on your breathing and your inner body. Imagine and see all of your worries, concerns, and events as part of your mind and ego’s reality, because your fear and anxiety is NOT a part of your true reality – your true self does not even understand what fear and anxiety is. Period.

After you have practiced acceptance, and you have FELT your focus going deep inside your body, you will most certainly begin feeling MUCH better. Your stress and anxiety will seem to be nothing more than a cloud existing outside of your body and owned by your false ego and mind.

Next key step is to be the witness, watch the witness, and understand the witness.

Key #3 – Be The Witness and Watch The Witness

“The Witness” is a term used by many ancient contemporary faiths and religions – and for good reason. The witness is divine energy and it is the real you. The witness is your true self as it exists in the cosmic soup of living energy in the universe. I it is what most peoples of earth call God.

There is nothing fancy about seeing and feeling the witness. It’s perfectly natural, and the only truth you can know. It is actually where miracles are manifested. It’s where pure love and light exist.

Instead of listening to your ego, as it is trying to scare the hell out of you, let the witness take control of your mind. You can always recognize the witness because it only uses your mind to think thoughts of love, compassion, and kindness – kindness and love for all life on earth, and this INCLUDES YOU!

Witness the witness as it is watching you, the people around you, the air around you, the trees, the furniture, the sky, and ground and floor beneath your feet. FEEL the witness above your head fondly smiling upon you. This witness is God, Jesus, and every loving soul that has ever temporarily inhabited a body on earth.

Notice how the witness loves you and all around you. Notice how the witness IS you. Notice how the witness is completely detached from your ego’s worrying and role playing. Feel how the witness accepts all that you are and all that you have felt in your life.

When you start hearing kind and compassionate words going through your head telling how everything is going to be O.K., you know the witness is manifesting it’s presence for you to feel.

The witness NEVER leaves you. The ego will use your mind to confuse you, scare you, and cloud over the witness it’s seems to be gone – it’s not gone and can never be gone! Only our ego comes and goes, and only your mind’s chatter comes and goes, judges, and frets.

Sense the witness as it watches over you will love, never judging anything good or bad. The witness knows that your temporary stress and anxiety is due the ego’s behavior, but never sees your ego as bad. It sees the ego as a necessary part of your human existence, which simple role is to suffer in order for your mind to learn who it’s true master is – the loving witness.

Understanding the exist of your worrisome ego, and seeing how it is unreal, and knowing that your true self just watches what goes down, is another important step on the road a peaceful and blissful moment in time.

So feel the witness now. If you hear negative dialogue manifesting in your thoughts, that is just the ego trying desperately to regain control of you moment. Don’t be concerned with ANY of your thoughts, because your mind is really just a chaotic tool that is pulled out for use when it’s required. Your mind will eventually quiet down. That is next.

Key #4 – Quiet Your Mind

Quieting your mind is another beautiful way to discover in more relief. The witness described above will only use your mind for doing works and acts of love and kindness – when it’s not using your mind, it’s silent – dead silent.

So many practices of ancient and modern times involve quieting the mind. Many experts on this subject call the quieting of mind, finding the gap. Wayne Dyer has written a short book, and it’s accompanying CD, called Getting Into The Gap, which shows another way to quiet your mind completely.

TM (or Transcendental Meditation) is arguable the best way to quiet your mind and enter your sacred realm of universal connection. I urge you to look into this method.

If you use the first 3 key steps as above you will be able to begin focusing on the quieting of your mind all together. If you are in the middle of stress an anxiety, you will need your mind active so the witnessing REAL YOU can focus your energies and attentions as above, but once you have achieved these above steps, you can then “shut your mind down”.

When you are able to quiet your mind (and it does not have to be perfect) I urge you to have a little nap. Let your body have the ultimate rest, as your mind goes along with it.

If you wake up and notice anxiety and stress rippling through your body and mind again, immediately let your witness take back control, and focus your energy back within your inner body. Start the process over and quickly you can be back on with a good moment, second, minute, hour, and day.

Try finding moments of the day when you can get a few minutes alone to quiet your mind. You will be amazed at the transformation in your life. You will become very relaxed and creativity will begin flow, as you start making the inevitable changes in your outer life – meaning relationships, jobs, surrounding, habits, recreations, and patterns.

Key #5 – Remove Time (yesterday and tomorrow)

Once you have FELT and learned the above practices, you must always remind yourself using your mind, via the witness, to completely disregard the past and the future. This may seem impossible if you have never heard something like this idea. You may think this is radical, and unrealistic, but it truly is where bliss lives.

This does not mean you don’t recall something from the past for practical purposes, or make plans for tomorrow, next week, next month, or next year. It’s means you use the past and future as POSITIVE tools to flow in your present moment. You don’t need to visit the past or anticipate the future for more than a few brief seconds a day for practical reasons. Outside of that – BURN THE PAST, and BURN THE FUTURE – they are not real. The only thing that is real is your present breath that you are taking into your body as you read this sentence.

Key #6 – Remember The Rules (you are not the form and happenings of this world around you)

Remember the rules of your true and eternal self. You are not your money (or debt), your job, your marriage, your kids, your house, your car, your reputation, your past, or fear, or your problems. Your eternal and REAL self is the witness that is watching your physical life as manifested in flesh for your experience here on earth.

I know this may sound “out there” to some readers, but this the reality of our existence. All near-death experiences documented (and there are thousands and thousands studied every year) show the reality of an eternal self that is still witnessing your physical journey (even when your body is lifeless).

Quantum physicists have long discovered that at the particle level of our bodies there is nothing but space between atoms and particles. Your body is really just an energy form. Same goes for dense objects such as rocks and minerals. There is nothing but movement at the sub-atomic level. We are extremely fluid beings even at our pure physical manifestation. Even is energy at the sub-atomic level, and that includes your thoughts. Thoughts create energy (or more accurately are energy) so they are very powerful indeed.

You are an energy field. Plain simple fact. This is the miracle of life, and life is friendly. Never forget that you are imminently more important than your problems and life situation. Never forget that you are a miracle and you are as powerful as the universe – you just don’t know it yet.

So detach yourself from the petty games people play around you, at work, at home, in traffic, in the neighborhood, etc. etc. As you detach, make sure you detach with love and kindness. Don’t judge others as “bad”, or even “good” for that matter. Don’t judge them at all, no matter how disconnected and rude they can be. Just witness them with love and kindness. I know that this sounds “soft” and “weak” to your ego, but it is the truth. Deep inside you know this and you can feel it. Send a silent thought of understanding as other people carry out their lives trapped in their human disease of ego.

Engage yourself in your daily and momentary life, but detach from the outcomes, and all of the negative noise your fellow humans spew, and ALL of the negative noise your ego can spew.

So keep in mind that you are lighter than your body weight. Float with your breathing, and KNOW that happenings and occurrences need to not stick to you in any way. Your ego is going to fight this because it is fighting for it’s fantasy. The ego will creep in even when you are an enlightened person of earth. The difference between and enlightened person and an unenlightened person witnessing. An enlightened person still has bad days and bad judgments when their egoic self is running the show, but they have less of them. When an enlightened person judges another person, he or she SEES it and is aware of the truth. This is the difference. Awareness.

So stay aware and detach from the forms of human life that are swirling around you.

Key #7 – Enter Your Bliss as Often As Possible

Now when you have learned to apply all of the 6 key steps above, make sure you make a habit of entering your bliss. This comes down to simple time management. Find (MAKE!) time to get yourself alone away from the noise and activities of life to go within, detach, and meditate with “the witness”. Do this is often as you can and you will find yourself stress free almost all of the time.

You WILL slip and let your ego have the day sometimes, but it will be for a short time. With you new awareness you will see what is really going and realize that NOTHING is worth getting upset about.

Read books from writers that teach you how to enter into a peaceful state. Look for new ways to find information regarding freedom of stress and energy level peace. Enter your bliss as often as possible.

KNOW that these words are not just a poof of smoke from “a wierd softy”. These words are truth and don’t come from me at all – they come from universal love. They come from God. I am just the witness that is taking dictation. Nothing more.

Enter your bliss when you wake up. Enter your bliss on your way to work or doing chores around the house. Enter your bliss when you are preparing to go to sleep. Enter your bliss when you communicate with others, and associate with co-workers and family members.

Enter your bliss when something happens that is so-called “bad”.

Enjoy this day friend.

Jacob

Once you don’t fear a panic attack, you won’t have panic attacks in a cycle. The idea of the Poem System is to stop the cycle of panic attacks a patient/sufferer has if they have a panic disorder.

To read more about the poem system click here.

See POEM system graph.

Panic Attack Checklist

1. Tell yourself the truth – don’t think thoughts that support your feelings of fear. Don’t exaggerate the reality of your situation. Underneath your panic attack and extreme anxiety is a REAL concern that is causing you to overload. That REAL concern is always nothing to be terrified of, and you must identify what your very REAL fear is. Once you realize what your real fear is, you can begin telling yourself the truth about your situation. Below is an example of the process.

If a panic attack is on the verge or underway ask yourself what your REAL fear is – if you are in a panic attack your answer will likely be the fear of dying, the fear of your spouse leaving you, the fear of losing your income and being poor, the fear of your relatives or loved ones dying, the fear of hurting someone or yourself. ALL OF THESE VERY LIKELY NOT REAL. Disregard them. Stick to the true fear that set you on this road towards fear and panic. It’s almost always a smaller issue then what you are imagining. But for the sake of argument with your negative thoughts, lets go ahead and examine your fear.

I’ll choose a few fearful examples that sufferers of anxiety often have:

Fear of Dying: Having a panic attack can’t kill you. I’ve been under a full hospital monitoring system including heart rate, blood pressure, etc., while having a massive panic attack. I asked the nurse to monitor me while I was in a full blown big time panic attack. I had the cold sweats, shivering flesh, tingling arms and legs, cramped stomach, quick breathing, and the usual horrific feeling of dying. The nurse told me there was a slight increase in heart rate, and a slight increase of blood pressure, but not much. It felt like I was coming apart physically and mentally, but the reality was nothing much at all. So don’t worry about having a panic attack. If a panic attack comes – let it come – let it go – don’t fight it. It won’t hurt you and you need to remember this. You won’t die.

Fear of Losing Your Mind and Being Institutionalized: Millions of people suffer from anxiety and/or depression and don’t become institutionalized. This is just your negative imagination at work. You must remember that you are not alone, and what you are going through is very common in today’s world. There are people amongst you in the neighborhood, perhaps at work or school, who are experiencing very similar struggles. You will overcome it soon, and you feel better soon. This is the real truth. Your panic attack, foggy anxiety, and fear will pass on like the wind through a tree. Have faith in knowing this. You WILL NOT go crazy. You are not going crazy. You are not crazy. You are suffering from extreme anxiety that will pass. It always does.

Fear that your body can’t survive your physical anxiety symptoms: Your body is MUCH tougher than you give it credit for. Your body and mind are miracles at work, and it’s more than capable of dealing with your physical symptoms due to your severe anxiety. Below are some typical symptoms and we’ll go into more detail regarding the real dangers (or lack thereof) of these physical symptoms.

• IBS (irritable bowl syndrome) constant diarrhea
• loss of weight because you don’t have any appetite
• extreme headaches
• very little sleep

Your bowels can handle this discomfort a very very long time. Some people have IBS their whole life and they don’t die from IBS. Your appetite will return and your extreme anxiety will pass with a couple of days, weeks, or months depending on how quickly you take action towards seeking help. Your loss of appetite will be temporary and your body will actually enjoy the break from all of the food it has to deal with. The human body is capable of having very little food for a long period of time. You will survive the lack of food. Don’t worry. You can have as many headaches as you choose. I say this because your negative thoughts are the cause of your stress and headaches. Your headaches will not kill you either. Your sleep patterns may be completely ruined right now, but this is temporary as well. When your body is ready it will shut down even your most anxious filled mind. You will sleep even if it’s for only a few minutes here and there.

IMPORTANT: during these days of extreme stress and the above symptoms, you will likely look rough. When you look in the mirror you probably think you are a mess. The truth is you don’t look nearly as bad as you think you do, but you should have a bath every day or every second day. Shave yourself (legs or face). Put on some clean clothes. Don’t give up on yourself during these heavy bouts of anxiety and depression. Look after yourself. Love yourself. You are a beautiful and wonderful person. You are not perfect and you’re not expected to. You are a perfectly imperfect person like all humans. You are worthy of your own love, and the love of others.

2. Process your real fear(s) properly – Identify what concern(s) you were having before you began having some of your early symptoms of high stress like numbness and tingling in the head, feet, legs, hands, and arms. Like a feeling of fear and sorrow coming out of nowhere. The slow staging of insomnia, and on and on it goes.

Even under extreme stress and anxiety you will be able to identify what triggered your downward spiral into anxiety and/or depression. It could be something like a basic feeling of uncertainty or insecurity brought on by a death or illness in the family. A possible loss of money ore income due to a job loss or soon to be job loss. When you have identified your TRUE trigger of your stress you can then play a little game I call – SO WHAT. Here is how it goes. Don’t imagine the worst happening…..simply state out loud what will happen if the worst were to happen. For this example of my game called SO WHAT, I’ll use the example of losing a job and possibly becoming poor. Here is the flow chart.

√ I might lose my job and have no way to make money! : “So what. It’s just a job and you didn’t have a job before you got that one and you somehow managed to find the job you have now. You can do it again. Just go out and hunt down another job. Big deal.”

√ What if I can’t find a job! My family will be poor and my spouse might leave me! : “So what. You always found a job thus far in your life and what makes you think that you will all of a sudden fail. Your family may have less, and you all might have to move into a smaller house, apartment, trailer, or whatever – but this is all temporary as I will eventually find a job and it will be fine. I’ve always found work and supported my family so why would I fail now? If your spouse is so shallow as to up and leave you because you can’t earn money at this brief moment in time, then she or he is not a very good spouse anyways and you will be fine without them. You were alone once before you met your spouse and you found them didn’t you. What makes you think you will not find a friend and lover again? Your children will be fine no matter what happens because children are VERY resilient. You can look after them better if you stop worrying about possibilities that are not the end of the world. Just be grateful you live in a place where 2nd starts are allowed, and happen everyday to millions.

You are not your job. Repeat: YOU ARE NOT YOUR JOB. You are simply you and the job was just a place you went and thing you did to make money. You can find another job just like it, or find a job that is completely different. Just think how much fun it would be to try something completely different!

√ I don’t think I can be happy without all my stuff! : “So what. Being happy all the time is completely unrealistic. All your stuff will never make you happy. Maybe more comfortable, but you can those things back in time. If you really think HAVE to have those things and comforts, then how on earth did you survive before you had those things? You were likely just as happy before you had those things, perhaps even happier! Don’t forget your true essence here. You are not your things, your house(s), car(s), toy(s), status, etc. You are just you are – perfectly imperfect in every way.

When you are suffering from anxiety then you are entertaining unreasonable fear and you need to “call yourself on it”. Ask yourself if your fears are reasonable. When you answer that question it will be yes. Then you can begin looking at what is really concerning you and using the above methods you can say this to yourself, “SO WHAT”. You’ve been on mother earth this long and have done OK. You will continue to move on OK regardless of the changes you will most certainly experience.

Embrace the changes in your life. Learn to love the uncertainty. It’s not a “crazy” way to live. It’s the sanest way to live. Embrace the uncertainty of your life and all the lives around you. Go with the flow and stop trying to control your surrounding all the time. Let yourself float with the river running down the mountain. You are a perfect act of nature just like the flowing streams, rivers and oceans. Have faith in your physical and mental strength – you have a miraculous mind and body that won’t let you down.

Try and relax and have faith in your imperfect perfection. Everything will turn out alright.