Abolish Anxiety About Your Symptoms!
Is it possible to transfer your anxiety about symptoms into excitement that your body is giving you a signal to do something specific? Yes, it is very possible because that is a big part of how I healed from CFS within one week! In fact, I was so excited during my healing week that I felt like a little kid overjoyed with emotion!
When I had CFS, I was afraid of my debilitating fatigue symptoms because I didn't know what was wrong. Every time I went for professional help or researched the illness, I was devastated by the response and lack of understanding. After feeling worse with almost every action that I took, I began to fear going out walking or making plans to do simple activities. I'm sure you can guess that my anxiety about the symptoms only made my symptoms worse! I knew it wasn't helping but I was scared and felt very alone. It wasn't until I found the right support and
became empowered with every step I took, that real healing began.
Here is what I did:
1) Empowerment through support:
Dr. Eaton explained that my symptoms were a body message and it became clear that
they were a powerful tool to guide me! The body communicates through
emotions, symptoms, and anxiety/depression.
2) Calm excitement: After I understood what my body was telling me, I could relax, listen, and be joyful, yay! If anxiety tried to creep back in I turned to music, mindfulness, yoga, social activity, or creativity.
3) Observe symptoms: Since I was afraid of actions causing more symptoms, I journaled each action that I did, who I was with, and where I was. While in the moment, I mostly did this without taking the time to journal as I used my intuition to move toward an action that I felt was appropriate. At the end of the night, I journaled everything down to simply reflect on my day and make changes appropriately.
4) Awareness: I noticed and wrote down what my thoughts and emotions were during activity and if they produced anxiety (anxiety is not an emotion; it is the effect of an emotion).
5) Body wisdom: I did an internal body scan and noticed how my physical body was feeling. I simply "checked in" with my body frequently throughout the day and listened to its needs.
This simple 5-step method can be done for any body-symptoms that you may be experiencing. Give it a try! It takes practice so be gentle and patient with yourself and if you get stuck, write it out on paper to gain clarity. If you are still unclear, it's ok, you are building awareness my friend and it's time to find support. :) Creating awareness is important and can be achieved best during periods of stillness, reflection, journaling, spirituality, music, etc. Remember, this is a beautiful and exciting journey!
What if you are so engulfed in your anxiety that you are not even aware of your thoughts and emotions?
True or False: Sometimes when I'm worried and having anxious thoughts I'll ask myself “is this thought true or false?” The answer is always that the anxiety provoking thought was not the truth, it was just a thought and in my way! I'll say to myself "I am truth" to remind myself to be in the present moment. Again, this takes practice and I emphasize being kind and gentle with yourself.
One step at a time: While it's good to have an end goal in mind, it may cause extra anxiety. I have noticed that when I focus on that first step rather than the big goal, I take that stride with more ease. It can be too overwhelming to focus on the end goal during stress so I encourage you to find your first step and focus on just that until you are ready for the next step.
How can you start to use these techniques to help abolish anxiety?
I invite you to do some journaling to create awareness about your thoughts and emotions and try out some of the tips above. I also invite you to let me know how I can support you and comment below. I personally needed guidance as I couldn't let go of the fear until I understood it and found support. Please, let me know if I can be of any help as we take it one step at a time. Become empowered with every step you take!
Contact me for a 50-minute consultation and take charge of your health!
All along my symptoms were a strong message from my body to do something specific to make it's needs met and to be happy. Never underestimate simplicity.
Knowledge is power!!
Much love!
*I share my experience and compassion in hopes to support you on your journey. I'm a RN, Health Coach and not acting in the capacity of a doctor, licensed dietician-nutritionist, psychologist, Reverse Therapist, or counselor and I am not meant to take the place of these professionals. I suggest that if you are experiencing symptoms of any kind to contact your physician or in an event of an emergency, call 911 as soon as possible.
To read more details about how I healed from CFS click here.
To buy Dr. Eaton's book on Reverse Therapy click here.
References:
Eaton, John. "Dr John Eaton Get Rid of Anxiety." Dr John Eaton. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Oct. 2016.
Eaton, John. M.E., Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and Fibromyalgia: The Reverse Therapy Approach. Hertford: Authors OnLine, 2005. Print.
