Outlooks & Setbacks Saturdays

“One cannot see from the clouded sky, even the sky is close to the eyes it drifts below, one cannot see the wind also. Nor can one see the trepidation of trembling trees that stand carrying the storm.” ― Suman Pokhrel

Maybe you've felt it...

A pit in your tummy. Tingly, nervous energy racing though your veins. Thoughts pinballing inside your head. Feeling like a tick about to pop.

However it's shown up for you, anxiety visits most of us at some point during our lives. For many, it's a daily companion that's as annoying as a mosquito buzzing the bedroom on a summer night. But, for a growing number of humans, it's a debilitating and often life-long companion that requires a whole sack of resources to tame.

According to Oxford Languages, the psychiatric community defines anxiety as "a nervous disorder characterized by a state of excessive uneasiness and apprehension, typically with compulsive behavior or panic attacks." In layperson's terms, anxiety is often described as worry, nervousness, or trepidation about the future.

Managing my own anxiety is an everyday endeavor. Sometimes it shows up as imposter syndrome. Other days, it's fear about how people will respond to my writing, teaching, or bodywork. On a few occasions, anxiety has presented as an out-of-nowhere panic attack.

Living with anxiety requires deep presence to self, which can feel really yucky when what you most want is to NOT feel the discomfort.

When I begin to sense the effects of nervousness in my body--the tightening of the muscles between my shoulder blades, the suspension of my breath, or the itchy skin rash I get when things are really stressful--I pause and ask myself a few questions:

• What has triggered me?

• Where am I feeling the effects of this trigger in my body?

• In this moment (and only this moment), what do I most need?

I listen first and then I act. Sometimes what I most need is to move energy out of my body with a walk in nature or a solo dance party. At other times, my body asks me to slow my roll and come into stillness.

When slowing down is in order, I use any or all of the following 3 self-care gems to quiet my nervous system.

Drawing from integrative reflexology for the feet, restorative yoga, and conscious breathwork, I have some accessible tools that get me through waves of anxiety and back to centered calm. Each technique shifts the nervous system from fight or flight to rest and digest, quickly and safely. Maybe they'll help you too?

Some forms of nervous energy can be just the push we need to take a step forward. Most of the time, we come out the other side unscathed.

For some people, anxiety requires intervention by a skilled medical team. If you're concerned that you or a loved one is struggling with an anxiety disorder, please speak with a qualified healthcare professional.

To help manage your anxiety with bodywork, yoga, or coaching, book a visit or register for a class right here!

{I will be offering office visits the day after Thanksgiving and have some openings between Christmas and the start of 2022!}

xo,

Jennifer (she/her)

Moods & Emotions

What is one big decision or change that currently gives you a feeling of trepidation?