Day by Day . . . Managing Anxiety 07/15/2010
This blog started out very simply. I had taken a few of my grandchildren to a McDonald's and I began chatting with two other moms. I began telling them about my book Just Erase It. The younger mom said, "How do I find your blog?" Hmmm. I said, "I don't have one." She replied, "Why not? You should." I left the fast food joint thinking, "Why don't I have one?" Not enough time? No, that wasn't it. I couldn't give myself a good answer. This is my first blog entry. My goal will be to post an entry everyday. I will give an example of how I could use my Just Erase It approach to living . . . day by day. I began feeling stressed today. I guess the word would be "anxious." I was planning a trip to visit my brother and daughter who were residing in New Jersey. I was scheduled to work the night shift on a Wednesday night and my plan was to depart after I slept a few hours on Thursday. New Jersey is a mere 16 hours away. I was driving by myself. Then I was really "driving" myself crazy just thinking about leaving after a few hours of sleep! But, I wanted to get there! I wanted to see my family! I said the Serenity Prayer over and over and then I came up with a way to look at the situation with a different set of eyes. Although I had told myself that I would be leaving the next day, there was nothing carved in stone. God Grant Me The Serenity to Accept the Things I CANNOT CHANGE, CHANGE THE THINGS I CAN, and THE WISDOM TO KNOW THE DIFFERENCE. This is the prayer that guides Just Erase It. It was within my power to change the day I would be leaving. Afterall, I was the driver! There was no one else to check with. I just had to check with one person . . . me! I gave myself permission to catch up on my sleep that I missed while working. I allowed myself to leisurely pack my clothes so I wouldn't forget anything. I already had a sense of peace. This whole thing was just about ME changing MY mind. Once I did that, everything started falling into place and my anxiety level went from an 8 to about a 1. |
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