It is false beliefs about reality that often underlie problems with anxiety. I've suffered and am still overcoming my anxiety issues (which I've had for as long as I can remember). Anxiety issues is the sort of thing that takes time to overcome, so, like a diet to lose weight, we shouldn't expect immediate results. In order to overcome anxiety we must change the way we perceive reality.
So take out a sheet of paper (or open Microsoft Word) and ask yourself "what am I worried about?" or "what am I scared of?". Then look at whatever comes to mind, and tell yourself "what I am experiencing is imaginary, it's not real" (this is literally true because all things imagined are imaginary. The problem is that we believe some imaginary things are real, and this causes it to emotionally effect us. Once we realize that the cognition that is emotionally bothering us is, in reality, not real, then it loses its emotional punch.
No matter what you are afraid of, this method works, but it takes a certain amount of understanding and awareness of this function of the brain in order to properly perceive it. Try to pay attention to this process, and when you notice your imagination is firing off, and especially when its causing emotional pain, make sure to perceive it accurately. If we tune out the awareness of our thought process, we can become distorted by it. It's kind of like how when people lose the awareness of what they are viewing on TV is being viewed on a television set, it emotionally effects them (same goes for video games as well). In other words, anxiety is NOT caused by the worry(ies) themselves, but the inaccurate perception of these day-terrors (like daydreams, they are literally dreams that occur while we are awake, but most of the dream is seemless with reality, so it typically goes under our radar of truth).
So take out a sheet of paper (or open Microsoft Word) and ask yourself "what am I worried about?" or "what am I scared of?". Then look at whatever comes to mind, and tell yourself "what I am experiencing is imaginary, it's not real" (this is literally true because all things imagined are imaginary. The problem is that we believe some imaginary things are real, and this causes it to emotionally effect us. Once we realize that the cognition that is emotionally bothering us is, in reality, not real, then it loses its emotional punch.
No matter what you are afraid of, this method works, but it takes a certain amount of understanding and awareness of this function of the brain in order to properly perceive it. Try to pay attention to this process, and when you notice your imagination is firing off, and especially when its causing emotional pain, make sure to perceive it accurately. If we tune out the awareness of our thought process, we can become distorted by it. It's kind of like how when people lose the awareness of what they are viewing on TV is being viewed on a television set, it emotionally effects them (same goes for video games as well). In other words, anxiety is NOT caused by the worry(ies) themselves, but the inaccurate perception of these day-terrors (like daydreams, they are literally dreams that occur while we are awake, but most of the dream is seemless with reality, so it typically goes under our radar of truth).
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