Responding To Anxiety Effectively

You you you We all suffer from anxiety so today's topic is how to utilize mindfulness and meditation to manage or to cope with anxiety in a better and more positive way and even though we all hope to feel tranquil and to feel relaxed and to be in a state of equilibrium most of the time and especially during the times when we're meditating anxiety is something that many of us suffer from and and anxiety in itself is not a negative but of course when out of context then it's very difficult very difficult to come back to this sense of equilibrium because anxiety is sometimes triggered by distressing situations or topics especially if they're emotionally distressing so if you have a situation that is happening around you that is a cue to the subconscious mind to go into a state of anxiety it's very difficult to limit that anxiety to or to prevent that anxiety from overwhelming you in or anyone for that matter because the body is reacting to a situation reacting to the cue that something is not right so anxiety gives you the is a warning system that gives you the idea or the communication that something needs to be done but most of us then react from anxiety so you probably know this already if you haven't suffered from anxiety lying in bed and worrying about situations if you can't fall asleep thinking about certain distressing topics and then worrying about it getting caught up in the worry and then feeling very anxious which usually then helps doesn't really help one fall asleep and allows for this anxiety to increase and to create all sorts of reactions in the body and reactions in the mind so of course it's easy to yourself to say to yourself not to worry you know you can lie there and say to yourself if you're trying to fall asleep no need to worry about this now,

But of course that's not going to make any difference because when the cue deep within is there and triggering the subconscious mind into a state of anxiety then something more profound is needed than just the mind the mental conceptual mind and communicating to the subconscious and saying okay,

That's enough and this is where meditation is actually very very useful,

But it is a complex thing to practice when overwhelmed or in a state of anxiety to practice meditation is the same as falling asleep if you're trying to fall asleep and you're anxious it's much more difficult,

But there are some very easy to follow points that will help you to actually then with this with the practice of meditation and understanding that anxiety doesn't have to overwhelm you or create this reactive subconscious state of mind coming up to the surface and then getting overwhelmed or intensely distraught about whatever it is that is being experienced if that's understood then meditation can actually be very useful in helping to transform very core issues that are leading on to or creating the anxiety because of course worry stress and the thinking behind anxiety is very much It's very much attached to another deeper reason and the deeper reason is more than the symptoms so worry and anxiety is just the symptoms These are just the symptoms that are coming up to the surface because of a situation that the mind refuses to embrace from a state of meditation or from a state of mindfulness and rather reacts to it rather than understands and transforms that situation so that so that the elevation beyond anxiety happens the first thing to remember in meditation is To relax and this is the same if you can't fall asleep because you're anxious at night The first thing to remember is to relax But to relax very often leads to stress So if you lie in bed,

Or if you're sitting in meditation and say to your mind and repeat to your mind I need to relax or relax relax.

It's not going to work in the end It's not about what you say to your mind But what you invite your mind into the space that you might invite the mind into And you can invite your body and your mind into Relaxation whether you're falling asleep or sitting in meditation and this Is much easier than you think and we can practice this together now.

The first step is to recognize the anxiety in your body So to create tension and then to relax we can do this together because in in essence when you practice and Practice and practice and understand what I'm saying then it makes sense but as a concept it doesn't make sense Because we know from experience lying in bed often awake and stressed about all sorts of situations That it's too difficult to change and that somehow Eventually,

Maybe one gets so very tired that one falls asleep Or in meditation.

Well one meditation is good.

Another meditation isn't very good and eventually there will be a meditation where you'll feel good and If you're anxious or stressed about certain situations,

Or if your mind is very active because of that stress or anxiety Then hopefully the meditation will change but actually you don't need to wait for Meditation to change you don't need to wait to relax enough to fall asleep You can empower the body into a state of recognition somatic recognition of stress and anxiety which then gives you the freedom to let it go and This is an ancient yogic technique but also an ancient technique that has been used by mystics and the first step When you come back to a state of relaxation is just to recognize tension So there are opposites there is tension and there is relaxation So for example now you can practice breathing in deep breath You can tense your body all parts of your body tense just for a few seconds and relax So when you do this your mind doesn't really understand anything says,

Okay,

I'm tensing and relaxing It's an interesting experience,

But your subconscious Recognizes what relaxation means it's an immediate communication to your subconscious that allows you to begin to navigate the very challenging journey of anxiety and stress and Remember,

You don't have to judge yourself Remember that stress and anxiety very often there for a reason so you could be stressed and anxious because of an obvious reason Your child is sick.

Someone is suffering There is a problem that is very tangible that you want You hope and you want for that situation to change to a positive All these things are obvious cues and triggers that lead to anxiety and stress But it also could be that your anxiety and stress Are fed by the subconscious your reaction to a situation whether it be something that's happening now or a perceived situation is exaggerated and when you recognize this or when your subconscious understands that There is it's not useful to react with stress Is you really need to move beyond the stress to move on then the subconscious mind will?

Empower you the instinctive part of yourself the intuitive part of yourself your subconscious mind will guide you into a state of deeper consciousness and that is the part of yourself that you're communicating to to when Tensing and releasing so there are different points in the body that are Very often triggered by anxiety and stress we know The jaws that you know the point the TRG point which is just there between the jaws There's often a lot of tension here when you're anxious and stressed sometimes the body just doesn't even recognize it because it doesn't have that sort of capacity to Reveal itself in the same way as for example the shoulder is being tight and strained that's very obvious because The body recognizes.

Oh,

There is a lot of stress there the TRG Isn't really a part of your body that communicates unless there is chronic stress and then you will notice that your jaws are Misaligned and you're you have headaches your there is tension in your face,

And it's obvious to people who Are able to see that Something is not right because the tension in your face is communicated through the muscles that hold the jaws together So when you tense this part of your body we can try this now but more gently So you're just focusing on this part of the body if you tense any other part of the body Then you are tensing too much.

It's important that you're very focused just Here the TRG the point between the jaws and that point which is just near the ears Just a few centimeters away from the ears you can feel it Maybe it's good to just remind yourself where this point is by massaging pressing this point you'll notice That very often there is tension here But it doesn't feel the same as massaging your shoulders But still there is a lot of tension here that you can release so gently Tensing And releasing so you're tensing gently tensing and Releasing and sometimes it's good to just when you release now and you've relaxed the subconscious mind has received its cue It's an immediate communication to the subconscious the intuitive part of yourself and you can move your jaws and just stretch the mouth a little bit move it from Up and down and just sense what it's like to move the mouth in this way Remember there is a purpose in doing this you're communicating to the mind that the subconscious Doesn't need to react with anxiety and stress the subconscious can communicate with functional tangible Statements that make sense to the body and to your instinctive aspect of communication and And make sense in such a way that you're able to relax But relax more than just physically because you you know,

The physical is important,

But now You've sent a message to the subconscious and the subconscious says to itself.

Okay,

I don't need to keep sending the message to that to the physical structure that part of the body and remind The whole body that something needs to be addressed because I'm being honored.

I'm being listened to here you're being and the this part of your body is being listened to because you're recognizing the communication through tense Relax tense relax and you can do this with all parts of your body You can tense the shoulders can do this now deep breath Tense and then deep breath out relax Let's do this a few times breathe in Tense Breathe out Relax Just notice When you do this,

Of course your body relaxes But you you know how to move a little bit beyond the tension So now that you're relaxed you recognize Oh,

This is what it's like to relax and you move a little bit beyond the tension by relaxing even more because the subconscious pulls the energy out of the tension the muscular attention that happens in that part of the body and even though you may be facing emotionally distressing topics and situations you may be worrying about your daughter or your son or Maybe they're not going to pass their exams or maybe they're unwell or you may be worried about your partner and perhaps there is a situation a Situation where communication is not happening and you're worrying that he's must he's misunderstanding you or she's worried because of whatever perceived situation Anxiety is triggered worrying and stress is triggered by so many situations so many thoughts so In the end when when all this information is being communicated You can through your instinct through through your Awareness that's more instinctual than mental begin to recognize the communication from a sense of presence because Relaxation helps you to come back to this presence and actually then when you are present to the energy You move beyond the fear you move beyond the perceived negativity that often leads to fear and that is what?

Very often is the core that triggers the subconscious It's the fear fear that something will go wrong the fear that the situation will Create pain the fear that the situation will just get out of hand and the worst sort of type scenario will manifest itself So in the end you have to work with the fear But to get to the fear you need to understand that the temple that is your body needs to come back to relaxation but at the same time also come back to a state of awareness an Honoring of the communication that allows it to allows you to let it go So as we continue now you may wish to just breathe in Tense any part of your body usually the legs the hips one part of the body and then relax on the out breath and Notice maybe the deeper emotions that come up if it's Worry,

Or if it's something else that comes up as you relax So you're identifying the communication as you relax you let go the most important thing is to let go but you're identifying the communication if it's possible if that is what happens by Looking at what are the deeper emotions as you relax say the shoulders?

What are the deeper emotions that may be there present behind the tension behind the the pain behind the?

Stress that is manifesting as a physical symptom.

What is the emotional communication?

Behind what what are you avoiding?

What are you?

Holding back What what energy are you holding back?

What what are you actually doing see all these questions?

Actually help you to understand that fear in itself It's not only a waste of time,

But not it's not helping you to move forward and address the situation in a way where transformation happens anxiety doesn't lead to transformation anxiety leads to fear and the repetitive thinking of fear and the repetitive feeling of fear in Many different ways and those different ways then become so overwhelming So your thoughts just jump from one thought to another that they become anxiety So it's important that you recognize that these thoughts don't need to keep you from feeling your deeper emotions and this is why creating an intention and As you release the energy as you release the tension as you tighten and then release the tension in a very specific part of your body to Sort of go a bit deeper and ask what are the emotions that are flowing through this part of the body?

And Remember Now that you're active in this way you're not avoiding and anxiety and stress is the way that we sort of react to a situation that creates avoidance and that creates this Inability to be kind and mindful of the situation so when when you let go of this energy of avoiding the pain avoiding the fear and you embrace your Communication and this starts by tensing and relaxing when you embrace the communication from a more mindful and aware state then this is how you can use meditation and mindfulness to Transform and elevate and Communicate to the challenging emotions from a sense of positivity So still you may be worried on some level about a situation because it's real But now that you're elevated now that you've let go of the tension now that you've let go of the fear Behind the tension that's communicating in many different complex ways But now that you've let that go at least on a physical level the communication begins and the communication can be okay,

So what is the best way to Move forward and to connect and to embrace this experience from a sense of positivity See when you have this level of consciousness Then already anxiety is diluted to a level where it's more manageable already stress is not really as stressful as the mind thinks when in a state of fear,

But rather just everyday learning type situations so it's very very interesting now to spend a few moments and Just tense and relax different parts of your body so that this experience becomes practical.

So you understand how and When it's important to connect to the physical body and relax the tension Spending a few moments now just breathing in Tensing very specific part of your body on the out breath relaxing and in a mindful way Connecting to the deeper flow of emotions as you relax and let go Deep breath Deep breath Tensing and relaxing Different parts of your body your hips your shoulders your abdomen Different parts of your body You The subconscious is truly aware of this relaxation I mean it may seem like the mind just thinks okay.

This is an interesting exercise,

But you are communicating to the subconscious A way that you breathe and relaxing on the out breath in this way communicates directly to the instinctive subconscious part of your being Just trust this process And as you continue whenever you feel comfortable just Remind yourself that now that you've let go of the tension or some of the tension That you can sit with a sense of dignity and poise on your mat or on the chair or on the sofa or wherever you're sitting and You're just Allowing yourself to be mindful of this moment As you relax,

It's important to bring a sense of presence and mindfulness Into this moment and the flow of this moment This allows you to communicate to the subconscious mind In a more profound way so you're asking your subconscious mind what am I?

Experiencing now What is happening in this present moment and your subconscious mind may reveal certain images or certain sensations that come up to the surface as you relax deeper into the flow of the moment and Reflect on the thoughts and feelings that are flowing through your mind arising within your body Then you can open up to those experiences because you're honoring them from this very beautiful state of equilibrium That is reflected in the way that you sit Your poise and the way that you hold your body and the way that you breathe Spend a few moments now just connecting to the structure of the temple This is the way that your body communicates the energy So if you sit with a sense of dignity a sense of openness sense of communication the subconscious mind will Comprehend this is what's going on and begin to flow Into the moment and communicate into the moment in a way that helps you to create healing and positivity Deep breath Deep breath.

And it may be helpful to place your hand on your belly and feel your belly rising and falling with the in-breath and the out-breath.

This just creates a deeper connection to your body,

Since what it's like when you place your hands upon your body in this way,

There is a somatic communication that's happening.

And it helps you to sustain your attention on this point.

This is the point that you're breathing in from within the abdominal muscles and the abdominal space here.

You're breathing in the energy from the space around you and you're pulling that energy into this space.

So just notice as you breathe in that all the energies around you,

You're bringing those life-sustaining elements into your body to the point that you're touching,

Which is this belly area,

The abdominal area that you're embracing and receiving and open to communicating to this new level of communication that's happening.

Deep breath.

If there are still anxious thoughts or stressful thoughts,

Then make sure that you sense the energy that's being transmitted from the palms of your hands onto the belly area and send the energy into the space.

So as you breathe in,

You're absorbing the health-giving elements within the space.

As you breathe out,

You're letting go of anxiety,

Relaxing,

And you can say it's okay to this part of your body.

The subconscious is very connected to the gut system,

The belly area,

So when you say it's okay,

You just breathe out and say,

It's okay,

It's okay.

Relax in this way and your anxious thoughts begin to change.

Deep breath.

Do this for a few more moments.

Deep breath.

When you're comfortable,

Just expanding your awareness so that you get a sense of your whole body breathing,

So the energy moves from the core,

The abdominal muscles,

And moves to all parts of your body,

Every cell in your body.

Deep breath,

Expanding your awareness as you breathe in.

Your attention is expansive,

Wide,

And spacious,

Open and receptive.

As you breathe out,

You're very focused and connected,

Relaxing and letting go of the fear,

Letting go of the tension,

Letting go of the anxiety,

Letting go of the stress.

Your whole body breathing in,

And your whole body breathing out.

And as you breathe in this way,

It's so very natural to come back to a deeper state of relaxation,

And when you come back to this deeper state of relaxation,

It's so very natural to let go of stress and anxiety,

Which is the purpose of this meditation.

As you breathe in and breathe out,

Just integrate the experience into the stillness that is deep meditation.

Letting go of everything,

Letting go of the need to do anything,

And just sitting in stillness for a few moments.

Breathing in,

Breathing out,

Enjoying the space of stillness.

Receiving from within the stillness,

Deeper stillness,

So that the mind is more tranquil,

The mind is more peaceful,

The body is relaxed.

Deep breath.

And you may wish to continue for a few more moments.

Breathing in,

As you breathe out,

Letting go.

Thank you.