Author: HairWeavings Editorial Team

Are you living with anxiety? Many women are filled with stress and anxiety. They’d love to stop worrying but they just can’t.

Is that you?

• Filled with anxiety…
• Feeling stressed and overwhelmed…
• Having trouble calming your mind down…
• Feeling preoccupied and distracted…
• Worried about everything…
• Feeling inadequate and not good enough to manage life…

If you said YES to any of the above, you’re not alone.

When you are having anxiety or you are worrying excessively, days and nights become fretful and wearisome. Chaotic thoughts and feelings disrupt any sense of calm or hope. Staying preoccupied and distracted creates frustration and overwhelm. All this results in sleepless nights and an inability to think clearly. This cycle of worry takes its toll physically, emotionally, and mentally.

What If You Could Be Anxiety Free?

It’s possible to learn how to manage anxiety and worry. When you do, life is calmer and more relaxed. It’s easier to process things rationally rather than from a place of overwhelm. Rest and sleep come more easily without an ever-present sense of foreboding and dread. You can truly become anxiety free.

How do I know that?

I’ve been a hot mess myself!

About 11 years ago this was my life. I was smack dab in the middle of an emotional nightmare. I wasn’t sleeping. Disturbing relational and legal problems surfaced in my family. I was tied in knots. I was obsessed with scary, unsettling thoughts. Visits to my doctor increased. Xanax became a calming friend. To say the least, I was a major mess. It seemed like this nightmare would never end.

Months later, as this crisis shifted into low gear, I declared, “I’m not living like this anymore!” The help I found prompted a 180-degree shift in my way of managing stress and worry. I learned how to become free from the tyranny of anxious thoughts.

You might say I became immune to excessive worry and fear. I am thriving and constantly learning more about living an anxiety free life. The time and effort were worth it for me. After overcoming anxiety, I became a certified anxiety coach so I could help other women do the same thing.

Can You Stop Worrying?

Yes, you can! You can calm down anxiety with statements like, “Sorry, I don’t have time for you (anxiety) now!” and mean it.

You can stop worrying by following these 3 steps.

Step 1: Identify the Fear

Identify the root of the fear causing your worry. Uncovering the cause of the fear might be challenging but it can help you start living a calmer life.

Begin by asking yourself questions like these:

• What stories am I telling myself?
• What worst case scenarios am I imagining?
• What’s my inner critic got to say about this?
• What’s really driving this fear?

Step 2: Reframe Negative Thoughts into Positive Thoughts

Intentionally shift from old thought patterns to new thought patterns. Your mind will calm down as you replace the negatives with positives. This is about a radical change in thinking patterns. Practicing calming strategies tones down anxiety. You will experience less overwhelm and out-of-control thinking.

Step 3: Create a Plan for Using Stress Reducing Strategies

Develop a plan to keep practicing daily stress reducing strategies. Create new habits to reverse guilt producing and fear generating patterns of thinking. In the process, self-awareness grows and helps reduce anxiety and worry. This kind of mindfulness is life-giving. You will experience a sense of security knowing you have a routine and backup blueprint for dealing with anxious thoughts.

One Woman’s Story

One of my clients is a 62-year-old woman who has just been diagnosed with a scary, debilitating illness. Troublesome, frightening thoughts were pouring into her mind. The future felt overwhelming and frightening.

I helped her with tools to settle anxious questions and thoughts. She is beginning to understand what causes anxiety. She’s learning practical ways to manage worry. She’s starting to let go of the worry and fear. She is becoming anxiety free.

You Can Say Good-Bye to Worry

You can learn how to manage anxious thoughts and feelings. Then everything changes! I’m inviting you to work though the steps outlined above. As you understand anxiety and intentionally move forward with rewiring thoughts you are on your way to worry free living. Try it!

If you are truly struggling with anxiety and feel stuck, I encourage you to get help. Perhaps you are, as I was, at the point of saying, “I’m not going to live like this anymore!” If so, consider working with an anxiety coach like me or someone who can help.

Let’s Have a Conversation:

Has anxiety gripped your thoughts and your life? What do you feel anxious about? Have you tried any strategies to become anxiety free? What has helped, and what hasn’t?