Here is the third and final video on anxiety. In the first, we learned how to breathe as an essential first step. In the second, we dealt with the mind stories and how we can inquire as to whether what we are believing is in fact true. In the third, we tie it all together using breath and mindfulness and many other useful tools to move towards what I call a state of wonder, or ‘relaxed receptivity’, . In this state, we are not continually working against what is happening, but rather we approach our suffering from a place of kind curiosity about what is arising in the present moment. It is from here that we develop wisdom, a kind heart for ourselves and others, and an open-hearted awareness that all beings suffer.

You can access it here: https://youtu.be/aw6pxhQTm5o

I read some interesting research that measured the amount of electrical activity in the part of the brain called the amygdyla. This is the almond-shaped area that contains our emotional responses, and gets activated when are stressed or in the fight-or-flight response. When a person was able to notice emotions and name them as they came up, the amygdyla calmed down. It reminded me of a crying baby, that when picked up and soothed, quietens down.

Please, notice what you are feeling, even name it if you can, and continue. What happens when you ignore a whisper… it starts to scream, or do other strange things like become pain…..

So, notice your anxiety, soothe it, don’t fight with it…. it will win.

Have a wonderful week,

Madeleine

“I noticed that when I fight with reality, I lose. Only 100% of the time.”

Byron Katie ‘Loving What Is’