What with all the political rhetoric and economic disasters, there is plenty to trigger anxiety, on multiple levels. But we don’t have to live being driven by the alarm emotions of our primitive lizard brain.
In her article Exceptional Times Call for Exceptional Pleasures (on the Positive Psychology News Daily site), Denise Clegg notes, “Fear and Panic are making headlines these days, as though they were members of a godly pantheon come down to Earth, crushing economies, sowing chaos and seducing the most virtuous among our women.
“But fear and panic are not great external forces; they are powerful internal ones, generated deep in the brain. Day after day our headlines tell a story of sympathetic nervous systems gone wild. (See Wayne Jencke’s recent article about the sympathetic nervous system.)
“During this election season, I have been particularly aware of political ads and ploys meant to scare or anger us, tapping into that flight or fight response.
“I have found myself more reactive and anxious, more prone to ruminating about environmental, financial and food crises, and to waking with worry in the middle of the night. I know this isn’t useful, to myself or others.”
She adds that in his book Spiritual Evolution, George Vaillant writes, “negative emotions are often crucial for survival—but only in time present. The positive emotions are more expansive and help us to broaden and build.”
In her Foreword to Embracing Fear: and Finding the Courage to Live Your Life, by Thom Rutledge, Oriah Mountain Dreamer says, “The Native American elders with whom I have studied say that the only real freedom is the freedom from fear. …
“Maybe you — like myself — just want a break from the voice in your head that is forever giving dire warnings, predicting possible disaster and making it nearly impossible to simply be in the present moment…
“But as Thom says in one of my favorite parts of Embracing Fear, you can learn to say to the voice of fear that threatens to paralyze, ‘I’ll risk it’ and live your life fully.”
> Oriah Mountain Dreamer is author of The Dance : Moving to the Rhythms of Your True Self.
The image is from the book Metaphysics in Jars: Photographs by Stephen Aldrich and Walton Mendelson.
Of course many of us have lived with varying degrees of anxiety for years, and current situations may add emotional fuel to that - but there are many ways to deal with anxiety - see the section of anxiety articles and products.
In her article Exceptional Times Call for Exceptional Pleasures (on the Positive Psychology News Daily site), Denise Clegg notes, “Fear and Panic are making headlines these days, as though they were members of a godly pantheon come down to Earth, crushing economies, sowing chaos and seducing the most virtuous among our women.
“But fear and panic are not great external forces; they are powerful internal ones, generated deep in the brain. Day after day our headlines tell a story of sympathetic nervous systems gone wild. (See Wayne Jencke’s recent article about the sympathetic nervous system.)
“During this election season, I have been particularly aware of political ads and ploys meant to scare or anger us, tapping into that flight or fight response.
“I have found myself more reactive and anxious, more prone to ruminating about environmental, financial and food crises, and to waking with worry in the middle of the night. I know this isn’t useful, to myself or others.”
She adds that in his book Spiritual Evolution, George Vaillant writes, “negative emotions are often crucial for survival—but only in time present. The positive emotions are more expansive and help us to broaden and build.”
In her Foreword to Embracing Fear: and Finding the Courage to Live Your Life, by Thom Rutledge, Oriah Mountain Dreamer says, “The Native American elders with whom I have studied say that the only real freedom is the freedom from fear. …
“Maybe you — like myself — just want a break from the voice in your head that is forever giving dire warnings, predicting possible disaster and making it nearly impossible to simply be in the present moment…
“But as Thom says in one of my favorite parts of Embracing Fear, you can learn to say to the voice of fear that threatens to paralyze, ‘I’ll risk it’ and live your life fully.”
> Oriah Mountain Dreamer is author of The Dance : Moving to the Rhythms of Your True Self.
The image is from the book Metaphysics in Jars: Photographs by Stephen Aldrich and Walton Mendelson.
Of course many of us have lived with varying degrees of anxiety for years, and current situations may add emotional fuel to that - but there are many ways to deal with anxiety - see the section of anxiety articles and products.