RELABEL your anxiety!

I thrive on structure and logic. And through planning and structure I want to make the most out of my time and resources. Which means that everything for me is “there are three things — one, two and three”. Even if it is a mundane task such as buying grocery; I would work the list, plan the route and do it like a clockwork.

But life is not always super planned and structured. If it is, then you are stuck in the rut of status quo and too afraid to make a change.

Change is always for the better and I believe in this strongly. Reason being: either that change is a harbinger of good things in your life or that change makes you a more matured person on how to deal with a change: which is also good right?

So, coming back. What happens when you undergo change in your life. For people similar to me going through change leads to a huge turmoil of emotions especially anxiety, general gloominess and restlessness. Its common and yes it can be tamed.

But first let me tell you what happens when you go through these emotions:

1. You are not able to think straight. Your mind is so clouded with the existing chaos that you are not able to put your structured thinking hat (which is actually your strength)to solve things

2. You want to get past this phase quickly. And in that process you are just living in a “constant wait” since changes never cease to exist

3. And lastly, you take faster decisions to overcome that anxiety which most times are not thought through.

Doesn’t feel good right? But what if I tell you that this anxiety is actually a superpower if channelized well. What if I tell you this anxiety can be turned into something bigger which is positive.

And for that let’s dig deep into our minds first.

The stress hormones, otherwise known and cortisol and adrenaline, are released in situations where you feel threatened or in danger. These stress hormones are released to initiate your fight-or-flight response to help you cope with the threat and get your body prepared to take action.

Now, focus on the word adrenaline here. What happens when you have a rush of adrenaline. These hormones are capable of increasing the heart rate and force of heart contractions, increasing blood flow to the muscles and brain, relaxing airway smooth muscles, and assisting in glucose (sugar) metabolism.

Your body reacts the same way when you are “excited” right?

“Anxiety and excitement are caused by the same hormones and lead to similar type of reactions in your body scientifically”.

So change the narrative.

RELABEL YOUR ANXIETY TO EXCITEMENT.

Once you do that, all the positive effects that come with being excited: joy, happiness, increased processing power of brain will come with it.

So, next time when you “think” that you are getting anxious (note the word think here because it’s not the feeling; its your thinking), tell your mind that you are “Excited” instead!