Stop Anxiety Naturally

To stop anxiety naturally, you have to “go within.” Gah! So frustrating and vague and not an answer that is even remotely helpful when anxiety symptoms take over. But alas, it’s true.

I have lived with chronic anxiety for years, actually several decades now, and even suffered from a multiple year stretch of panic attacks mid stride. It’s debilitating and steals your life away.

Looking back, I see a big disconnect between where I was and how I got to where I am today, which is nearly anxiety free. And what I mean by “disconnect” is that the answer to stopping anxiety naturally isn’t offered to us in its complete form.

Yeah, yeah, the basics are there for most of us – up your self-care game and get good sleep, exercise to release tension in the body, take a technology hiatus, find the right herbs and supplements, spend time in nature, cut sugar and drink more green smoothies… we know the drill and yet, we’re still anxious? And it’s getting worse, why?

The problem lies in not embracing what I now feel is THE most important ingredient to stopping anxiety naturally: find your own personal connection to what I call the Greater Reality. And no one is talking about it.

Self-care is only part of the solution; the rest lies in developing the ability to go beyond what we think we know and expanding our sense of who we think we are. But our upbringing, our conditioning, and our experience in the world creates a lot of resistance and sees very little value in this type of endeavor. It’s more like… Stop wasting time and be productive. Or, just take that pill and “do something.” And if you’re still anxious, well, just stop being so sensitive.

The end result is shame, because we feel like we are somehow doing it all wrong. I mean, if I can’t figure out how to stop being so anxious, while everyone else seems to be out there being a good human and getting things done, then there must be something wrong with me.

But here’s the truth:

Anxiety isn’t increasing because we aren’t doing it right; anxiety is increasing because it’s trying to get our attention. Have you ever considered how a highly sensitive nature might be an asset?

Part of why we are becoming more anxious even despite a stellar self-care practice is because we are becoming more sensitive, and there’s a reason for it. We need to develop a heightened level of sensitivity in order to navigate a world that is literally trying to birth a new paradigm, a shift that is occurring as we speak.

Because what we see out there, what we’ve been told is reality, is not the whole story, and continuing to acquiesce to the dictum that tells us to ignore our sense that something huge is amiss, that something big is coming, in the midst of this transition is a big part of what is making us so anxious!

Think about the shock and pressure (and maybe even sense of doom!) we felt as newborns being pushed out into a comparatively cold new world and having to suddenly start breathing on our own… If we could remember our own birth event clearly and the enormous unknowns we encountered, we might be able to see and feel the parallels.

Discovering this key truth of Reality-Is-More, and then actively connecting to what lies beyond the world’s current definition of reality is what’s necessary to finding lasting relief from anxiety. We have to stop and listen to our sensitivity.

So be quiet. Be still. And Listen.

Maybe that is a dedicated meditation practice for some; walks in the woods for others; or simply contemplating what it means to be still. Every day. These are simple tasks, but ones that are oh so hard to commit to in a world that values productivity over everything else, yet still, very necessary. And worth the effort!

So if you want to stop anxiety naturally, start with embracing who you are – especially the high sensitivity – and use it to break through the reality barrier in whatever way you can. There is a brand new world out there beckoning, and experiencing it first-hand will be a game changer for us all. 😉