You’re Not the Boss of Me: 7 Keys to Managing AnxietySample

Listen to Your Body

“In peace I will lie down and sleep, for you alone, Lord, make me dwell in safety” (NIV).

Once we begin to be aware of our anxiety, we will start to see a connection in moments of anxiety and how our body responds. When we feel anxiety coming on, often the first sign is sleepless nights, accompanied by physical symptoms such as a racing heart, palpitations, tightening of the chest, tension in the jaw, fatigue, upset stomach and the list goes on. By paying attention to your body, you can often deal with anxiety before it is able to take control in your mind. Your body’s physical response can be a window into your emotions.

During my oldest son’s senior year of high school, I sat in a parent meeting listening to the administration talk about graduation, college applications, ACT and SAT tests, scholarships, deadlines, timelines and possible college costs. It was overwhelming, especially when they began discussing finances. The more information they brought to the table, the more overwhelmed I felt and all I could see were dollar signs. My jaws began to tighten, and I felt tension building up in my shoulders. My anxiety was on the rise. As a single parent, I knew I would be shouldering a lot and didn’t want to disappoint my son. 

Years before, in that same scenario, I would have experienced a sleepless night and told myself I was weak for feeling so unsettled. I would have gotten up the next morning, tried to push through and let anxiety boss me around. But after that parent meeting, I decided to show anxiety I was the boss. I slowed down and spent some time working through simple breathing techniques to make sure I was getting to the root of my anxiety and feeling grounded instead of being taken over by chaos and doubt. I didn’t crumble; I took care of myself. Working through scripture-based, guided meditations are always helpful to me. They allow me to focus on breathing as well as fill my heart and head with God’s Word.

There’s a true mind/body connection that happens regarding our emotions, including our anxiety. I have a friend whose fingers begin going numb when her anxiety kicks up. Another acquaintance deals with migraine headaches when her anxiety swells. Tuning into your body isn’t about quitting, but rather knowing when you can keep going and when you need to slow down.

When you don’t listen to your body, you can get so distracted by the current issue, you may not even realize the bigger co-occurring problem of anxiety. You miss the fact that you’re feeling anxious. Many people disregard or dismiss the physical symptoms of anxiety all together. Your body contains a wealth of information about anxiety; make sure you’re listening to it.