Beating/ Managing Anxiety

[M4K001]

I'm not sure if this is the right forum for this but here goes...

Is there anyone here fighting or who has beaten anxiety?

I not so much talking about the anxiety of starting a new business or going out of your comfort zone as this is perfectly rational.

I'm more talking about anxiety that is constantly eating you from the inside out. That just makes you want to do nothing, cripples you at the thought of taking action and just doesn't seem to f@#k off. The kind of anxiety that you go see a doctor/ psychologist over.

If this seems familiar to you what steps did you take to manage or get rid of it?
And what advice would you give to someone experiencing it?

Any replies are greatly appreciated!

Cheers

 

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[Van Halen]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FrRfo1i8qZs

 

[Alxander]

I'm probably the right person to talk to lol.

I had massive panic attacks 1-3 years back. It was so bad that I even forgot who I was (depersonalization, your brain goes into dream-state to deal with pain).

To go right to the most important thing; you have to find the root of your anxiety.
For finding out what the root is though, you have to fully accept the situation where you are in, you can't find it before you stop fighting it.

Now are you just becoming/wanting to be an entrepreneur? It's good your finding your passion and get what you desire in life.

But you also have to cut EVERYTHING out that's bad, alcohol, drugs, porn, fast food (k sometimes) , bad friends.

Start working out (I always workout but still had panic attacks lol) if you don't.

I discovered Wim Hof a few months back, he uses breathing techniques and cold showers to combat depression and anxiety. It works pretty well, try it out.
You must not be fearful of suffering cause it only makes it worse.

 

[RazorCut]

What do you think the root cause of your anxiety is? It's hard to fix something if you haven't identified the problem.

I had a LOT of anxiety a few years back. I had sold one business and pulled out of another and was looking for a new focus and direction. The problem was I ran out of money before I had anything substantial built.

I had a wife and family to provide for and literally nothing coming in. Every letter that came through the door was just another bill. It was only action that saved the day. I always had confidence that I would find a way out, because I always have whenever I was in a tight spot. However the anxiety I felt at the time was totally debilitating.

It took what at the time seemed massive action (but in reality was just a simple plan followed through to its logical conclusion) to get back on track. However when you are in that situation it is hard to see the wood from the trees.

What is holding you back?

 

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[fresh]

Anxiety isn't something you climb over. You work through it. You need to figure out what the base of it is, as mentioned above. When I'm dealing with heavy anxiety, I either confront it head on and push through...or I give in to it and try to distract myself until it passes. There are no easy answers and what works for one person may not work for another.

 

[MetalGear]

I am experiencing a bit of this for several reasons and want to share what helped me.

• Anxiety trigger: I feel like I need to know everything.
  • I will never know everything, so I ask people on the forum or my contacts.
• Anxiety trigger: I feel like I need to do everything now and don't live in the present moment
  • I tend to over-schedule and set too many goals and I am working on eliminating things from my life on a constant basis
    • Focus on the top 5 things I want to do - "Hell yeah or hell no"
  • We are limited by time and space so I am becoming more processes oriented as they say on the forum
  • Set goals for the week/month/year and then as you check them off - let go of the need to do or think of more when it is time to sleep
  • Setting goals can be tricky for a new entrepreneur or new venture since we don't have the experience - time, money, manpower estimates
  • Reward yourself by sleeping sweetly knowing you valiantly fought and accomplished x,y,z goal for the day
• Get enough sleep
  • No reading or analyzing anything in bed
  • I saw a sleep specialist and he told me that your bed should only be for sleep and sex
  • We tend to associate a physical place with mental thoughts and memories so have a set time and place to do your work and thinking
  • Otherwise it is like the equivalent of having a birthday party at a funeral home - sure you can do it, but don't.
• Your mind, body, and spirit are interconnected
  • Feed and maintain all three
  • Have rituals every day to ramp yourself up and ramp yourself down
  • Meditate/pray when you wake up and before you sleep - this is not necessarily a religious practice, take it or leave it
  • Insight Timer is a free meditation app that has helped me - I use it with headphones
  • Excercise - 30 minutes to one hour of exercise every day makes a big difference in your physiology

I hope this helps,
MG

PS, I have a ton of respect for everyone pushing forward. "Through adversity, to the stars".

 

[SteveO]

Each of us, with the aid of society, have built up beliefs based on thousands of years of conditioning. These belief systems are deeply lodged inside each person. Our mind quickly ties everything to these beliefs as if they are the "truths" of life. But they are not. They may be the truth of your life as they are so deeply ingrained.

As a result, we have automatic reactions to everything. These reactions take on the form of anxiety, hatred, anger, .... even happiness. Fear can be a result and is clearly the reason for anxiety.

The real question as you already know, is how to get past the fear.

Breaking down your belief systems takes years of work. It is very worthwhile though. We will "NEVER" do away with our belief systems but we can minimize the effect and control they have on us.

We are really good at accepting pleasure and what we see as positive emotions. They come to us in a moment, we enjoy and move on. The emotions that we deem to be negative are another story though. We tag them to events and then start building shrines to them. They automatically direct our choices when we see something that triggers us to that shrine. We let the emotion linger in our mind which takes the focus off of all the other choices that we could be making.

 

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[TonyStark]

Exercise

 

[luniac]

Your diet, physical activity, stress levels, breathing patterns, sleep patterns, etc are all factors.

From my research, anxiety is associated with sympathetic nervous system, activate your parasympathetic nervous system to counteract anxiety.

Controlling your breathing is one such way. Look up BUTEYKO METHOD.

 

[Siberia]

Anxiety is a form of fear that has to do with the lack of love in the broader sense.

Reflect and try to figure out in your specific case what the form of love you are missing.

 

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[luniac]

I'm probably the right person to talk to lol.

I had massive panic attacks 1-3 years back. It was so bad that I even forgot who I was (depersonalization, your brain goes into dream-state to deal with pain).

To go right to the most important thing; you have to find the root of your anxiety.
For finding out what the root is though, you have to fully accept the situation where you are in, you can't find it before you stop fighting it.

Now are you just becoming/wanting to be an entrepreneur? It's good your finding your passion and get what you desire in life.

But you also have to cut EVERYTHING out that's bad, alcohol, drugs, porn, fast food (k sometimes) , bad friends.

Start working out (I always workout but still had panic attacks lol) if you don't.

I discovered Wim Hof a few months back, he uses breathing techniques and cold showers to combat depression and anxiety. It works pretty well, try it out.
You must not be fearful of suffering cause it only makes it worse.

+1 to wim hof method, only online course i ever bought just to learn more about it.
I do it every day
The answers to how to be healthy are SO SIMPLE.
Complicated answers are designed to make $$$$.

 

[DeletedUser86]

Exercise is the most important thing you can do, and it will improve every area of your life. Remember consistency is more important than duration, even if you were to do say 50 pushups every night (should take one minute) for 60 days you would see better results than if you one hardcore workout for an hour. Just stick with it and your overall confidence and self-esteem will improve by multitudes. Another possible side effect is you may find that women will find reasons to touch you

Another thing you can try is to take 100 to 200 mg of vitamin B3 (niacin). It will increase your awareness, mood and ambition. My wife gets anxiety and she frankly comes off like a bitch most of the time. She was suggested to take B3 by a friend and I've seen her outlook greatly improve and she says she no longer needs a cup of coffee in the morning, she just takes 100 mg of B3. Her coworkers asked her if she was on drugs the first day she took it because of how much her mood improved. She says her productivity also improved

 

[luniac]

i think posture training, body relaxation, proper nutrition, fasting, light exercise, strength training, cold exposure, and fixing chronic hyperventilation are the greatest tools to any chemical problem related to the body and mind.

And the greatest reward besides excellent health is less hours of sleep required for adequate rest.
Less hours of sleep = more time for fastlane and life

This should be a fundamental pillar for individuals wanting to squeeze the most out of life.

 

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[Black_Dragon43]

I'm not sure if this is the right forum for this but here goes...

Is there anyone here fighting or who has beaten anxiety?

I not so much talking about the anxiety of starting a new business or going out of your comfort zone as this is perfectly rational.

I'm more talking about anxiety that is constantly eating you from the inside out. That just makes you want to do nothing, cripples you at the thought of taking action and just doesn't seem to f@#k off. The kind of anxiety that you go see a doctor/ psychologist over.

If this seems familiar to you what steps did you take to manage or get rid of it?
And what advice would you give to someone experiencing it?

I've dealt with anxiety many times in the past, was even put on a combination of three very strong pills at one time including benzodiazepines, and anti-psychotics (now I'm completely off the pills and am little troubled by anxiety). So I think I can provide you with some help based on my journey.

First of all, fighting anxiety is the wrong approach. Anxiety isn't out there to get you. Anxiety is merely a message that your mind and nervous system are sending you, a message that they perceive a situation which is deemed threatening. So anxiety is merely a messenger - what you do with the message conveyed is what matters and what makes the difference.

Imagine yourself as an Emperor. Now in your employment you have a very paranoid adviser, who is always worrying about threats. That's your anxiety. It's always going to be there. The adviser will always come "Oh are you sure you didn't leave the door open? Are you sure you didn't accidentally run over someone without realising when you were driving? Are you sure you didn't leave the gas open? What if you did?! You should go check, because the potential consequences are too serious to ignore! Better safe than sorry afterall!"

Now remember - you are the Emperor - you are fully in control of what happens. You can choose whether to listen to the adviser, or ignore him. The final decision always rests with you. If you always listen to the adviser and let him scare you - then you're not much of a commander are you? If you take every word he says as truth - then you are effectively surrendering your empire to him. You may remain Emperor in name, but he will effectively rule over your empire.

So what are you aiming for? You're aiming to return to the position where anxiety is an adviser, and you are the Emperor. Put anxiety in its right place. It can actually be a tremendous gift if you only learn how to use it. You shouldn't get rid of anxiety. Just sharpen it, train it, empower it, make it serve its rightful purpose in the economy of your mind. Your anxiety is like a double-edged sword. Once you learn to master it, you get a tremendous advantage over both people who simply don't have anxiety naturally, and over people who succumb to it.

Some people - like myself for instance - are born with very paranoid advisers. If we don't learn to use them effectively, we'll never be great. But if we do learn to use them, then we have a tremendous advantage over those who don't have such an adviser to guide them.

Let me describe how things used to go for me. I would leave my house to do something and start worrying on the way whether I had actually closed the door. I would imagine someone breaking in my home, stealing whatever they could, and making a mess of the place. I would then proceed, very agitated, to turn around and go back to check the door.

Now how things happen now. I leave my house to do something, and a thought pops into my mind "what if you've left the door open by mistake?". I acknowledge the thought, but ignore it, and don't act on it in any way, going on with my journey. See the difference? I will never get rid of the anxiety causing thoughts - that's just how my mind biologically is structured. What I can and have largely got rid of is of my anxious response to those thoughts - my dwelling on them, my compulsions, my rumination on it, etc.

Keys that will help you:
• As others have said - exercise, and learn to trust your mind and body. Push yourself to the limits, and see that you can do it. Your body doesn't fail you.

• Meditate - detach yourself from the anxiety. Stop seeing the anxiety as an enemy to be vanquished. Look at it as a tool to be used. See yourself as the emperor, and stop giving full control over your empire to a mere adviser.

• Focus on what you can control - that's what can get you results

• Figure out your moral values and principles. I myself am a Christian for example, and while I don't attend Church, I do practice the teachings of the Christian religion - those morals guide me, and make me feel at peace with myself and the world.

• Stop listening to the fake image the mass-media and advertisements create. You must do this, you must do that, you must be like this, and not like that, this is what's cool, that's not cool etc. You must go out partying, you must have sex frequently, etc. If you don't like those things, don't do them, end of story. Have the courage to be yourself! There's a lot of pressure to get people to conform to a certain standard - from friends, family, and especially movies/Hollywood/the media. So resist! Don't let them dictate your life, what you desire and what you want. Stop spending your time with people whose company you don't enjoy - it's better to be alone than to be surrounded by people you don't actually like.

• Solve your existential issues. To do this, spend time thinking and reading (especially religious and philosophical texts). Understand what your mission and purpose is in this world.

Thanks Alxander for sharing about Wim Hof, that's very inspirational and interesting too!

 

[Leo Hendrix]

I found mindfulness meditation has helped me a lot in dealing with mental/psychological issues.
Also being in nature especially in greener areas with a lot of trees/flora and wide open spaces, especially the sky and or the ocean.

@Scot posted about entrepreneurial anxiety, so taking a look at that thread might help you.

Personally, I think sticking to a system can help, for me I try and stick to a daily productivity system as much as possible, this can alleviate some inner concerns that might be stuck in your mind or subconscious, due to the safety of a routine.

You might also have to look at your environment, I have had issues with anxiety in recent years, living overseas in new countries. And what I found is that when I assess my environment as mindfully as possible and see and realize that things are not as bad as I think they might be or that I am not really in a life and death situation e.g I am not currently living in a war-zone or a dangerous neighbourhood, after I have rationalized my thoughts and can see clearly that I should not worry or be so anxious, I feel much more calm and can refocus my thoughts onto what I need to do.

 

[Dan_Fastlane]

do you have panicattacks? first, best way is you have to "accept" it to stop this stupid vicious circle of iam scared of the fear and that makes me scared!

 

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[GMSI7D]

I'm not sure if this is the right forum for this but here goes...

Is there anyone here fighting or who has beaten anxiety?

I not so much talking about the anxiety of starting a new business or going out of your comfort zone as this is perfectly rational.

I'm more talking about anxiety that is constantly eating you from the inside out. That just makes you want to do nothing, cripples you at the thought of taking action and just doesn't seem to f@#k off. The kind of anxiety that you go see a doctor/ psychologist over.

If this seems familiar to you what steps did you take to manage or get rid of it?
And what advice would you give to someone experiencing it?

Any replies are greatly appreciated!

Cheers

anxiety is just lack of training

every entrepreneur should get outside his or her confort zone to grow

every entrepreneur should do stupid and embarassing things everyday to forge the steel and become fearless

every entrepreneur should start public speaking with a vengeance

and become good at it

this is not just a wish

this is mandatory


i do what i preach

i have made a fool of myself in front of people in a meeting today

but who cares ?

i get outside my confort zone

what people think is irrelevant .

 

[Ivan2BAlive]

I'm not sure if this is the right forum for this but here goes...

Is there anyone here fighting or who has beaten anxiety?

I not so much talking about the anxiety of starting a new business or going out of your comfort zone as this is perfectly rational.

I'm more talking about anxiety that is constantly eating you from the inside out. That just makes you want to do nothing, cripples you at the thought of taking action and just doesn't seem to f@#k off. The kind of anxiety that you go see a doctor/ psychologist over.

If this seems familiar to you what steps did you take to manage or get rid of it?
And what advice would you give to someone experiencing it?

Any replies are greatly appreciated!

Cheers

Hello M4K001,

I found a couple of books that I highly (and I mean "HIGHLY"!!) recommend. I spent years dealing with depression and anxiety for many years now to a point that it has affected me physically and I found these books to help me break out of it. They're both written by the same author, Russ Harris. One is called "The Happiness Trap" and the other "The Confidence Gap". Check out the links below to Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B004XI12O8/?tag=tff-amazonparser-20

Amazon.com: The Confidence Gap: A Guide to Overcoming Fear and Self-Doubt eBook: Russ Harris, Steven Hayes: Books

I would read "The Confidence Gap" first in that order. And of course go back and read "The Millionaire Fastlane " for which I find this gets me out of depression as well.

Hope this helps.

 

[letter9]

I'm not sure if this is the right forum for this but here goes...

Is there anyone here fighting or who has beaten anxiety?

I not so much talking about the anxiety of starting a new business or going out of your comfort zone as this is perfectly rational.

I'm more talking about anxiety that is constantly eating you from the inside out. That just makes you want to do nothing, cripples you at the thought of taking action and just doesn't seem to f@#k off. The kind of anxiety that you go see a doctor/ psychologist over.

If this seems familiar to you what steps did you take to manage or get rid of it?
And what advice would you give to someone experiencing it?

Any replies are greatly appreciated!

Cheers

Weight lifting plus HIIT exercise combo helps a ton.
After I am done I have no energy/time to worry, and more inclined to act towards what I was worrying.

 

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