Anxiety can be absolutely crippling.
I should know, after experiencing my fair share of panic attacks, before I learnt what I’m about to share with YOU!
Now before I teach you this 2-minute exercise that will eliminate anxiety, there’s a couple of things you need to understand.
Firstly.. what is anxiety?
Anxiety is a fear of what might happen in the future.
Yet we all know that the future hasn’t happened yet.
This fear of the future is simply a story we have made up in our mind.
A story that might seem real to us, but is still just a story of the mind.
So with the mind being the cause of anxiety, then it makes sense that we need to work with the mind to get rid of the anxiety.
How do we do this?
We use active imagination or what you may know as visualisation.
Here’s what you do…
Think of the thing that you are feeling anxious about.
It can be anything at all.
Not having enough money, losing your job, your partner, your health; whatever comes to you first is the best one to work with.
Once you’ve got it, close your eyes.
Take a slow deep breath in, allowing yourself to notice how that thing makes you feel.
Then as you exhale, let it go.
Imagine the anxiety leaving your body on the exhalation.
Then, keeping your eyes closed, imagine yourself going into the future to at least 15 minutes after this thing you were anxious about would have played out.
Once you’re there, immediately start imagining the BEST possible outcome for the thing that you were anxious about.
If you were feeling anxious about not having enough money to get by, imagine money coming in at the perfect time to pay all the bills and then some.
If you were feeling anxious about an icky conversation you have to have with someone, imagine that conversation going amazingly well – so well that both of you walk away from that conversation with a smile on your face and a bounce in your step, feeling completely resolved.
If you feel anxious about having too much to do, imagine a time in the future where everything is done, without you having to worry.
You get the idea!
Whatever you do, imagine a result that fills you with joy; that leaves you feeling relief and happiness.
And make that picture really bright and colourful!
Really get involved in this seemingly miraculous outcome.
Engage with it, dance with it, rejoice in it.
Let those feelings of joy be felt deeply.
And once you’ve done that, take a moment to check in with your body.
Is the anxiety still there or has it gone?
If you were imagining the best possible outcome, an outcome that you desire, then it is impossible to feel anxiety in the body, because the body doesn’t know the difference between what is real and what is imagined.
So if you do still feel anxiety, go back and do the exercise again.
It simply means you didn’t fully imagine the best outcome possible.
Now what’s great about this exercise is that you can do it almost anywhere; it’s quick and effective, and helps you come home to yourself.
It gets you reconnecting with your centre of love.
That said, this exercise does not get to the root cause of the anxiety.
In order to clear anxiety at the root cause, you need to remove the beliefs causing the anxiety.
And I talk about this in depth in my playshop ‘The Art of Self-Love’ as well as talking you through this actual anti-anxiety exercise.
To get this one-hour audio for FREE, simply sign up for the Self-Love Starter’s Kit at the top of the page.
When it comes to removing beliefs – which is the magic that helps completely change our life – that is something that cannot be taught in a blog.
So if you’re interested in learning this life skill take a peek at when the course will be running next.
Ultimately, this anti-anxiety exercise I have just shared with you is great for bringing you immediate relief.
If you’re about to go into an interview or are paralysed with anxiety, then this can be enough to pull you out of it, so you can start to gain some perspective.
Please give it a go, and let me know in the comments below, how you found it!
For more information on how to cure anxiety visit my blog: Anxiety Cure: The ‘How-to’ guide that works!