Depression vs. Anxiety

Mind

CATEGORY

I heard something over the weekend that I wanted to share with all of you.  So much of feeling and looking your best comes from your internal feelings and sometimes those are so hard to control and understand especially when they are negative, anxious, or sad emotions. It is so normal to feel down or anxious – I think most people feel these feelings on a daily basis but some people suffer with this at a chronic level.

 

I have read a lot about this and taken incredible courses that have released me from the handcuffs of depression and anxiety but I am not immune to it. No matter how hard you work on this it is something that creeps in now and then and it sucks.  This weekend I heard someone describe depression and anxiety in a way that made it seem less overwhelming and easier to ‘snap’ out of it.  This person said….

“Depression comes from the past and anxiety comes from the future.”

AHA! – I never have looked at it this way and it makes so much sense.

Whenever you are feeling these feelings – whether it be depression or anxiety there’s a couple of things 1) if you are feeling depressed, look at your thoughts – they will most always be past based and while our past affects us and is a part of us – it doesn’t have to control us. It is actually crazy when you think about it because the past is gone…we can’t change it.  What good is it doing us to re-hash it or wish something different? What about your past serves you? And what about your past does NOT serve you?

 

I think what’s more common than depressing feelings are feelings of anxiousness. I do think that I have often thought all these feelings were defined as depression, but I now realize that is not the case that those feelings are more likely to be feelings of anxiety.  If anxiety comes from the future, then we can really shift that and break free from anxiety.  See you can feel anxious in a good way, like when you are going on vacation or maybe approaching a big celebration – you feel anxious with excitement and anticipation and that feels amazing. You are EXCITED about something in the future.   When you have anxiety that feels debilitating then you are worried about the future which usually means you lack clarity, you are not prepared and have no ‘plan’ in place.

 

Grab a journal or a piece of blank paper and write down your goals.

What are you working on right now? Weight Loss, Beauty Goal, Business Goal, Relationship Goal, etc.

What is the goal? Then assess why you feel ‘bad anxious’ about it versus the ‘good anxious’ feelings of excitement about it. You will find that you don’t have a plan to get there – you are just focused on the end goal with no plan.

Make a plan – What do you need to do monthly, weekly, daily to get there? Who do you need to call for help, coaching, accountability? How do you need think and act to become that person who has that ‘goal’?

Create a structure for all of these, put them in your calendar, make the phone calls you need to make. Get super clear and I promise you will feel excited and ready to make it happen.

Remember you are not alone in this world, there is someone somewhere who feels the exact way you feel or has your exact same circumstance who is kicking ass in the world.

Always remember Who the F*ck You Are!!!!!