Earlier today, I was feeling not so good. I was having feelings of anxiety and I recognized a panic attack was imminent if I didn't take action. So I calmed myself and my worries by telling myself that there was nothing to fear and this was just anxiety and that although it's uncomfortable now, this will pass. I feel a little bit better now.

Hello!Yeah you did it!This is a hard thing to do.Talking yourself out of a panick attack.The more you practice the easier it will get.When you feel the anxiety don't dwell on it and do just what you did.It will always pass.I've got my panick attacks slowed down now I'm just having some trouble with the generalized anxiety.I'll be working on this.Just keep telling yourself "I WILL NOT BOW DOWN TO FEAR!"This works well.Soon enough if you say this until you believe it you'll be left with peace.Good job on taking action!God bless!

Way to go! One day about a week ago while in session two, I was out for a walk and I was thinking about how good I was starting to feel again and amazingly I started to "what if" about not being able to handle future anxiety or a panic attack. I was like what the hell am I doing, I'm about to ruin a really nice evening. Of course it dawned on me that this is the essence of my problem...irrational fear. The term irrational is very important and I think they cover this in session 2. Once I was able to recognize that the fear causing the anxiety is irrational (as most fears are) I have found myself getting better at dismissing the fear before it takes hold of me by using the same words that you used from session 1.

Thanks for sharing...You're on your way

I am very proud of you!

gs.cmc, I sure know that feeling! I have had times where I am doing great...and then it's like you start doubting feeling that good. Well,but what if...
Or my negative thoughts creep in too somtetimes...more than I'd like them to. I mat soothe myself by telling myself that it's not even true and to STOP. I get realxed, and then often a thought that I know to be factual (that makes me unhappy) will creep in. OH, how complex we are. As if I somehow have a spiteful mind or something...like, "okay, maybe your irrational saddening thought wasn't ture....but what about this one!"
Isn't that hard?!
I think that it is because this is a battle. And we have conditioned ourselves soooooo much to be worriers and to be negative, that in some twisted way it is hard to get rid of. Session 3 talks about this, and how our negative thinking is a bad habit. That is why I will try just using STOP. If I have to, I will even trace over the letters in my mind (I"m very visual). I may trace over them once or twice, or severl times, defining the shape of the sign, and each letter in all caps.
Maybe that would help some people that find those moments of peace broken. I think the vidualization is great. You could do it with other words too....peace, joy, relax, happy.
Congratulations to us all for being brave enough to take this on! It isn't an easy task, as we all know...but we ARE doing it because we can shange our lives for the better!

Hi Rachel,

Great post! It is so interesting how negative irrational thoughts sneak in with the good ones and the bad ones that as you pointed out are sometimes real. Yesterday was a real good day until late in the afternoon when I ran into a neighbor that I haven't seen in a while. He asked if he could talk to me and that what he was going to tell me was really bad. In short this poor guy lost his wife very suddenly a few months ago. He actually apologized ahead of time for being about to give bad news. Amongst other things I said I told him never to feel bad about reaching out to others to talk, it's one of the most important things that he can do. They have young kids and even months later he was just so sad. It made me uneasy the rest of the day and my wife and I didn't really sleep that well. But you know as sad and negative as that is, the feelings/emotions that are generated by this are still different than when I "manufacture" a sad or negative (untrue..unreal) thought. Those thoughts make me anxious probably because they are not real!

I think in order to deal with some of the real things that sneak in, it probably is a good idea to give yourself permission to allow it, Be a little sad if you must but then counter it with some of the positive things that are going on right now.

I totally agree with you about the conditioning for negative thinking. That is exactly what I have done to myself for so many years, always anticipating something negative. For example I used to leave work and think: "oh boy what's going on at home now, kids fighting, in law issues etc.." I honestly don't care about those things anymore because they are 99.9% of the time nothing issues that I couldn't control anyway.

BTW, you don't have a spiteful mind (negative thought) but we are complex (I see that as a positive)and what I spent many years building will take some time to tear down and restructure, the good news is that it is entirely possible and has been done successfully by many thousands.

Take care and have a nice weekend

Good Job! Keep up the good work!

I think my biggest problem with this whole thing is that I remember all the places I've had panic attacks and I hold on to those places as being "bad". Like I can remember the feelings of panic attacks I had years ago, while driving at night and being alone. If I remember those attacks, that will start me down the road of anticipatory anxiety and what iffing. It's like I can't let go of the past and it haunts me into my present.