When we are faced with our anxiety and other uncomfortable thoughts and feelings, it can feel like they've always been there, and that they always will. But if you take a step back, create some space, and put your Scientist hat on, you might just discover that these kinds of experiences are fleeting. They are temporary. And you will get through them.
Especially in the Spring, it can seem like the grey skies and the rain will never end. The good news: They always do!
Thoughts, feelings and moods are similar in that way. They tend to change like the weather--for all of us. We can try to balance them, by getting enough sleep, eating right, exercising, etc. But, we are human and in a constant state of flux. It's helpful to remember that when we experience uncomfortable thoughts, feelings and moods, that they are just like a thunderstorm. "Okay, I see the thunderstorm, I feel the rain and the winds. I'm going to sit here, just as I might pull over in a car until I can see and safely drive again. I'm going to sit here and breathe, envisioning the thundercloud, feeling the rain, and watch it pass.
You might even keep track of the "weather" in your mind and body. Read more about "Feelings and Your Body" here. This will also give you some hard evidence that the distress will pass, just as it always does. Thunderstorms are natural, common, "normal"--we all have them. The cloud metaphor can help you to create the space to sit with them, rather than react.
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