Typically Sundays are a relaxing family day, snuggling on the sofa and watching a movie, aren’t they?
Not when I was a kid.
My earliest childhood memories at school are of constant anxiety on Sunday evenings.
A brown girl with a stupid name, somewhat shy and reserved. I was an easy target for bullies, which made my issues even more difficult to handle. I never spoke to anyone about my feelings because I knew was different and I didn’t think anyone else would understand.
I remember being alone in the playground whilst all the other children were playing with their friends. I wanted to be white like the other kids too.
I used to dread Sunday evenings when I was young because I knew that I would have to face Monday. How do you deal with all of that when you are 6 years old?
As it happens I developed my own way to deal with anxiety. If you are anything like me, then I am sure you too have been there before. Waiting for a job interview or an appointment at the dentists or that date you are going on with the hottie and you don’t want to a make a fool of yourself. (You know what I mean!)
You start to feel a bit uncomfortable, your heart starts racing, palms feel sweaty, your mouth feels dry and your words become jumbled and its hard to focus on clear thoughts. Your fight or flight response has kicked in. Now, that is absolutely fine when it shows up on the odd occasion because something is important to you and you are doing something out of your comfort zone (like public speaking.)
BUT when you have those feelings every day then you are heading to the realm of chronic anxiety, stress, and burnout.
Here’s what I did and I know it will help you too:
Breathe.
Breathe a little deeper than usual and do it with your belly and not with your chest. focus on only the air going in and out of your nostrils. Do this for 1-2 minutes. This will calm your mind and body down. And it will bring your attention back to the present moment instead of it being lost in scary, what ifs…
Ask yourself.
How many situations that I have been anxious about in the past have turned out to be exaggerations or making a mountain out of a molehill?Is this worry rational? Question your anxiety instead of letting it get out of control.
Change your focus to the present.
Empower yourself by asking: What is one small thing I can do to improve upon this situation today? If you are like me, watching the news makes me feel anxious. It’s not surprising really, is it? If you watch or listen to the amount of negativity and sadness in the world every day it’s no wonder you start feeling shit. So I unplugged and stopped watching the news. And the positive difference it made in my life is amazing.
Learn your anxiety triggers. Keep a record of each time you feel stressed and look for patterns. What’s triggering your stress? How can you confront or work around it? When you give your brain a specific, positive direction, you will feel more confident and less anxious about any tricky situation. And a piece of advice to my younger self, love yourself AND everything is going to be ok.
Now I embrace my brown skin, my glasses, my freckles and my freaking cool name! Oh, and I love spending Sunday evenings with my family AND I absolutely love Mondays! If you want to find out more about how to shift your mindset and reclaim your Sundays, to feel more confident and positive all week, and know the techniques to help you overcome anxiety click here for your free discovery call with me.
