Real Stories _ Real Living Made Simple Series - Julie Loos

A few years ago, every waking moment was filled with anxiety. My body began to do strange things like becoming dizzy; my legs would feel weak, and I couldn’t make it through the day without lying down for a few hours.

I never knew when these random symptoms would hit, so I was anxious. I used to have a bag I carried around full of items that would make me feel better if a random problem would occur.

For almost a year, I didn’t drive, and when I did, I’d white-knuckle the steering wheel.

My life became run by my anxiety.

How to Change Your Life to Decrease Your Anxiety Naturally _ Real Stories

Anxiety is a Part of Life

Here’s the truth, everyone deals with anxiety in some form during life. Moving to a new area, getting a new job, starting college, or talking in front of people are all anxiety-inducing activities.

However, for some of us, anxiety can descend and take our life away. Anxiety becomes thick and feels like it’s swallowing us whole.

If we’re honest, anxiety before public speaking is warranted. But anxiety that has no cause is hard to swallow (and get rid of).

Once anxiety descends, many times it’s hard to break free and return to the life we knew or even get to the life we always wanted.

First and foremost let me tell you, you are not anxiety. If you have labeled yourself as anxious, remove that label. You might have had anxiety, but you are not anxiety.

Friend, for the longest time I thought I’d always have my sidekick called anxiety. I actually stopped dreaming and living life because I felt like as long as it was near I couldn’t enjoy anything.

I labeled myself, and soon I started to believe that label. Friend, hear me out, you might be struggling right now, but God has a way. He will use your anxiety to grow you.

God Has Covered All Those Anxious Moments in Life

Anxiety and fear like to go hand in hand. This duo likes you to believe that “the what ifs” in your life will happen so you need to cover all bases.

God’s word tells us otherwise.

We don’t have to cover any bases because God has covered it all.

God has given us victory to overcome this nasty twosome.

Don’t fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God’s wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life. (Philippians 4:6-7, MSG)

Right there in this verse, God gives us one of the best antidotes to worry: its prayer and incorporating it into our life.

Not just once a day or before we eat, but anytime that noxious worry or anxiety likes to rear its ugly head.

After dealing with anxiety for a few years on prescriptions meds, I decided that I was still having anxious moments in spite of a daily dose of medication. After some praying and learning more about anxiety, I began looking for more natural anxiety relief.

Let me stop right there and tell you that I have no negative opinions about needing medication in life. God has blessed us with the science and the ability to treat many conditions we suffer from.

Changing Your Lifestyle Helps Anxiety

For me, I knew that I needed to start changing my lifestyle to help get rid of where anxiety was coming from.

I am a type A personality, so control and perfectionism seem to be a part of my makeup. I have had to loosen up throughout the years and definitely having 5 kids has pushed me in that direction.

I can’t control life, and God has shown me that many times by putting me in situations where I either have to trust or make myself ill (I’ve done both).

A few things I’ve learned when it comes from struggling with anxiety is that life is going to be up and down.

Overcoming from anxiety is going to follow the same path. I can go weeks without noticing my friend, and then suddenly it descends.

By changing my lifestyle, anxiety doesn’t stick around. Did you notice what I said?

It stills makes a visit, but doesn’t stick around. I think we need to remember that. Anxiety is a part of life, but it staying as a long-term visitor is not ok.

My All Natural Anxiety Relief

  • Reading the Bible daily
  • Praying
  • Encouraging friends
  • Getting outside and walking in the sunshine
  • Exercising
  • Journaling
  • Deep breathing/ Meditations
  • Using Therapeutic Essential Oils
  • Supplements
  • Getting my hormones/thyroid balanced
  • Eating enough protein
  • Controlling my blood sugar
  • CBD oil
  • Changing my thoughts (21 day Brain Detox app)

Utilizing Natural Anxiety Relief Encompasses Multiple Things

As you can see, it wasn’t just one thing I did differently, but a whole slew of things that I have used. Some days I fail on many of them, and then I can feel tension mounting.

I never understood the effect of wavering blood sugar and not enough protein daily on my body, but as I learned more, both of these can affect feelings of anxiety.

Also, a huge one that has been a cause of my issues is that my progesterone has been almost non-existent in the last few years. Google progesterone and anxiety.

I find this interesting because women deal with more anxiety than men and are affected by the cycling of progesterone in our bodies. It’s been said that women in the U.S. are estrogen dominant which means we all have lower progesterone levels. How many of us are suffering from anxiety due to too low progesterone?

Once you start to tell these strongholds holding you back that you’re the boss and start implementing small changes in your life to overcome, you will see progress.

“Nothing diminishes anxiety faster than action.” ― Walter Anderson

Overcoming anxiety is not an overnight thing, but rather small positive changes where you see it decreasing. However, don’t be frustrated if it comes back and then leaves. The path isn’t linear but rather up and down. Accept the process, and you will get your life back.

As we push through, pray, trust in God, and you realize that fear doesn’t have a say, and we can be victorious through God.

You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself, 'I lived through this horror. I can take the next thing that comes along. ~Eleanor Roosevelt

 


Julie Loos - Unmasking the Mess at Real Living Made Simple

Meet Julie

Julie Loos is the mom of 5 kids and has been happily married to Greg for 19 years.
She loves to read, eat chocolate, drink iced tea and spend time writing in the midst of messes.

You can find her blog at Unmasking the Mess.

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