I wanted to discuss something my father-in-law shared with me a few weeks ago that I have found to be very profound.  We were having a conversation about tension and anxiety, something that he is very good at freeing people from.  He said that he has found in his life and in the lives of those he has helped that the “antidote” for tension/stress/anxiety is thankfulness and gratitude.  When you look at that from a psychological perspective, there is a great deal of accuracy and truth to it.

We all have fears that live within us.  These fears (failure, rejection, pain, death, divorce, etc.) are activated many times on a daily basis and create tension.  Tension causes us pain and also to lose our perspective.  When we have lost our perspective, we forget all that we have in our lives to be thankful for.  If you can hold on to the things that you have to be thankful for, it is very hard to find yourself caught in the trap of tension and fear.  You will not lose perspective and your fears will be stripped of the great power they have in your life.

The next time you are feeling tension or fear, begin to verbally speak all the things that you are thankful for.  Start with the ability to see, hear, walk, run, speak, write, read, etc.  Move from there to having food to eat today, a roof over your head, clothes on your back, means of communication and transportation.  Then from there speak out all other areas of your life that you are thankful for.  Having a heart and attitude of thankfulness is a great was to begin the process of overcoming the fear and tension in your life.  We encourage you to give it a try this week.

For more information on fear and anxiety or to schedule a session with Nathan or Amy Oliver, please connect with us at www.olivercounseling.com.