Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.

Philippians 4:6 (ESV)

I know you've experienced anxiety in your life, and chances are you're going through it right now. Me too, and as I get older I'm learning to come to terms more with it. In the past I'd pretend it wasn't there and then it would suffer from it's symptoms like insomnia, eating poorly, slower work production and having a bad attitude. The more aware I become of it though, the better I'm able to address it.

I wish I could say I had "done away" with anxiety and found the cure for it. But I think a more true statement is "I'm learning to recognize and manage it to where it doesn't effect me as much."

I'm definitely not an expert in this area, but I can share from my own personal experience on how I deal with anxiety. If parts of my story encourage you, that's great. If you have any questions, feel free to reach out!

1. Stay active and keep moving
I've noticed that the times I'm feeling most anxious is when I'm not moving. literally. I'm sitting more, whether it's 8 hours at in front of a computer screen or 2 hours in front of the TV or on my phone. I'm not necessarily saying that my anxiety is caused by not doing anything, but in all the most challenging moments of anxiety, I find myself not moving. But when I get up, walk around, move around, I start feeling the gauge go down. Even if I'm not actively exercising, just stepping away from my office and sitting in a different environment even helps.

Below are some of the activities that I've found help me:
- Taking a 30 minute walk with our dog
- Going to the mall with Lizzy and walking around
- Make an excuse to go say hi to the neighbors
- Volunteer at a local church or school over the weekend
- Sign up for a Pickle ball group
- Do some light gardening
- Sit on the back porch and read or write

2. Take inventory of what I'm allowing inside me
I've noticed that a lot of the anxiety I feel is fueled by what I allow inside me, both mentally, spiritually and physically.

For example, splurging on junk food, not keeping up on my water intake, and not eating enough fruits and vegetables will decrease my energy level and make me feel more sluggish.

Consuming too much TV, taking in too much screen time or watching Reels on Facebook depletes me mentally.

Listening to too much critical talk from others, watching the news or reading negative posts on social media drastically effects my mindset.

Going a week or more without reading my Bible, spending time in prayer or engaging in worship at church leaves my spiritual tank empty.

On the opposite end, when I watch what I allow inside me both physically, mentally and spiritually, I noticed the anxiety meter drops a couple of points. For example, when I stopped using sugar in my coffee, my foggy brain begin to decrease. When I started being mindful of my screen time, I felt more energized to read a book or hang out with Lizzy. When I listen to audio books or podcasts with a positive message, I feel more motivated. And when I take time to read and invite God into my daily life, I feel that inner strength and peace from Him.

3. Evaluate the problem causing the anxiety
Being active and reducing the negative inflow in my life doesn't remove my anxiety completely. In fact if I had to be honest, there are days when I'm moving and watching what I'm putting inside me and I catch myself feeling the same level of anxiety.

But what the first two step create for me is a state of mind where I can evaluate the root of my anxiety more clearly. When you've been sitting in front of your computer screen for hours and eating food in low nutrients, it's much more difficult to accurately identify what thoughts or situations are causing you to feel anxious. When my heart is pumping, my blood is flowing to my brain and my mind feels clearer, I can at least be more self aware of what's triggering my feelings.

What's triggering your anxiety? What's the root cause for you?

For me, I've discovered it's usually an external factor in my life (a person, situation, dilemma or other issue) linked to a negative assumption I have about it. If I could turn it into a formula, it would look like this:

Anxiety = External Factor x Negative Assumptions

Here are some examples of how this formula plays out in my life:

Scenario 1: Car related anxiety
External factor: The check engine light comes on while driving our car
Negative assumption: Our car is going to kick the bucket and I'll be out of thousands of dollars

Scenario 2: Work related anxiety
External factor: I have ten times the amount of projects to complete this week
Negative assumptions: I won't be able to take care of them. I'll lose my job and become homeless.

Scenario 3: School related anxiety
External factor: I have an exam due by the end of the week and a whole book I still need to read
Negative assumption: I'm going to fail my exam, flunk my class and drop out of college.

Scenario 4: Social anxiety
External factor: I've never met the people in this group I'm attending and don't know what their interests in life are, or what their thoughts are of me.
Negative assumption: These people will judge me and we won't have anything in common. Tonight is going to be miserable.

Try applying the A = Ef x Na formula when you feel anxious and see if you can identify what's triggering your anxiety.

4. Give the situation to God
By this time I have a short list of factors and assumptions I've identified. At this point, I do what the Bible says and "cast my cares on God". And in Philippians 4:6, we're given a clear model on how to give our anxiety to God:

"By prayer and supplication..."
I will pray specifically over each area I'm struggling with. My prayers usually go something like this:

"Jesus, I've been weighed down with the check engine light coming on. I don't know what this means for me, but I know you hold all things together, and I ask that you would help our mechanics to fix the issue."

"With thanksgiving..."
This is an intentional act of remembering all the previous times God has been there for me in the challenges I've faced in the past. Remember, it's always easier to focus on the bad things that have happened to us, and it's those negative situations that feed into our negative assumptions. But when we remember all the times God walked with us in our worst situations, that peace inside us begins to ignite.

I often have to remind myself of God's goodness by saying:

"God, you brought me this far without failing me. I know you'll carry me the rest of the way".

5. Connect with others for support
God uses people to help us work through anxiety. "As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another." Proverbs 27:17 (NIV). There's nothing to be ashamed about connecting with others.
Healthy people can help draw out those negative assumptions and can speak life back into us. They can encourage us, motivate us and challenge us in a positive way.

I have a small network of people I can go get coffee with anytime I feel like I need to in order get out of my head and help someone. If I'm anxious about something at work, I have a friend I can vent all my work related thoughts to, knowing they will give me constructive feedback. Same thing with my marriage, finances and health.

Below are a few ideas for connecting with people:
- Ask to get coffee with your pastor or church deacon
- Join a small group or Bible study at your church
- Reach out to a trusted friend and either get coffee or do a Zoom call
- Work on a project with someone if that's more comfortable opening up
- Reach out to a trusted life coach
- Schedule a time to talk with a reputable therapist