Sedative herbs and fantastic. Why do you think cannabis is so popular? It allows you temporary relief from a world that’s designed to make you move at 100 mph and to never be satisfied. My first post on anxiety detailed some great herbs to help you relax, but there’s another half of the story.
Any post I’ve written, or class I’ve taught on anxiety is far and away the most popular, over any other subject. Why is that?
We live in a world with constant stimulation, constant pressure to perform and produce, and very little positive feedback for it. So much so that the “Fear Of Missing Out” now has an acronym (FOMO, in case you unplugged enough not to have heard the newest buzzword).
If that isn’t enough, there’s a constant barrage of depressing news and predictions about how and when the world will end (will is be solar flares, nuclear war, climate change?). The millennial generation has grown up hearing the world is falling apart, that there’s nothing they can really do about it, but that they have to do something, because who else will?
All this makes it very difficult to actually address stress and anxiety on a deeper level, which makes the future for the millennial generation bleak. Ultimately, it’s going to take more than lemon balm to allow us to live lives that don’t haunt us with debilitating stress. Some are content with getting drunk and high, being apathetic, and carrying on with little thought to purpose. What about those for whom that’s not enough?
1) Live with purpose, but don’t shoot too high. You’re not going to save the world, but you can work your little patch of goodness. Be good to your friends. Forgive people. Be good to yourself.
2) Whatever you’re doing, do a good job. A job well done is medicine in itself. Be proud of yourself.
3) Don’t lose your sense of morality just because it makes money. The world is falling apart for that very reason. However, everyone needs to pay rent and feed themselves, and to say everyone can quit their jobs and join Greenpeace is just optimistic. However, if you feel like your work is corrupting your soul, maybe it’s time for a career change.
4) Let go of your FOMO. Be happy that your friends are following their dreams, and be willing to accept that you’re living your dream, in your own way. Your fate is not the same as that guy traveling Europe on $10. Maybe yours is eating at delicious sushi restaurants, or walking your dog in interesting neighborhoods.
5) Find the things that you truly enjoy. Not the things that you should enjoy, or you want to enjoy. Do you secretly enjoy reading romance novels? Do you love to listen to the rain? Love golfing? Let them judge and follow your bliss in spite of it.
6) Stop putting crap into your body and justifying it. Find healthy things you enjoy and eat them. That said, don’t beat yourself up over anything, because feeling guilty sucks.
7) Hate hearing about dead people on the news? Have a moment of silence with yourself in honor of them. Light a candle. And then let it go and move on with your day. War, murder and violence is not going away anytime soon. However, the more you ignore it, the more it lodges itself in your subconscious as unresolved grief.