Living with less anxiety and trauma: How Christian counseling can help.
Your anxiety and trauma resurface during the holidays every year. You get hit with overwhelm by your senses from all the bustle - the sights, smells, sounds, tastes and feel of a Christmas(es) past. The memories that you want to forget come back. You have responsibilities, now is not the time, you want to wait for when you have some time to think and a safe place to process what happened. What can you do in the meantime to keep yourself together?
Some say that it is impossible to feel gratitude and anxiety at the same time. Notice and be grateful to God for your strengths and gifts.
Reframe your thinking. Your greatest weakness can be a gift.
Be present, live one day at a time.
Avoid black and white thinking. Instead try seeing things from multiple perspectives by listening. Active listening takes time, but you are likely to get a broader and more accurate picture.
Use critical listening skills:
Is the speaker stating an opinion disguised as a fact, using questionable euphemisms, deceptive connotations, or inflated language? All these are forms of misleading communication.
Always remember to speak the truth with love, especially if it’s a hard truth. If you know something needs to be said and you don’t know what to say, pray, then wait until you do.
Free yourself from addictions.
Learn healthy coping skills for life’s daily problems.
Show up, participate, and keep commitments between counseling/group sessions.
Start living life more fully by expanding your social circles, i.e. join a church, Bible study, support group, special interest group on Meetup or Facebook, or support a non-profit cause with your time and money.
Give yourself grace and accept yourself. God does.
If you would like help you in your recovery process, I am here to help. You can experience the joy of meeting one goal at a time. Call 720-577-5985 or book a free 15 minute consultation.
