Our resident Life Coach Brian Tregunna explains about a fun way to deal with anxiety.
Anxiety is definitely the most common issue that people ask me to help them address, which is to be expected because anxiety is something we all experience. After all, it’s our in-built self-defence mechanism which is designed to keep us safe from real or perceived threats.
However, if anxiety isn’t contained or well-managed, it can make people’s lives very difficult. The good news is that anxiety can be brought under control relatively quickly and one of the techniques I often teach my clients is known as, ‘The Home Movie’.
As Christmas can be a challenging time of the year for various reasons and most of us enjoy watching a good film/movie, it seems a particularly appropriate time to explain how to use the ‘The Home Movie’ anxiety management technique.
If you are feeling anxious about a forthcoming event, such as Christmas, an important test or a public performance – project your mind into the future.
Go to a time at least 15 minutes after the completion of the event you are worried about and look back at it. Imagine it being completed extremely well, a happy and successful experience. Turn up all your senses so that everything you see, hear, feel, taste and smell is at a very high level of intensity.
Create a movie in your mind, a ‘Home Movie’ with bright colours, loud cheers and applause. Visualise happy, smiling faces. Imagine your favourite tastes and smells. Turn everything up to an almost ridiculously high level. Have fun by letting your imagination run free, with no constraints. Just like a Roald Dahl story, such as James and the Giant Peach or Matilda, it doesn’t need to be realistic or logical. In fact, the more extreme and ridiculous, the better the effect.
Remember, you are communicating with your Unconscious Mind and convincing it that there is no threat so that, subsequently, there is no need for you to be anxious. The higher you turn-up your senses, the more you distract your Unconscious Mind and minimise the likelihood of any anxiety.
Then, come back to the present and look forward to the future event. There should be no anxiety. You should feel calm, strong and in control. If you still feel anxious about the forthcoming event, then simply repeat the process and turn-up the level of sensory intensity to make it even stronger.
You will, of course, still need to prepare for the event that has been worrying you and you will still need to perform well on the day, but there will be no anxiety to hinder or distract you. You will be able to focus all of your energy on performing at your best.
Further for information and advice about how to address anxiety, or any other life challenges, please contact Brian Tregunna on 07856571163, or
tregunnalifecoaching@gmail.com or www.tregunnalifecoaching.com
