Frosty and Anxiety

Cold but lovely.

The holiday season is in full swing!

As the new year approaches, it is a time for reflection on the past and planning for the future.  This can be a huge source of stress for some.

What does the future hold?  What will the new year bring?  If you have anxiety, it is easy to worry about the bad things that might happen.

This is where we can all learn a lesson from a well-loved holiday icon: Frosty the Snowman.

So, we have all heard the song about Frosty, a snowman who came to life for a day when a magic hat was placed on his head. However, what makes him an inspirational figure is not his magical transformation to living being from inanimate object.  It's his attitude about life.

For me, this is the most meaningful part of his story:

"Frosty the Snowman knew the sun was hot that day,
so he said let's run and we'll have some fun now before I melt away."

Frosty was aware that his time was fleeting.  Instead of worrying about his impending end, he seized the day and lived in the moment.  He didn't waste the time that he had worrying.  He lived that day triumphantly spreading joy to those around him.

This is something that I admire and want to learn.  Rather than spend my time suffering, mulling over whatever catastrophe I think or know is coming, I need to live in the moment and enjoy what I have.

So, if you're like me and you let anxiety get the best of you more often than you'd care to admit in 2016... let's make a deal.  We will continue to try.  We will fight our inclinations toward negativity and work towards more positive thinking.  We will be more like Frosty.

Let's make 2017 our best year yet.

Can't

A helper.

The other day my mom and I were working on making my bed and Gus decided (as he always does when we make the bed) that the best way to help out was by sitting in the middle of the mattress.

Mom concluded, "Now we can't make the bed."

But we did.  We put the blankets over that silly pup and continued.

That's the funny thing about the term "can't". Yes... there are times that you literally cannot do something.  However, most of the time we use the word to cover up something else.

Instead of "I can't do this," what we really mean is "I won't do this," "I am too afraid to do this," or "I don't want to do this."  

This is especially true with OCD.  OCD is always telling me that if I don't perform some compulsion, I can't go on.  I worry that I won't make it through the anxiety if I don't listen, or something bad will happen if I don't comply. Sometimes my OCD also tells me that my anxiety over something will never disappear, no matter what I do.  It says "You can't get over this."

Well guess what?  OCD is wrong.  I CAN.  Not because I'm some superhuman, exceptional person, but because I keep going.

So here's to the triumph over can't.  You are strong and you will get through whatever trial you are facing.