Mental Health

I’m no health professional…

“I have stress.”, don’t we all? “I don’t handle stress very well.”, join the club. Just a few things that run through my head when folks say things to be about anxiety and the building emotions around everything in their lives crashing to the ground.

What do you do when you find yourself in that situation? Curl up into a ball? Maybe your emotions come to the surface by way of tears or anger? Well, I am a religious person who reads all the time about not fearing- but instead to trust God. Did you know the most often repeated command in all of scripture is “fear not”? We are constantly told in religion to not fear— and nothing is different for those who are the most un-religious people. Remember the bumper sticker ‘NO FEAR!’, or Nike’s ‘Just Do It’- both are based on putting your anxiety aside and jumping in.

So, why do I bring this up? I bring it up as many are just sitting around with no real outlet for reducing stress. We are just laying around and watching Netflix and scrolling through our phones. It’s time to DO something.

For me, it was getting a camera and getting out of the house and going somewhere new, somewhere that moved me. Now, I mentioned that I’m a Christian- these places allow me time to get quiet, to be inspired by my Creator. It’s been a game changer, the time creating myself after being in creation is some of the richest time of my week.

You might not be creative, well- find something new. It might be working out at a gym, walking, jogging— even just sitting outside for a while. You can volunteer, help build homes- or work in a soup kitchen. The goal is to find something that moves your mind and feeds your soul. I promise, it will make a huge difference.

Prove me wrong, I dare ya…

Jack