Generalized Anxiety
What It Feels Like:
Anxiety manifests in many forms, such as in your body and in your mind. Anxiety in your mind may look like intense worry, difficulty controlling worries, nervousness, or thinking about the worst-case scenario. Bodily anxiety may not have words attached, but it is still just as impactful; it can include restlessness, shaking, irritability, increased heart rate, sweating, muscle tension, upset stomach, headaches, and fatigue.
Psychologically Speaking:
Anxiety is the body's natural reaction to stress, but chronic anxiety, like Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD), can interfere with daily functioning, leading to persistent worry and an exhausting daily struggle.
A Christian Perspective:
While Scripture reminds us to “cast all your anxieties on Him” (1 Peter 5:7), struggling with anxiety doesn’t necessarily mean you lack faith. Believers have always wrestled with fear. In many of the Psalms, David is pouring out a heart full of fear and anxiety about what is to come. As Christians we must remember that God meets us in our distress, not condemning us, but asking us to give our anxieties to Him. Too often we try to take things into our own hands when in reality there is great peace in allowing the Lord of the universe to have control and to just be accepting of going along for the ride.
Feeling Anxious? Try This:
One of the best ways to take control back over your mind is to identify the thoughts that you are having and to hold those thoughts to the fire. Let’s say that you’re feeling anxious about something that you have to do later tonight. First, identify what it is that's making you feel anxious (the thing you have to do tonight). The next step is to ask yourself if these thoughts are based in fact or in fear. Do you truly have a reason to be worried about what is coming up later tonight? Is this a life-or-death struggle? Can this thing you have to do later change the trajectory of your entire life? Or is it possible that sitting around and ruminating on this fear has blown it out of proportion? A lot of the time when you begin to identify what it is that you are worrying about and start to examine these thoughts closer, they become a lot less dire than they initially seemed. But let's say even after holding the fear to the fire, you are still nervous and cannot seem to shake it; well, that's when God comes in. The final step is to replace that fear with truth. Tell yourself something like, “Even though I am nervous to do this, I know God will be with me and I will get through it.” A lot of people initially jump to the worst possible scenario in any given situation and that way of thinking leads to countless hours wasted ruminating on something that was unlikely to happen from the start. The truth is even if the worst possible scenario does play out, God will be right there walking you through it. Another great way of dealing with anxiety as a Christian is prayer. Too often the times we need to stop and pray the most are the times we want to do it the least. So when you're going through a hard time and your mind won’t stop racing, just force yourself to take a step back. I know you don’t want to do it but trust me, by doing so you are taking the power back over your mind. Start breathing slowly and while doing so tell God what it is you're nervous about and remind yourself that He is with you and will guide you through it.
Final Thoughts:
God allowed Joseph to be sold into slavery in Egypt. God allowed Daniel to be thrown into the lion's den. God allowed Job to lose it all. In life we are going to experience pain, suffering, and situations that will bring out immense fear in us. The difference is not that the righteous don't feel nervous about these things. Even Jesus sweated blood thinking about what awaited Him on the cross. I'm sure that Joseph was terrified of life as a slave in Egypt. I can promise you that Daniel wasn’t excited about being thrown into a den of lions either. Job had every reason to give up, but he didn’t. What makes somebody righteous isn't how they feel at any given moment; it's about who they put their trust in moving forward. We will all feel anxiety at some point and unfortunately some of us struggle with it a lot more than others. All I can say to you is if you are one of those unfortunate souls going through a constant battle with your own mind, you are not alone. You are not a bad Christian. God loves you just as much as any of us.
If this is a constant struggle for you, I would suggest looking into forms of therapy such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), or Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). These forms of therapy have worked for a lot of people and they merge well with the Christian faith.