Taking off

How I cope with stress and anxiety

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In his article today, Michael Burg, MD invited me to respond to the question, How do you cope with stress and anxiety? Good question. Not very well historically, I’m afraid.

Before we do a deep dive, however, let’s look at that word “cope.” To cope is to “deal effectively with something difficult.” Effectively, of course, is the operative word. Therefore, I won’t tell you about all of the counter-productive things I do when I am stressed or awash in anxiety, all the ways I succumb, the ways I let it drive me, the ways I flail and flounder. I may tell you about a way that sometimes works, but is not generally considered advisable or the best route. Let’s call it a short-term solution, but it has worked for me in that capacity, and I do enjoy it. We’ll get to that.

So, let’s talk about what works. I appreciate the way Michael worded the question because it forces us to respond positively. First, I want to say, anxiety and stress are terrible. I know well how toxic they are, how it feels to have them running through my bloodstream, how weird they make me act, how unpleasant they are, and how unpleasant they make me to be around.

I want to position myself first as a fellow sufferer. I do understand, terribly well, how awful it is to be vulnerable to serious anxiety. I understand what it feels…