February 2, 2020 A Daily Occurrence

Anxiety: jittery, dizzy, panicky, shaky, irritable, breathlessness, headache, can't relax. A feeling of worry, nervousness, unease, typically about an imminent event or something with an uncertain outcome.
Yesterday. All of the above.
I woke up tired. I had already had a very full week.
I woke up late.
Roads were closed due to flooding to where I was traveling.
I had to adjust to leave earlier, so that I could allow time for a possible detour.
Headache. Took an advil before the nausea set in.
Panicky. "Would we make it on time? Where would the detour take us? Will I be able to find a parking spot?"
Prepare to leave:
Make breakfast.
Make bed.
Pack snacks.
Take care of all the business-and just to be clear, not all the things needed to be done before I left, but Mr. Anxiety tells me they do.
Leave house.
Start driving.
Breathe in. Breathe out.
Headache gone.
Sun is shining.
But....anxiety "hangover" is in full swing.
Feeling teary.
Must "pull it together" to be present at event.
Drop off The Boy. Drive in search of a hot drink.
Breathe in. Breathe out.
Sound familiar to you? You are not alone. If I was to guess, I bet a lot of us experience all or some of the above. Frequently.
And I bet we are also very good at hiding all the jumbled up madness that swirls around within us.
I'm a good hider; unless you know me well, and then can sense when 'I'm off'.
But here's the thing. Here's the hope:
I am NOT anxiety. You are NOT anxiety. I am NOT all those words in this image. You are not either.
I am Ingrid.
Whole.
Loved.
Free.
Sometimes it takes me longer to get my focus back to whole, loved and free....but when I do? It's a beautiful thing.