They've had that anxiety too….

When I was at the heighth of my dealing with anxiety and quiet desperation I was always looking at people around me that appeared to have it all together. I was always amazed at how calm or collected they almost always seemed. I would wonder what it was in me that caused me to be so sensitive or concerned that I struggled with the daily pressure in my head. One of the things that openned up a new world for me were podcasts and books that shed light on many of these people in the world that appeared to have it all together. Come to find out most, if not all, didn’t have it together or at least didn’t at some time in their life. The realization that I was not alone in this anxious world freed me up so much. There’s a ton of value in exploring people’s stories and learning how they deal with anxiety and “quiet desperation”. One of the first people and podcasts was Rich Roll. His story was really quite remarkable and how he transformed his life was a true inspiration. His book “Finding Ultra” was one of the sparks that inspired my own transformation. The remarkable thing is the realization that the work never stops. I listen to the Rich Roll Podcast every week and he has amazing guest that have similar or valuable stories but a common thread with his commentary is the fact we’re never really out of the work of transformation. I now look at people who appear to have their “shit together” and know that at some point or even right then and there they have a certain level of struggle. I’m quite sure there are people I deal with daily that think I have the perfect attitude and perspective and may not realize what is or has gone on in my head and in my life. I’ve learned to have perspective on what’s important. I stopped feeling quilty about taking care of me first without compromising the other important aspects such as family, community and career. It’s boiled down to understanding the sentiment from a previous blogpost about putting your oxygen mask on first before helping others. There’s comfort in knowing that it seems to be just part of the human condition that we’re all “in out heads” to some extent.