This article is written by MicKenzie Crowley, M.A. from the BCC staff.
If you’re experiencing anxiety – you are not alone! Everyone experiences fear. (Ps. 56:3b-4). [1]
You may be used to anxiety and have experienced it for a long time. I have experienced anxiety throughout my life at different points, not understanding what I was experiencing!
Sometimes anxiety sneaks up on us and catches us off guard. Maybe there’s a random trigger you didn’t expect, symptoms of stress you haven’t experienced before, or a difficult situation you’re in the middle of right now. Although experiencing anxiety feels overwhelming, there are ways to respond to fear well, and there are ways to learn the source of your fear.
1. Slow down your body
Often when we’re feeling anxious it shows up in our body. Scripture teaches that we will experience fear and our bodies will react to emotions (Mark. 16:8, 2 Kings 6:15-18, Prov. 12:25, 1 Kings 19:1-18).
You might notice:
Breathing starts to be difficult or shallowHeart rate might start to raceFeeling sick to your stomach, or other symptoms
When we notice these changes, we need to slow down our body and breathe:
4-7-8 Breathing
First, exhale completely through your
