Tai Chi, Martial Arts, and Anxiety

I went to the laundry today and as I was waiting for my clothes to be dried I encountered a charming young lady named Jenny. She's a bright woman, personable with a good sense of humor. We made some jokes in that friend I made in the Coin Laundry way. She told me about her boyfriend, her life experiences, and the fact that she had recently lost her job due to anxiety attacks. She worked making coffee and sandwiches. Her boss wanted her to serve all the customers by herself as he sat and played on his computer. He fired her when her performance was not up to his standard. She went on to explain that she suffered from Social Anxiety Disorder and General Anxiety Disorder. Her clothes finished, she wished me a happy Thanksgiving and we parted ways but she left me with a gift.

The gift was one of insight into a deeper problem that plagues millions of people here in the US. I have met so many people who talk of panic attacks and anxiety issues. It's almost mind boggling. I myself have never experienced much anxiety at all and this state of affairs puzzled me. I'm an American, have debt, own my own business in this battered economy, I have even experienced the pain of losing both parents and a son. And yet anxiety has never really had a role in my life that I can remember. Then it hit me. I had trained in Tai Chi and other martial arts for over 27 years now. I had learned the differences between actual and perceived harm. Between pain and injury. Between mental and physical pain. I had also learned to take steps to analyze the situation and take action to neutralize the source of the pain. It really comes down to a set of very simple tools.

1. Stand outside the situation. This is not always easy but it is a valuable life skill to attain. You look at the situation not as an involved participant but from the point of view of an observer. I know it sounds hard but if  people can be trained  to do it in life and death situations like combat then you can learn to do it in your daily life. There are exercises to help you. I'm working on putting together a course and booklet of these.

2. Assess what is real versus what is imagined. In martial arts we talk about blocking the actual punch coming in rather than the one you are expecting to come in. But you needn't get hit in the head to explore this. You simply have to look at simple situations. Look at the reality as opposed to what you THINK you know. This kind of data parsing is invaluable in combating anxiety.

3. Feel Safe. You have to learn how to key certain feelings by physical gestures, code phrases, or breathing techniques. This will help you to create a calm and alert feeling that can help to combat the feelings of powerlessness and danger that anxiety attacks engender. You must learn to recognize true safety from danger.

4. Empower yourself. I have spent a long time learning at first hand to hand combat and later how to handle confrontations to the point of never having to fight at all. These concepts can be applied to social situations as well. You can maintain your own well being while being relaxed, calm, and confident.

5. Practice. My brother is a fire fighter. He runs into burning buildings and saves lives. I'm a martial artist I can handle attacks that come at me unbidden and unexpected. How do neither of us freeze up in these high stress dangerous situations? Simple. We practice and prepare for them mentally and physically. An anxiety attack is no different. You learn all you can about it. Learn your triggers. Face them in practice day in and day out. Daily practice takes the teeth out of the tiger.

I'm working on a course called Tai Chi for Anxiety. I'm hoping to offer it very soon and hopefully it will help anyone who deals with anxiety on a daily basis. Remember you are beautiful limitless beings and you can tame the tiger that is anxiety!

Have a Happy Thanksgiving and a special thanks to Jenny, my coin laundry buddy who brought anxiety into sharp focus. As the Shaolin Monks say Amitoufou!