Q: Feeling Anxious? A: “Just Listen”
I’m actually not punking you. I really do mean that two of the best ways to reduce your anxiety is to be listened to and to listen to others.
When you vent, then are listened to, then get past the venting to exhaling (meaning saying what’s really upsetting/scaring you underneath) and have that heard it does calm people down. When two people vent at each other and nothing more than that, each one feels tired and exhausted, but not necessarily less anxious, because all the crap between them builds up again.
Then when you can stop thinking about yourself and focus on listening to someone else and actually trying to be helpful, that not only calms them down, but calms you down.
If you think I’m punking you, I’m guessing that what calms you down is to get stuff off your chest and then have people to what you want them to which may leave you feeling better, but probably frustrates them or worse.
Why don’t you check with the people around you how well they think you listen to them and if you don’t how negatively that impacts them.
If your response to that is: “I don’t care what they think” then Chapter 11 in my book, “Just Listen” may be about you and you may be someone I wouldn’t want my sister to marry (fortunately I don’t have any sisters…now that’s a punk!)
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost
