Finding Faith and Strength in God: Battling Anxiety, Depression and Self-Doubt

You might think I have my life together due to the prolific amount of humorous and inspirational content I post here on IG and this website.

That’s one of the side-effects of social media. It causes people to think the creators of their favorite accounts somehow discovered the secret to dealing with life’s curveballs (and sinkers, fastballs, and knuckleballs) thrown our way.

But I have struggled and continue to this day to deal with anxiety and depression.

Some months it is on a daily basis.

This has been a rough week for me.

It’s been stressful at my retail job (thankfully, there’s relief on the horizon with less hours next month), it’s a busy time with parenting four children and juggling all the responsibilities that goes with it, and I’m struggling with imposter syndrome when it comes to my writing.

Anxiety disorder is something I’ve found I have to slay and tackle daily.

There is no permanent remedy save for total and complete abandonment to God’s Providence.

Daily prayer is a must in the battle against angst. 🙏

But it must be a conscious focus each and every single day.

These shields help my battle too:

  • Counseling
  • Music
  • Anxiety medicine
  • Humor (The Office has helped me an incalculacable amount of days)
  • Blessed Virgin Mary and the saints to help me find peace of mind and discover the joy of the Gospel

If I ever got a tattoo it would be the Teresa of Avila prayer. Daily I ask for her intercession, and I etch God’s promises on my heart every time I recite this prayer.

Let nothing disturb you.

Let nothing frighten you.

All things are passing away: God never changes.

Patience obtains all things Whoever has God lacks nothing.

God alone suffices.

God wants you to find comfort and peace in this life. Never be afraid to seek help or to admit you don’t have your life together: no one else does, it’s part of being human.

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3 Simple Ways to Anchor Yourself to God

Life is confusing with plenty of surprises, trials, and unimaginable challenges, right? It feels like everything is constantly changing, and we’re constantly being thrown off balance. So, how can we stay centered in the midst of all the chaos?

It seems like the only constant is change. How can you center yourself in the whirlwind of the world?

From a Catholic perspective it starts with a relationship with God. He is the source of life and only constant.

Here’s three simple AND effective ways to anchor yourself to Love Divine.

Jesus is our anchor

Pray the Rosary

This prayer is a mediation on the passion, Death, and Resurrection of Jesus. Saint Louis de Montfort wrote, “[Mary] is the safest, easiest, shortest and most perfect way of approaching Jesus and will surrender themselves to her, body and soul, without reserve in order to belong entirely to Jesus.”

A bold statement. But it’s true. True devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary will ALWAYS end in worship of Her Son.

Stability through the Sacraments

But praying the rosary is only the first step. If you want to develop a greater relationship with God and find stability in life you must engage in the sacramental life of the Church. Attend Mass weekly. Go to confession regularly. Thank your parish priest for their service and express your gratitude to faithful married couples in your life. These are simple ways to life sacramentally that help anchor you to God.

Link to God by Loving Your Neighbor

The third simple way to fasten yourself to the Lord is living out the corporeal and spiritual works of mercy. In Matthew 25, Jesus taught his Apostles the necessity of tending to the basic bodily needs of their neighbors. We are charged with the same care. And praying for others via the spiritually works of mercy is no less important than the corporeal works.

Find your Mother and Find Her Son.

Remain with The Son (and Father and Holy Spirit) via the sacraments.

Love Your Neighbor (and You Love God)

Follow these three simply steps and you will anchor yourself to God and find safe harbor from the mayhem of the world.

Related Links

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The Only Lasting Solution to Overcome (or at Least Combat) Stress

The world moves at lightning ⚡ pace and stress seems to compound faster than interest on payday loans.

Add the short-staffing crisis and the ongoing pandemic to the mix and it’s no wonder people’s mental health is on the brink of breaking (again and again).

Will the Stress Ever End?

I have suffered anxiety attacks at least weekly at work.

I often get frustrated at myself for not having more “strength” to weather the stress storm.

“My best is not enough” I think as I analyze the ever-growing list of things needed to do at work.

And it never will be enough.

You are not meant to have perfection or “enoughness” in this life.

Only One can fill your heart and mind with satisfaction and long-term peace, contentment and joy.

God.

Gratitude is our oxygen.

The pressures of the world make it appear survival is the only option. Inhale a large breath and make it last until you burst.

Taking a moment or two to exhale by taking in gratitude infuses new life.

God gives us grace (pure gift) to help us in times of trouble.

The catch?

Gifts are only help when you accept them

Ask and you will receive.

One way to receive grace is to practice gratitude.

Exhale this Monday.

What are you grateful for today?

P.S. Three things I’m thankful for today:

  • Coffee
  • Blankets
  • Bible in a Year podcast

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Fortress Mentality—How You Can Keep Negativity Away in Your Life

Fortress

Growing up, I enjoyed constructing blanket forts in the living room or playing under the deck with my siblings in our dirt-laden bunker. Something about forts invokes nostalgia. Security and strength also are words that immediately come to my mind when I think of fort [and fortresses].

Over the past few years, I have noticed an increased anxiety, not only from myself, but from society as a whole. Americans enjoy the pleasure of living in a wealthy and free society—privileges not afforded in other places and times.

My aim here in this post is not to analyze the causes for the increased angst. That I will leave to professionals in psychology, medicine, and psychiatry. Instead, I am going to share a couple reasons why retreating to my cerebral citadel as opposed to actively engaging the stress inducers has worked for me for the past month.

Note: Please be aware, that while this approach may work for me I am in no way endorsing a fortress mentality being a miracle-cure method to fending off fretfulness for everyone.

Offense vs. Defense

Defense beats offense

Swiss-American psychiatrist Elisabeth Kubler-Ross wrote,“Negativity can only feed on negativity.” From personal experience, I know that negativity only grows when you give attention to it, too much attention will lead to negativity consuming your life. Fighting negativity with an offensive attack does not work. I came across this anonymous quote that stuck a cord on this subject, “When tempted to fight fire with fire, remember that the fire department generally uses water.

Different approaches are necessary when battling stress and negativity in your life. An image of a faucet comes to mind when complaining controls my life. Last month, I allowed my emotions to get the better of me: both at home and work. Frustrations about unmet expectations caused grievances which poured out like water running from an open faucet.

To combat my weaknesses, I simply went to source—my words and shut off the valve of verbal complaints. This month instead of vocally sharing my grumbles aloud, I created a laconic lock for my tongue. According to James 3, the mouth and tongue act as a gateway for various despicable behaviors. Keeping our words bridled is key to stopping negativity.  The Apostle writes in James 3:2-5,

If anyone does not fall short in speech, he is a perfect man, able to bridle his whole body also.a 3If we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we also guide their whole bodies. 4It is the same with ships: even though they are so large and driven by fierce winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot’s inclination wishes. 5In the same way the tongue is a small member and yet has great pretensions.

 

Albert Einstein Quote

Fortifying not fleeing

The brilliant Albert Einstein once declared, “Stay away from negative people. They have a problem for every solution.” Sometimes turning away from the stresses and negativity going on in life gets equated with running from your problems. Withstanding the temptations to give into the negativity that surrounds you displays strength.

Known as fortitude, courage is the foundation upon which virtue and the ability to withstand the assault of pessimism is built on. Author Maya Angelou succinctly states, “Courage is the most important of all the virtues because without courage, you can’t practice any other virtue consistently.” Shifting my mindset toward stoicism and fortress-like greatly helped me weather the storms of stress.

Becoming more self-aware of my vocal complaints, grumbles, and murmurings prevented me from stumbling into the sea of stress. Distancing myself emotionally from the “bad” or “negative” experiences I faced in the workplace or at home helped me to move more quickly onto the next task or event of the day. The image of a fortress best represents for me the virtue of fortitude and ability to block negativity.

Questions for reflection

  • Are you currently in a negative environment?
  • What steps have you done to change your situation?
  • Think of three things you can do to take action in the next week to decrease negativity in your life.

Quotes for further reflection

“But you, O man of God, must flee from these things; and strive for uprightness, godliness, good faith, love, fortitude, and a forgiving temper.” –1 Timothy 6:11

For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love, and self-discipline.2 Timothy 1:7

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