Let’s do an exercise.
Take a moment to think of one of your favorite foods. Think of one that really enjoy. I’ll play along as well. For me, it is my mom’s German chocolate cake. Don’t just think of it. Really imagine it sitting there in front of you. Bring the image to life as deeply as you can. Picture what it looks like; notice all the different colors and textures. I can see the light brown icing of my mom’s cake filled with coconut. I can see the thin layer of icing running down the middle of my slice. I can see the crumbly texture of the cake.
While you are seeing it, notice the smells. What aromas are coming from your food? I can smell the sugary smell of the icing and the cake. Don’t stop there. When you touch it, what do you feel? I can sense the gooey icing and the texture of the coconut. What about sounds? My cake is rather silent, but perhaps you hear the sizzle of something hot, while you smell and feel the steam rising up from it. Finally, it is time to imagine the taste. Take a big bite, but don’t just chew it up and swallow. Imagine all of the different flavors in your mouth as you savor your favorite food.
How are you doing? Well, if you are like a lot of people, you may find yourself salivating. Or you may be thinking of the last time or a special time when you had this dish. You might picture all the people who were there, and all the thoughts and feelings associated with this moment. For me, I am thinking of birthdays as a child when mom would make this cake for me and all my friends.
Here you are, experiencing all the senses that go with your favorite food. And there is no cake, or lasagna or fajitas anywhere around you. Just by thinking about this food, all of this is happening.
Now, keep the experience with you. Stay with all the sights and smells and tastes. While you are doing that, I want you to repeat out loud the name of your food over and over as quickly as you can for thirty seconds. What happened? Again, if you are like a lot of people, all the sensations of your favorite food are have subsided or are gone.
The Power of Your Thoughts
This simple exercise demonstrates the power of your thoughts. Just by thinking, you can have a deep experience of your favorite food. Now imagine the thoughts are not about your favorite food, but a situation that makes you feel anxious or fearful. Maybe it is the last time you had a panic attack or a social situation where you began to feel anxious and overwhelmed. Just like your favorite food, you can get caught up in these thoughts, and you can feel the anxiety grow. And that situation or circumstance is not present at all.
Thoughts are just thoughts
Unless with give them a power and a presence that can begin to control how you feel and how you act. You can really enjoy a moment with your favorite food so powerful that it impacts your senses. You can get caught up in a moment of anxiety so powerful that you start to feel anxious. But they are all just thoughts. You can repeat the name of your food over and over for thirty seconds, and all the thoughts of your food subside.
What would it be like, when you are caught up in these anxious thoughts, if you spend thirty seconds saying over and over, “I am anxious?” While the anxiety might not be gone completely, it is probably much less than thirty seconds ago! You are able to feel and let go of the power of your thoughts.
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