Are you seeking quotes for inspiration because you battle daily anxiety? Know this–you are not alone!
There are a lot of feelings of being anxious around today. Just listen to the news, medical information, and the plethora of misinformation. Anxious feelings seem to creep up when we least expect them. Here are some amazing quotes for inspiration; thinking about them might help get you through the trying period as well as any other anxious times in the future.
The focus of these quotes for inspiration brings us back to ourselves, not what is happening around us. Think of how you see things happening around you, then read and ponder these quotes for inspiration, written by some very wise people.
15 Quotes for Inspiration When You Battle Anxiety
These fifteen quotes can offer you comfort and courage when facing your anxious feelings.
1. “P.S. You’re not going to die. Here’s the white-hot truth: if you go bankrupt, you’ll still be okay. If you lose the gig, the lover, the house, you’ll still be okay. If you sing off-key, get beat by the competition, have your heart shattered, get fired …it’s …it’s not going to kill you. Ask anyone who’s been through it.” – Danielle LaPorte
When things seem overwhelming and it seems there is no solution, it’s time to step back and take another look at the situation. Seek the help of those who have faced the same type of crisis. Remember that emotions are causing the reaction, so stepping back and looking at it through a more positive lens may be the thing to do. Many events, which seem distressingly painful at the time, lead to new paths and growth opportunities. As a very relevant example of quotes for inspiration, LaPorte relates to many of today’s pressures that we place upon ourselves.
2. “Life is 10 percent what you experience and 90 percent how you respond to it.” – Dorothy M. Neddermeyer
This is so true. Our response is what determines our feelings, whether positive or negative. Life is made up of experiences; it is our reaction to them that can cause us to be anxious feelings. These feelings are not automatically built into the event; we control our responses and interpretations of these events. Consider that you may be reacting to the stress of those around you, whether it’s from the news or family. Use tools like a walk outdoors to add a positive response.
3. “Anxiety is love’s greatest killer. It makes others feel as you might when a drowning man holds on to you. You want to save him, but you know he will strangle you with his panic.” – Anais Nin
Feeling anxious is the opposite of love. Love is acceptance and anxious fear is not loving. On the other hand, fear and panic make us say and do things that hold love at bay. Relax, let go and look at those negative feelings for what they are.
4. “People have a hard time letting go of their suffering. Out of a fear of the unknown, they prefer suffering that is familiar.” – Thich Nhat Hanh
The familiar is what has been known or done in the past, even if suffering ensues. Did you know that growth may be waiting in the wings, once that fear and clinging to the familiar is released. This Buddhist Monk was a peace activist, who knew that even though we are unhappy with the struggle, we are afraid to let go of it because we think that making a change might make it worse. But we can let the familiar go and move on to a new life of something better.
5. “If you trade your authenticity for safety, you may experience the following: anxiety, depression, eating disorders, addiction, rage, blame, resentment, and inexplicable grief.” – Brené Brown
Seeking safety, or the familiar, even though this does not work well, leads to a host of other problems. Being authentic to ourselves opens up new doors and opportunities.
6. “People tend to dwell more on negative things than on good things. So the mind then becomes obsessed with negative things, with judgments, guilt and anxiety produced by thoughts about the future and so on.” – Eckhart Tolle
Our tendency is to think more about negative consequences; this brings up more anxious feelings regarding the future. Realize this kind of thinking as a hole in the ground that you keep falling into.
7. “The other thing is that if you rely solely on medication to manage depression or anxiety, for example, you have done nothing to train the mind, so that when you come off the medication, you are just as vulnerable to a relapse as though you had never taken the medication.” – Daniel Goleman
Training your mind, through meditation or therapy, helps to alleviate symptoms when a medication has been abused or alcohol is used to numb anxious feelings and depression. When the medication is stopped, you will have the tools of true recovery.
8. “You can’t always control what goes on outside. But you can always control what goes on inside.” – Wayne Dyer
What you think about outside events is more important than the events themselves. Dr. Dyer believed we can create our own reality through our thoughts and reactions.
9. “You don’t have to control your thoughts. You just have to stop letting them control you.” – Dan Millman
Controlled by thoughts, we are not in real control. See the negative thoughts for what they are, and then you can move forward.
10. “Nothing can bring you peace but yourself.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
We are masters of our thoughts and need to see that peaceful thoughts are always available instead of fear and feelings of being anxious.
11. “Every time you are tempted to react in the same old way, ask if you want to be a prisoner of the past or a pioneer of the future.” – Deepak Chopra
Letting go of the past allows new inspiration to grab us, as we discover new ways of thinking and acting. A pioneer forges ahead to explore new territory.
12. “Life is 10 percent what you experience and 90 percent how you respond to it.” – Dorothy M. Neddermeyer
Your choice of how you respond to life’s challenges is more important than the challenge itself. We have the freedom to choose how to act when the negative overwhelm us.
13. “I promise you nothing is as chaotic as it seems. Nothing is worth diminishing your health. Nothing is worth poisoning yourself into stress, anxiety, and fear.” – Steve Maraboli
Chaos is a product of our imagination; it produces a host of stressful feelings and does nothing to solve the problem. We can choose to let go of the negative and move forward with solutions to problems that are troubling us and causing stress and unhappiness. Negative thinking has an effect on our physical and mental health, so we must let it go and see it for what it is.
14. “When I look back on all these worries, I remember the story of the old man who said on his deathbed that he had had a lot of trouble in his life, most of which had never happened.” – Winston Churchill
Fear is one of the biggest producers of feelings of being anxious. Many of these fears are unrealistic and cause needless worry.
15. “If you can’t fly then run if you can’t run, then walk if you can’t walk then crawl, but whatever you do, you have to keep moving forward.” – Martin Luther King, Jr.
Even baby steps are better than doing nothing out of fear. Facing the future may begin with tiny steps. Moving forward often involves small actions, not necessarily great leaps over hurdles that block us. It’s by actually doing the actions that lead to overcoming the struggle, not by the size of the actions themselves.
Final Thoughts: Use These Quotes for Inspiration to Help Push Through Your Anxiety
Many of these writers and personalities struggled with feeling anxious. Indeed, their quotes often come from first-hand knowledge. They faced enormous challenges that may make ours seem small in comparison, even though we often don’t view them that way. Use these quotes for inspiration when you need it.
Remember that anxious feelings are emotions and not necessarily a realistic picture of what is happening. Reading other quotes for inspiration can help you whenever you stray off the path into fear and negativity. Feeling stressed out is not new; stress has been around since the days of cavemen fighting off tigers and bears and enemies.
Meditation and mindfulness are ways of dealing with the stress of everyday life and soothing a mind that feels frazzled. Furthermore, you can meditate through the use of quotes that provide inspiration and insight. When anxious feeling pops up, it is wise to say, “This too shall pass,” while seeing the thoughts for what they are. Quotes for inspiration can only do so much; you must be the one to turn your thoughts around.
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