Alleviating mental anxiety you experience upon waking isn’t always easy. How often do you get up in an anxious state? Do you feel calm and well-rested when you first wake up, or is your mind just reeling with thoughts and ideas?
If you suffer from frequent anxiety attacks and panic attacks, it’s likely that you experience a high level of stress and anxiety shortly after waking. The good news is, you can use this energy in a positive way and clear out those mental blocks before you tackle the day ahead.
Julie Cameron talks about writing “Morning Pages” in her book, The Artists Way. She encourages people to set aside about 30 minutes in the morning and write down the first thing that comes to mind.
I explain how to do this in my book Panic Away, and it’s one of the most effective ways to clear out anxious thoughts and get your day off on a positive start.
Just start each day by writing down the first thing that comes to mind. You don’t have to worry about grammar, spelling or even the format. Just jot down your thoughts, even if you have no specific thing to think about.
The goal is to continue writing and writing until you’ve filled about three pages. You want your mind to be free, to just ‘spill out’ all those disorganized thoughts so you’re not holding them in your head.
Use a pen and paper – the old-fashioned writing style seems to be more cathartic for most people – and keep the pages in a notebook or folder. These are strictly your Morning Pages , so you don’t have to worry about sharing them with anyone.
This is a really great technique from Julie Cameron. Do this regularly, and you’ll soon realize that you have greater mental clarity and can focus and concentrate better throughout the day.