I received this message from a reader named Serena and thought it was so powerful I asked her if I could share it with you.
From Serena:
If I have one Universal message for you it is this:
You are loved, supported, valued, cherished, appreciated, honoured, admired and respected. At every moment.
By the Source that holds you in love at every moment.
There is no moment here you have been left, nor could be.
You can do anything. The very best is wanted for you.
You are never alone. You are always loved.
No matter how difficult things seem, you are always being lifted up, even when you feel alone.
No matter how big a leap in life seems, you are greater than the distance you must jump.
You are free. You are able. You are complete.
Lots of love,
Serena
Coincidentally, Serena ended up leaving me this message on ‘one of those days’ when I was feeling pretty crappy and just needed to reframe my perspective. Lately, the anxiety that I’ve struggled with for many years, has started to creep back into my life and I’ve had a difficult time dealing with it on my own. Sometimes it’s anxiety about not feeling good enough or about my body; other times it’s about judgment from others or even feeling alone. If you’ve ever suffered from anxiety, you probably know that it has no limits and it can quickly impact your day to day life. To this day, I strongly believe that my eating disorder was a coping mechanism for my anxiety.
Anxiety usually breeds more anxiety which sucks. I feel more anxiety because I’m not supposed to be struggling with this anymore. I’m supposed to be past this. I’m supposed to be inspiring others. How can I do that when I’m struggling myself?
But I’m only human.
It’s easy to lose sight of the big picture and get bogged down by negative thoughts that loop in our minds, but often, all it takes is a positive message to set those thoughts on the right track again, or even give us hope that we can change. That is what Serena’s message did for me. Her message reminded me that we all struggle and even if we’ve made great progress with things in our lives, sometimes they need more care and attention once and a while.
I receive a lot of emails from other women (and occasionally men) who are struggling with accepting themselves, finding a career they enjoy, ending a bad relationship, illness/injury, or even feeling accepted by their own family. Our struggles may be different on the surface, but what remains true for most of us is that we want to feel love and support from the people that matter to us. That will never change.
And usually that love and support is already there, but we fail to see it. We fail to open ourselves to accept it. We have to be vulnerable to let love into our lives. We have to take risks to make progress.
I’ve always loved quotes. I’ve always loved writing with my heart on my sleeve, knowing that others will connect with words on a screen, in a way that I will never know. I’ve always loved the power that a simple message can have.
Serena’s message inspired me to start working on my struggles with anxiety again. But, I know that I can’t do it alone, so I’ve decided to start seeing a psychologist again to help me with some unresolved issues in my past. I’ve had great success with therapy, and I know I will again. It’s scary though- even for me who has done it before- to open up and make myself vulnerable, but I know that I’ll be just fine. I debated for a while whether I would write this post or not, but I realized that if I didn’t, I would be missing the point.
I’m sharing this with you today in hopes that it connects with you on some level, no matter what you may be dealing with at this very moment. Maybe you got up this morning and the first thing you did was examine your stomach and thighs in the mirror, cringing, while vowing to lose weight. Maybe you struggle with alcoholism, bulimia, abusive relationships, shopping addiction, or perhaps you have the life you dream of and just feel guilty over the thought that something is still missing.
The best thing we can do when we’re struggling is reaching out to another person. The worst thing is to assume that no one cares or will judge us for our struggles.
We are never alone.
~~~
“Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgment that something else is more important than fear.”~Ambrose Redmoon
“The truth is that our finest moments are most likely to occur when we are feeling deeply uncomfortable, unhappy, or unfulfilled. For it is only in such moments, propelled by our discomfort, that we are likely to step out of our ruts and start searching for different ways or truer answers.” ~M. Scott Peck
“We are all functioning at a small fraction of our capacity to live fully in its total meaning of loving, caring, creating and adventuring. Consequently, the actualizing of our potential can become the most exciting adventure of our lifetime.” – Herbert Ottto
wow…. that exactly what I needed to hear today. I have been really struggling with trying to lose the weight and get back on track with a healthier life style. I have reached out to my mom to help me, and that was a big step for me. My biggest fear is slipping back into my eating disordered habits which I think is why I am having such a hard time losing the weight.
This was incredibly well timed, so thank you! I will probably re-read it several times today :-)
You are definitely NOT alone, anxiety is also a huge issue for me, and it totally can flare up and totally debilitate your day :-/
This morning started off “craptacular”. The culmination of several snowballing problems. Your reader’s encouragement reminded me that I am in God’s hands, even in the middle of this mess and that He’s brought me through rough times before and He will continue to do so. I can decide who I want to be in the middle of this and how I want to walk through this. THANK YOU!
Your post is so honest and beautiful! Thank you for sharing!
I choose to see a counsellor to deal with stress, fear, relationship issues, career issues etc., it provides a great sounding board. It is so beneficial, it is part of my life, like going to the dentist.
I am feeling exactly the same and have booked myself in for CBT. I do hope you feel better soon x
goodluck :) I love CBT!
You are amazing. Thank you for being so honest and showing us that it is OK to be imperfect. I hope that you are able to get past your current anxieties and feel beautiful again!
Thanks for your honest post. I have dealt with anxiety attacks in my life and counseling really helped. So did this tiny book called “help and hope for your nerves” by an old Aussie lady named Claire Weekes.
Hi Angela,
Thank you so much for this post – it is so inspiring and helpful when you share things like this so honestly with your readers. Anxiety is such a difficult thing to live with, and by turning your experiences with anxiety into a positive output (here on your blog) you have definitely inspired others to not feel alone. Thank you so much for providing a beautiful space here on your blog!
What a beautiful post! :)
I think whether or not people care to admit it, anxiety haunts everyone in some way, shape, or form. Our insecurities are like parasites. They subsist on our own health/well-being, and without treatment (whatever that may be), they grow; they multiply; they strengthen; and they attempt to overtake us. But there is a certain something that every person possesses–the power to overcome any threat and any parasite, to be more than the boundaries that your insecurities create. For some, it is readily accessible. For others, it’s locked deep within. But for everybody, it is there. The power to overcome that which daunts us is universal.
You’re right–we are never alone.
such a beautiful comment :)
Hi Angela,
Thank you so much for sharing this. You are very courageous to open yourself up to all of us who read your posts. All too often I think we’re all guilty of feeling anxiety about things that, in the end, don’t really matter. Most of us are too worried that our “perfect” personas will be ruined if we admitt this so we keep it inside. I think that if more of us were honest with each other, we’d all find that everyone has issues with anxiety from time to time. One thing that helps me whenever I’m feeling anxious, less than perfect (whatever that is), down in the dumps, etc is to write down at least 10 things that I’m grateful for. Once you start listing all the great things in your life, it seems to help to focus on the positive and gets you out of the negative. Anyway, thanks once again for your honesty. I absolutely love reading your blog and cooking your recipes. Thanks for all that you do for us. You are very inspiring!
wow, what a great message and I need to work on my anxiety too. Something I struggle with from time to time, I worry too much. Need to learn to talk out my problems instead of holding them inside and letting things get to bad.
Angela,
I just wanted to say that I cannot believe how incredibly blessed I am to have found your blog. My own battle with disordered eating has lasted 19 years, starting at the age of 7 when my mom put me on a crash-diet of cottage cheese and pineapple.
At my highest weight I clocked in at 330lbs at the age of 16. The last ten years have been the hardest on my body, my mind, and my spirit. I have managed, through a series of diets and “fasts”, to lose 130 of those pounds, in the unhappiest of ways. I married two years ago, and we are so incredibly happy, but both of us are sick. to. death. of my habits, attitude, and mindset about my body and obsession with calories, control, and emotional eating. I have circled the restrict/binge cycle many, many times. I have lost my mind in a fog of candy bars and milkshakes, only to wake up the next morning and sware off food and excercise out of guilt.
But (I LOVE that there is a BUT!), I have started the long, hard road into healing in my mind, body, and habits. I made the decision to step off the scale for good, and to stop giving myself a calorie alotment every day.
You have inspired me to believe that if someone else has gone through everything that I have gone through, then there is hope for me, however hard earned it may be. I completed my second 5k yesterday morning, and am learning to feel whole and unashamed with where I am.
THANK YOU for writing, and having courage. I look forward to your posts each day, and you continue to inspire and teach me. I appreciate you so much, and one day I guarantee you that I will share my own success story with other women so that they too can find their healing.
-Lindsey Krist
Thanks Lindsey for your comment and kind words. I’m so proud of you and the changes you have made! Im sure your story will be an inspiration to many. :)
Thanks for sharing this Angela. I see a therapist (not as much as I used to, but still often enough) and sometimes it makes me feel like I’m weak for doing so — but I know that isn’t the case. Most days I feel really proud of myself for admitting that I need some help dealing with anxiety, stress and depression and I’ve made progress which I attribute to my therapy, so why should I feel weak about that?
I hope you find some relief.
Thank you for being so brave to share what you are going through. It takes a lot to admit the things that we are struggling with and I think we can all use a few words of encouragement and be reminded that we are good enough!! Because we definitely are!
Keep your chin up because you are a beautiful person inside and out.
xx
Thank you for such a great reminder – especially for me this week. Tomorrow will mark 3 years since my dad passed away.
WOW, I really needed this quote today. Thanks so much for the inspiration! It’s easy to forget that I’m never alone.
Angela,
Great post. I think we all can relate. I have come to realize that I never beat anxiety or leave it behind, I just manage it in the best way I can. Your posts, with the beautiful pictures and healthy living, help me to stay positive and focused on making each day as good as possible.
We are more than our anxiety. I wish you the best in finding some peace, and please keep doing what you’re doing, because it helps me a ton :)
-Stephany
This is a great post Angela, thank you so much for sharing. Thanks to Serena too for being your inspiration.
Great post and what a sweet message.
Very inspiring. Thanks for posting :)
Thanks so much for posting this. I too struggle with anxiety and am in recovery currently from anorexia. I know that therapy has helped me so much. If there is one thing that I could share with you that I have learned thus far, it is that anxiety is not to be feared. It is not harmful…the bodily sensations that come along with it will not hurt us. They are TEMPORARY. Always. Once you stop fearing being anxious, you’ve won half the battle. Just try to sit with your anxiety and continue on with your day as normal. This tip from my psychologist has really helped me. I hope it will help you too. :) You will get over this next hump. I feel that times like this help to show us how we don’t want to live, so when we overcome our struggles we can truly appreciate our lives and all the wonders it has to offer. :)
I love that tip…thanks for sharing!