Hm, I think mine are mostly mental things. I can be extremely inflexible due to anxiety. It can be as simple as refusing to go to a different restaurant at the last second because I already looked at the menu online for the first restaurant. I also have bad moods where it's best to just leave me alone. Sometimes it's over in five minutes and I'm back to normal, other times it lasts a day. Sometimes I have no idea why it happens, other times I know and it's something incredibly stupid that I just need to work through in my mind. But, I think, perhaps my biggest form of baggage comes from the simple fact that I want to be a people person and I'm just so not. I range from weeks or months of attempting social interaction as I see other people doing it, followed by a complete meltdown over it. Then I have an "I don't give a shit" period followed by watching people to figure it all out. Then it starts all over again. All of that causes mood swings and stuff. Probably not very fun to be around for that reason. I've had relationships negatively impacted or ended over those things before.
I'm with you on this one. I often have entire days ruined by one irrational source of anxiety like this that I can't seem to shake. what's the deal with that?I can be extremely inflexible due to anxiety.
Anxiety is a tricky thing. It's such an un-agreeable feeling that if you don't keep it in check you can begin to become anxious about being anxious. You start avoid scenarios not because you necessarily fear something specific, but because you're worried something might make you anxious. This in turn makes you more anxious. Objectively, this is, as you say, irrational. You're inflicting self-detriment over self-created hypotheticals. Kind of like creating an invention in your head then being annoyed it doesn't have a certain feature. On examination of my own anxiety through mediation, I found it all stemmed from an avoidance of being in the moment. Any situation which meant I hadn't had a chance to think about or pre-empt it somewhat left me uneasy. Any scenario where the outcome meant that I would have to figure things out on the fly I avoided. With continuing practice, I have learnt to see thoughts as they are. Transient electronic signals in the brain. Ones that can only last and strengthen as long as I dwell on them. Letting them go is a simple as objectively acknowledging them and then choosing not to give them any more attention. The best essences of life lie in those times of being in the moment and riding the wave, dancing the dance. See yourself not as a slave to your thoughts. You are always in control. Of course, this is easier said than done and it's no flick of a switch. But with sustained mindfulness practice I all but guarantee you will see improvements in relation to your anxieties.
Exactly. I got so bad for awhile that I basically became a prisoner in my own home. Going to the store seemed like a huge feat. What if I didn't have enough money? What if I got into a fender bender? Luckily I've been able to work on it some in the last few months. Sometimes I can even go to a bar by myself which is pretty huge because you're bound to have someone talk to you when you go to a neighborhood bar. I'm also having less of the "oh suddenly something came up and I can't go" stuff when people invite me out. I missed a local Hubski meet-up awhile back, when I first got on here, because of that.