Dealing With Anxiety: Practice the Three Breaths of Gratitude

Even successful people feel anxious. The difference is they learn how to deal with anxiety. One way to resolve anxiety is by practicing meditation.

Does aiming for success make you feel anxious?

Feeling anxious about achieving your success is normal. Even successful people feel anxious during their journey to the top. The difference is they learn how to deal with anxiety.

You can resolve anxiety in a positive way. One way to deal with it is by practicing meditation. Clinical anxiety requires consulting a doctor. Other than that, meditation is very beneficial for mental health.

Meditation to Deal With Anxiety

Meditation has been a pinnacle for health since ancient times. In the modern world, meditation is becoming more mainstream than before. It’s an easy, simple and portable form of self-healing to help reduce negative emotions.

You might resist when you hear the word meditation. Perhaps you think meditation involves long hours sitting up straight and chanting exotic mantras.

That form of meditation does exist, but at its core, meditation is the act of releasing tension and friction in your mind. It manages the circulation of energy throughout your body.

One way to manage your energy circulation is to manage your breathing. Regulating your breath has the effect of reducing anxiety by calming down your body.

You can start turning meditation into a habit by meditating a few minutes each day. Here is a simple five step practice you can try right now:

1. Sit up comfortably
2. Relax and think about the present moment
3. Breathe in slowly and deeply
4. Breathe out slowly
5. Repeat the cycle while focusing attention on your breathing

Gratitude Attracts Success in Your Life

You can modify the basic exercise above with the Three Breaths of Gratitude technique. I found this technique through Rob Scott the 3G3 Gratitude Practice.

This technique to help you deal with anxiety starts by saying something you are grateful about while breathing. With each breath, say one thing you are grateful about today.

Many successful people keep a “gratitude journal”. This is a list of the things they are grateful for each day. According to Rhonda Byrne of The Secret, being grateful is one of the most powerful ways to attract more success into your life.

Say three things you are grateful for each day. It’s better to start with small things that are tangible because the larger successes you want are born from these small things.

1. Say one small thing you are grateful for
2. Say each with slow breathing
3. Repeat three times

Combine gratitude with meditation, and you increase the effect of meditating.

Turn Anxiety into Preparation

I find that breathing out through your mouth helps to sharpen your focus. When you breathe out slowly, it doesn’t take long until your body starts to release the tension. If your body stays tense, keep continuing the practice.

Anxiety occurs when you believe you are stuck in life, or will become stuck in the near future. The illusion of not seeing a way out result in anxiety. Meditation by breath slows down your response so you can start to evaluate clearly for the next step to take.

Rather than being held hostage by anxiety, you can begin to make preparations for the right actions. Once you begin feeling calmer, take inventory of what you have and start from there.

The next time you have an anxiety attack, remember to meditate using the Three Breaths of Gratitude technique. Remember also your previous successes on dealing with anxiety. You are capable of resolving anxiety once and for all.

By dealing with your negative thoughts, you give yourself the power to achieve great success.