Friday, October 31, 2008

Calming Anxiety With Kindness

Anxiety
There is a lot of anxiety around at the best of times but observers say that a hard fought election only accentuates the anxiety.

Recent accounts report people are losing sleep over the rising and falling McCain polls.

Voters around the country, whether they support McCain or Barack Obama, say they are experiencing nail-biting, ulcer-inducing anxiety ahead of the election and all that's riding on it.

Antidote for Anxiety
Susan Smalley has written a practical prescription for anxiety, believing that it is important to try a little kindness. Here are her main points but read her article to get the full blast:

1. Be kind to your body.

2. Be kind to your mind.

3. Be kind to the world.

4. Kindness is on the rise.

5. Kindness trumps everything else.

Three Important Things
Smalley ends with this anecdote:

Henry James once said, "Three things in human life are important:

The first is to be kind. The second is to be kind. The third is to be kind."

Now is the time to practice all three.

Source: Susan Smalley, Election Anxiety: Kill it With Kindness, Huffington Post, 30 October 2008.

Dr Geoff Pound

Image: Poll anxiety