Want to struggle less with anxiety? Get in contact with the present moment.

Image of a long, narrow courtyard with plants. Photo by Anabela De Sousa on Unsplash

This is the third part of a six part series where I discuss how the principles of ACT (Acceptance and Commitment Therapy) can help you reduce the struggle with anxiety and move you toward a more meaningful life. In this post, I’ll be discussing why moving into the present moment is so important if you struggle with anxiety.

Most of us spend a lot of time living in our heads.

By living in our heads I actually mean we spend a lot of time hanging out in the future or in the past that we imagine. If you live with anxiety you already probably know this. You might find your mind scanning for what future problems might be coming up for you or dreading what might happen next. Or you might notice yourself chewing on things that happened in your past, going over your past life events and wondering if things could have been different. Meanwhile you might be completely missing what is happening right here and now.

The interesting thing about this past and future stuff? It doesn’t exist.

Sometimes we actually have to remind ourselves of this. The past and the future do not exist. And yet we spend a lot of time there. Hanging out there occasionally is not a bad thing. Reviewing the past and trying to see what we can learn from it can be helpful. And scanning the future for potential problems helps us survive. We need the ability to do both of these things to live our lives.

The challenge is when we get stuck in these imaginary places called the past and future and don’t spend much time in the present. We live in a constant state of remorse about the past or dread of the future and we stop living our lives. We stop seeing what is actually happening and what is actually available to us in the present moment. Building flexibility to come back into the present can be a great tool for moving toward psychological health.

Here in the present moment, you may actually be OK.

Here in the present, the only reality that exists, you are likely OK and you probably have resources to take care of yourself. There are likely no impending threats of danger and you aren’t necessarily living with consequences of past bad choices. For those of us who live with anxiety, it can be a true relief to remind ourselves of this.

Another reason the present moment matters is that it’s the only place where you have the opportunity to take action that is meaningful. Every single moment of your life is an opportunity to move toward the life that you want. While many times the choice will likely be small and subtle, nevertheless, you always have a choice. However, you have to be in the present moment to actually access this and figure out what might be best for you..

Here’s an example: perhaps you struggle with social anxiety and dread certain situations that might be really uncomfortable for you. That’s about living in the future, imaging what future events will be like and how bad they are likely to be. What’s interesting is what actually happens when you are in the present moment in a social situation. Here in the present moment you might notice some physical discomfort, feelings of anxiety, or distressing thoughts. You might also notice that the interaction is a really important one and really meaningful to you. You then might choose to continue to have it, even though you feel some discomfort. You can keep making that choice again and again in each present moment as it is happening.

How can you move into the present?

Moving into the present moment is a practice and no human stays there all of the time. But you can build the capacity to access the present moment. There are a variety of practices to get you there.

Formal meditation practice

A meditation practice is one great method for practicing present moment awareness. While there are lots of meditation techniques, most of them move you toward noticing what is happening here and now, in the present moment, without judgment. One of the simplest practices is to observe your breath. This practice, known as insight or vipassana meditation, can help you build skills around noticing what is happening right now.

Watching the breath doesn’t work for everyone but the good news is that you can also practice meditation by observing your body and it’s movements. Body scan meditation gives you a moment to move through your body noticing what is actually going on right now. Meditation on your body and its movements is even possible while practicing yoga or even walking. You can also use your senses to notice the world around you.

S.T.O.P.

One of my favorite ways to move toward the present moment is the STOP technique. It is portable, you can do it anywhere, and it doesn’t take much time. STOP is an acronym for

Stop what you are doing. Just pause whatever is happening for a moment.

Take a deep breath. Feel free to take more than one but allow this breath to slow you down and ground you in your body.

Observe what is happening. Start with what is happening around you. What are you noticing? What do you hear? What do you feel? Engage all of your senses. Now observe what is happening inside of you. What are you experiencing? Feelings, body sensations, thoughts, etc. could all be showing up in this moment.

Proceed with what matters to you. Take a final moment to assess the present moment and determine what feels meaningful. How do you want to act? What would move your life in a valued direction?

Choose the life you want to live

There are lots of ways to move into the present moment and it’s worth the time to explore and discover one that might work for you. Moving back into the present gives you the opportunity to move out of your head and back into the life you are actually living. It gives you the freedom to choose what matters to you and will make your life more vital.

In part four of this series on using the principles of ACT for anxiety, I’ll be discussing how building in some flexible perspective taking can help reduce your struggle with anxiety.