One morning as I was sipping on my coffee I was finally contemplating my life with anxiety as I never had before. I was grateful for it. “Wait what?” you must wonder. I was surprised too. I guess after years of battling with this condition on that morning I came to the realization that anxiety was always there, and probably it will always be. However, it’s not stopping me anymore. It’s not stopping me from pursuing my dreams, from being an awesome woman and enjoying motherhood, from becoming stronger. It’s not stopping me from learning, living and loving. And I realized that I came to the moment that I was dreaming of for so long. I am not afraid of the monster anymore. I have made it my master.
Don’t get me wrong. I don’t enjoy having it. Anxiety is a bitch! and that monster has taken already so much from me. But the same battle with the monster has forced me also to overcame so many things, and led me to learn and discover so much about me and others down the road that my life is richer because of it. I finally came to terms with who I really am and love myself despite the effing monster, or the sporadic panic attacks, or the occasional overthinking, and all the anxiety shenanigans.
So after finishing my coffee I did what I do best. Write. I came up with 18 rules or declarations, things that I have learned thanks to the battle with my anxiety monster and I believe they can help me every single day to remind me of all what I have learned. Because thanks to anxiety and motherhood sometimes I can forget about all of it. It’s possible, to keep having those bad anxiety days or as I call them, “black hole days.” However, thanks to this manifesto now I have something that will pull me back from the hole or at least will help me to, because I refuse to go back to that dark corner in which anxiety had me living for years. I also believe this rules can help you too. Maybe they can mean something else for you, or just reading them will help you to make sense of all what anxiety brings to your life and you don’t fully understand.
I know what is like to be a mom with anxiety. The isolation, the guilt, the desperation, the emptiness, the search for compassion… and I want to tell you that you are not alone. And probably you have learned all of these lessons too, but you probably haven’t realized it yet or perhaps you need them as a reminder, just like me.
Now, let me explain you something. The writing for me was the easy part, but the road that took me to actually came up to realize about every single one of those lessons was long and difficult, a road of years of exploration. They didn’t come to me out of the blue, just because inspiration struck me. I did a deep soul digging and the words came after years and years of looking for answers and trying things in my search for healing. It won’t stop me there. The rules are not enough. I am currently writing a book about how I came to discover every single one of them, in where I will bare my soul, I will share experiences and tactics, and I am sure this book will help other moms that have their own anxiety monsters in their backs. Hopefully, I can finish that book soon as well as other plans I have around it that I can’t wait to share with you. In the meantime I will leave you with The Momxious Manifesto. It’s a start.
- Nobody is going to rescue you. You have to be your own hero
- Just breathe.
- You are stronger than you believe.
- Anxiety doesn’t make you a bad mom.
- Take it one day at a time.
- Learn from your good days.
- Respect your bad days.
- Forgive and forget.
- May your love and compassion be bigger than your fears.
- Don’t give into judgments.
- You have the power to give the toxic or healing value to those around you.
- Use the resources that work better for you.
- Nurture your mind, body and soul.
- Be aware that you don’t need validation.
- Remember that motherhood is not a competition.
- Take care of yourself, be aware of your needs.
- Educate yourself and others about anxiety as much as you can.
- Make your anxiety monster your life master.
I want you to be part of this process and all the projects I am creating around this manifesto, from books to toys to posters and much more. Click on the following image to learn more.
