I’m far from religious (more on that another time), but I do firmly believe that the serenity prayer is a helpful tool. For those of you that don’t know it, it starts:
“God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I. cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference.“
It goes on to be more religious oriented referring to Jesus and God, but also talks about taking one day and one moment at a time and accepting the world as it is, not how we want it to be.
The serenity prayer is used in Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous as a reminder that we can’t control everything and at times we need to release control to let things fall how they will. I think this is a good thing for anyone to remember.
For me specifically, this prayer help with my anxiety. When I am feeling helpless, I stop and analyze the situation. I ask myself what I can change and what I can’t change, and then make the adjustments that I can. This can be beneficial for people that have anxiety, anger issues, depression, and more. Just stop, breathe, and ask yourself what you can and cannot change. Then change what you can. It will give you the control that you need when you’re anxious, depressed, or angry.
It may be hard to recognize, but in all those situations, giving yourself control over something, anything, will help you feel better. For example, I have a hard time leaving the house. I have fears about dying without anyone there to help. I can’t control my fears. I can’t say or do anything to make them disappear. But I can change the situation. I can leave the house with someone or meet someone where I am going. Having someone there to call 911 if something happens to me alleviates my fears.
Maybe you don’t have anyone. When I didn’t have anyone that could or would go with me, I would use Instacart to deliver my groceries to me. I found, in the end, that when I do have someone to go with me Instacart actually makes me feel like I have less control, but it helps when there is no one. There is always something you can control in the situation. No matter how small the thing is, controlling it will help. Have any of you had situations where you found something you could control to make you feel better?
My Bipolar and Me 