Why Won’t My Anxiety Go Away?

People tell me all the time that they want to get better, that they want to “heal” themselves, that their anxiety might be even worse than their addiction, and that they’d do anything to make it go away.

Then come the buts.

I say to them:

• “You need to take herbal medicine every day.” (“Yeah, but it’s too expensive.”)
• “You need to wake up early and do yoga or qi gong.” (“Yeah, but I’m too tired because I don’t sleep well.”)
• “You need a goal so big that anxiety looks small next to it.” (“Yeah, but I can’t connect to anything that feels worthwhile.”)

And a whole lot more buts before and after that too.

What does Eastern medicine say about anxiety?

In Eastern medicine, healing is understood to run on a timeline. There are those who are ready to heal, those who aren’t, and those who say they are but haven’t actually experienced enough pain yet to want to change for real.

The funny thing about anxiety: on a deeper level, it’s actually here to help us. It’s trying to teach us a lesson, and guide us back onto our path, toward stability, happiness, and purpose.

But anxiety is such a triggering, all-consuming feeling that when we’re in it, when our life is consumed by it, good luck being aware of that perspective, let alone letting it change your behaviour toward anything.

Anxiety is a complicated pattern to treat. But the fact is:

We’ve heard it all before, what we’re supposed to do to break this pattern. Put more effort into life. Sacrifice short-term comfort for long-term gain. Stop valuing your own identity and ego so much. Start connecting with and learning more from others. Move to a different city, put down the damn phone, etc.

All of these can start solving the problem. But underneath it all, it’s much simpler than that.

Why can’t I get rid of my anxiety?

The fact is, you need to stop pretending to be someone you’re not, and recalibrate your life so that growth becomes the most important thing you’re aiming for. That’s it. That’s the most important essence.

Chances are you already know all of this too. You just need the tools to actually implement it, ones that really work and are not bullshit.

This program, of course, has got you covered.

But if not, and you have no idea where to start, and are so lost as to who the real you even is, the one that doesn’t pretend, start here:

Think back to a time in your life when you felt real joy. How were you acting? What were the circumstances that made this so?

What can drugs teach me about my anxiety?

What hopes, aspirations, how joyful, optimistic, and purposeful did you feel in life when you were drunk, maybe even high? This is usually a good place to start.

Because drugs and peak experiences have the capacity to unleash what is called the True Self. How you act, how you see life, the direction you want to take it. All of this becomes clear when you’re on drugs and in peak experiences.

But drugs are not the solution. They’re only a reference point for where you can go and who you can be:

• The confident, say whatever you want, couldn’t care less what anyone thinks of me person when you’re drinking.
• The connect with anyone and want to get shit done person on cocaine.
• The euphoric bliss and deep love for everyone and everything person on MDMA.

The list goes on.

Drugs show you the door to growth and potential. Anxiety is also showing you the same door. And they are both trying to tell you, you can only walk through it by being your true self.

If you decide it is, truly decide it is, congratulations, you’ve just reclaimed your first big life goal, and as you put more value into attaining that goal, it will outweigh and start replacing the anxiety that has always creeped into your existence and slowly self destructed your life.

As you move toward being who you truly are, the anxiety decreases from another angle too, because that’s exactly what it was telling you to fix, to be the real you. That was the whole message. So if you implement this change, you’re hitting the problem on both ends of the same stick.

Can my anxiety actually be cured?

Anxiety’s a bastard. What is not productive however is letting anyone tell you that you have to live with it forever. It might be one of the single biggest blocks to living the life you want and fulfilling your dreams. It’s a monumental challenge to overcome.

But it’s possible. And it only requires effort and real sincerity to get there.

So before you go back to your normal life and think “huh, that was an interesting read”, stop, and ask yourself this:

What would it be worth to you to walk through life and never have to deal with anxiety again?

If you’re like me, you probably just said to yourself “almost anything.”

Because if you don’t, if you forget how important it is to be who you really want to be, your anxiety will never stop. You’ll keep feeling helpless, and most likely, waste your life right up until the end.

Brutal, I know. But reality is brutal, especially for those with anxiety.

There are solutions. You just have to actually want it.