**Opinion Piece**

As a First Nation Wiradjuri man from

Australia - I've learnt the major value our old people benefited from was having no EGO.

Ego is the root of many evils & the more I've looked into & the more I've learnt about our old people, is that by living with minimal to zero ego played a big factor in why there was no thing such as Anxiety.

Anxiety is triggered by thoughts - thoughts about the future; not necessarily deep into the future but many occasions the direct & immediate future.

See, our old people (ancestors) lived with purpose. I can hear everyone saying 'well I live with purpose too' but do you Really?? Our old people lived by tasks, from day to day, often hour by hour, moment by moment, there was no concept of time; so they just got on with the task at hand - and they did this by living present.

If the family was hungry, they caught food. If they didn't collect food - the family went hungry or food was shared between families. If it rained, you get shelter & if it were cold you build a fire.

There was an expectation that all was shared, so there was never a 'what if/futuristic' thought put into the mind which causes Anxiety. 'What if I don't catch some food, my family will go hungry, if they're hungry my family will starve, if they starve they will die, if they die I'll be classed as someone who can't feed their family, if I can't feed my family I'm not classed a man, if I'm not classed a man, I am shamed and outcasted, if I'm shamed then I won't be excepted etc etc etc

These thoughts are all powered by EGO. Ego is the thing that spirals our mind. To a point, where it gets out of your control. The experts call this an Anxiety or panic attack.

Whether you think you have ego or not, you actually DO - it's just a matter of how much you have...

When your ego is smashed or you feel let down - you reflect. Right in that REFLECTION MOMENT you have a choice; dwell on the past situation, which triggers depression; or spiral over the 'what ifs' by looking into the future; or you can stay present and work forward by learning how and why you got there in the first place.

Every single decision in life we make, is yr responsibility. We may have instances where certain actions cause us hurt - but again, we have a decision to make whether to dwell on that situation or learn from it and move forward.

Again our ego plays a significant role in how we respond. We can, show compassion learn & GROW as an individual or we can get stuck, dwell on the NEGATIVE and let your ego get in the way of healing..

I believe - if you live with little to no ego you will see drastic changes in your anxiety levels bought on by opinions.

Worrying about opinions of others is a huge contributor to anxiety attacks - by letting go of ego, this will minimise also..

As many of you know, I am not a practitioner, or professional in this field. I am an advocate and sportsperson - but it's worked with me and many of those who reach out to me to help with anxiety levels. I was someone who struggled with intense anxiety, but with hard work I now live with it, and manage it.

Why wouldn't you try...

BLOG

Controlling Anxiety - Opinion Piece