Positive Affirmations -- Breaking Free
Positive affirmations is a new thread series that I will be posting on a semi-regular basis. The goal is here is to stop the negative self talk cycle that is so common with anxiety disorders, especially emetophobia, and channel that energy into a more positive outlet. I will respectfully ask that there be no negativity on these threads simply because that runs counter to the thread's goals. Thank you
Emetophobia can be an extremely dark, lonely place. Its like being a prisoner sometimes, chained to your irrational, yet completely understandable thoughts. It can be lonely in this prison that we have built around ourselves, isolated from everyone for fear of seeing the dreaded deed, hearing it, or catching a bug that causes it. These walls that we have built up around our thoughts, our action, our person are definitely not real walls, but to the sufferer of emetophobia they are very real. Hauntingly real. We built these barriers around ourselves to protect us from the very immediate harm of coming into contact with our most dread fear, our most hated foe. In the process, we have become prisoners, chained to the very same walls that we have built around us for protection. Our protectors become our own worst enemy, become the very thing that holds us back from freedom, from life, from happiness itself. And yet, most of us have become so accustomed to the prison, the four walls, to the safety of it all that we sacrifice our happiness, and sometimes the whole of our personalities just for the guarantee not to come across the fear. What I have come to realize is that the prison represents comfort, and that it is very hard for me to give up the comfort of the prison for freedom, for the unknown. Alongside of that realization, I have also realized that the prison is the fear. It is my own fear trapping me. It is not safety, it is not comfort, it is fear holding me hostage.
But the good news is that there is a way to break free of the chains of this very real imprisonment. There is a way to smash those walls down. And over time, with hard work and a little help, we can all break free of the chains of our fear, we can all stop being held hostage from our most dreaded fear -- vomit. In my last post, I posited that we are ALL strong because we live inside of this prison every day without going insane, and I still believe that. We are all survivors of this phobia, and the proof is right there in front of you -- the fact that you live life every day, the fact that you can function in society without wanting to end it all is proof of your own inner strength. Now, it is time to direct that inner strength at smashing down the walls of the jail. The first step is realizing you are not alone. That you have allies in this fight, fellow prisoners who all want to escape their shackles and step out into that bright sunlight once again. See, one cannot break free of this alone. We all need allies, support from our fellow emets. This website has taken us all so far toward achieving the goal of realizing that we are not alone. When I found out that there were fellow prisoners, that I was not suffering alone, I nearly broke down in tears. I could feel them welling in my eyes, and I do not cry easily. I knew, KNEW that this could be overcome if there were others suffering with the same thing. I have found inspiration in the day to day struggles of all emets. I have seen you all grow and advance, and take steps back and through it all I feel like I have been with you, slowly loosening my own chains, slowly chipping away at the brick that surrounds me. We can break free of this together, if we stick together as a community and see each other through. If we celebrate the good, and accept the bad, together as a group, we can all get better. But the instant we start tearing EACH OTHER down instead of the walls that surround each and every one of us, the battle is lost.
When we realize that there is strength in our numbers, and work together as one, we can break free. We can step out into that sunlight once again. We can experience the fresh air filling our lungs, free of the prison, free of the fear, free of the anxiety with our lives in tact. We just have to stick together. We can do this. We are strong, we are confident, and together, we will kick emets ass!
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Originally Posted by LaurenCasey
