To change your life you must commit to the decision

      I posted a comment this morning that was "To change your life you must commit to the decision," I'm not targeting anyone specific with that before I get asked, its just something I was thinking about this morning when I got awake and my whole drive into work. I thought about how I used to be, and who I used to be. I thought about how I used to live, and how I live now. I was comparing and contrasting, and really impressed with how far I've come, I even woke up without my mind panicking and racing for the first time today, instead I woke up praying!
     It wasn't easy getting here, it has taken a lot of prayer, dedication, and hard work. I've had set backs, and anyone who has been reading this for a while knows I have had some good days and some not so good days, but it's getting better! The work is paying off, this morning was evidence of that.
     It can be so hard to get up and force yourself to do your coping tools, most days I don't feel like doing them at all. But what I have realized, and what my statement is all about is that once you decide you want to or need to change your life it HAS to be a commitment. You have to make your coping mechanisms part of your everyday life and routine. It has to be part of your lifestyle, so much so that eventually its just habit and you do it without thinking, like when I woke up this morning and immediately started to pray. I have been forcing myself to do it for months now, missing many days, but once I realized what the chaos in my head was doing I'd remember and start talking to God instead of listening to the all the discord.
     Prayer is probably my most used and most effective coping mechanism, but its not my only one. For anyone struggling the way I have in the past, I really suggest exercise, even for just five or ten minutes a day, it makes a huge difference in balancing the chemicals in your brain. Also I find spending time in the Bible to be helpful, and writing, but I know not everyone is a writer that's just what works for me, maybe for you it might be painting, or crafting. Another great tool, cut out the negative influences in your life and replace them with the positive. That's something I have done in the past couple years that has helped more than I imagined.
     I hope that if you are struggling with anxiety and depression that you are able to find your way out. Know that it won't be easy, but it is worth it. It's not an overnight thing either, there's no magic pill, just hard work and dedication, but the rewards are amazing. I am seeing and experiencing life in a way that I haven't since I was a kid, life feels different now, it feels good, and I feel hope again for the future.

Psalm 37:5
Commit everything you do to the LORD. Trust him, and he will help you.