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ILLUSTRATION: How many of you have ever been frightened? I remember my youth when I was very involved in sports. Whether it was football, track or baseball, I remember experiencing “butterflies” in my stomach before the game. The interesting thing is that the only thing that got rid of those butterflies…

I have often used the illustration of taking a telescope, breathing on it with the hot breath of our anxiety, putting it to our eye, and then saying that we cannot see anything but clouds. Of course we cannot, and we never shall while we breathe upon it. If we were but calm, quiet, self-possessed, and…

There was a great king who once employed a merchant in his service as an ambassador to foreign courts. Now the merchant, before he went away, said to the king, “My own business requires all my care, and though I am always willing to be your majesty’s servant, yet if I attend to your business as I ought,…

Many are a great deal worried by curiosity. A servant was passing through a street with a dish that was curiously covered. There met him a fellow who said, “I am most anxious to know what your lord has put in that dish, for he has so carefully covered it.” But the servant said, “Therefore you should…

Without peace you cannot grow. A shepherd may find good pasture for his flock, but if his sheep are hunted about by wild dogs so that they cannot rest, they will become mere skin and bone. The Lord’s lambs cannot grow if they are worried and harried; they must enjoy the rest with which the Lord makes…

Do you see that Christian there with the sparkling eye and the light footstep, the man who is swift to run upon his Master’s errands? That man has many troubles, but when he wakes in the morning, if he retains remembrance of them he bows his knee and leaves them with his God. He goes home, and the day…

A Chicago bus driver who was looking for a way to relive stress during the pandemic decide that the best thing to do was to challenge himself to dive into lake Michigan every day for a year. Dan O’Conor said he started jumping into Montrose Harbor the summer of 2020 to reduce stress. He said, at first,…

In THANKS! How Practicing Gratitude Can Make You Happier, Robert A. Emmons, Ph.D. writes, “One simply cannot be relaxed and stressed at the same time. Try it. You can’t. Relaxation drives out anxiousness and vice versa.” —Jim L. Wilson —THANKS!, 74 Philippians 4:6 (HCSB) “Don’t worry about anything,…

In Psychology Today, Raj Persaud, M.D. says, “This essential difference between us and animals; they get anxious, but they don’t worry, holds the secret to mental health. Rumination transforms relatively safe situations into unsafe predicaments.” https://www.psychologytoday.com/ca/blog/slightly-blighty/202010/surprising-approach-coping-covid-19-stress…

In Leaders Eat Last, Simon Sinek writes, “Studies have shown that people who spend excessive time on social media experience higher rates of depression and anxiety. A 2013 study by social scientists at the University of Michigan, for instance, tracked the use of Facebook by eighty-two young adults over…

Fear, phobias, and anxiety have always been a prevalent issue facing humankind. For some, it can be quite debilitating, and lead to serious mental health issues. The latest appears to be “eco-anxiety,” described by the American Psychological Association as “a chronic fear of environmental doom.” Notwithstanding…

Researchers in Virginia believe that driving may help reduce stress in some situations. Scientists have laboratory rats to drive tiny cars and think the activity is a means of stress reduction for the animals. Researchers said they trained two groups of rats to operate small vehicles by pushing down…

A 2017 New York Post article had the following headline: “Americans check their phones 80 times a day.” https://nypost.com/2017/11/08/americans-check-their-phones-80-times-a-day-study/ A 2021 PR Newswire headline offered updated information, “Americans Check Their Phones 96 Times a Day.” https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/americans-check-their-phones-96-times-a-day-300962643.html…

Hotels.com offered voters the opportunity to escape what they call “election stress disorder” by checking into special discounted property after they cast their ballots in November 2020. The site offered a 20 percent discount on properties with the name “rock” in them. One of the options was a man-made…

I am not sure how it all began, but in recent years there has been a sharp rise in the use of “Emotional Support Animals.” Individuals suffering from all kinds of emotional and psychological ailments, find comfort and relief from stress and anxiety in owning companionship animals of various kinds. It…

A researcher with the Cleveland Clinic said there is a lot of evidence suggesting that is a connection between what people eat and how they feel. Dietician Kristin Kirkpatrick said foods are colorful and fruits or vegetable tend to boost the mood. Kirkpatrick said when time are hard, people tend to turn…

It has been more than 30 years since President Clinton’s misconduct with a 24-year-old intern in the oval office. Recently he explained in a documentary on Hillary Clinton that he began his affair with Monica Lewinsky as a way “to manage my anxieties.” The Week, March 20, 2020 p. 6 The Biblical cure…

In an article for the Missourian, Jeffrey Zide wrote, “As much of the world has been turned upside down for teachers and students alike in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, some surprising positive effects have come from Zoom and other social distancing learning tools, especially for children and young…

Research in Germany and Switzerland has investigated a possible link between generalized anxiety and seasonal allergies. The study recruited over 1,700 people and examined the link between the allergies the people suffered and mental health conditions. Participants were divided between those who were…

In Leaders Eat Last, Simon Sinek writes, “Decades ago, scientists in Britain set out to study this link between an employee’s place on the corporate ladder and stress, presumably to help executives deal with the toll stress was taking on their health and their lives. Known collectively as the Whitehall…

A recent Gallup poll has discovered a new reason for us to be stressed. The poll found that we are some of the most stressed-out people in the world. 55 percent of Americans say they had felt a lot of stress the day before. This is way above the global average of 35 percent. –Jim L. Wilson and Rodger…

There is mounting evidence that time spent on Smartphones can interfere with sleep, self esteem, relationships, memory, attention span, creativity and decision making skills. New evidence suggests they may also raise levels of cortisol, the body’s main stress hormone. Cortisol is the primary fight-or…

In the book, The God Who Knows Your Name Max Lucado writes, “How do we disarm anxiety? Stockpile our minds with God thoughts. Draw the logical implication: if birds and flowers fall under the category of God’s care, won’t he care for us as well? Saturate your heart with the goodness of God” — Jesus:…

The Anxiety and Depression Association of America has found a connection between anxiety and sleeping problems. More than 40 million Americans suffer from chronic, long-term sleep disorders. —Jim L. Wilson and Carlos Andres Rodriguez https://adaa.org/understanding-anxiety/related-illnesses/sleep-disorders…

According to Noel King of NPR, “One in 5 school children struggles with anxiety, and almost half of them experience at least one serious stressor at home - something like divorce or poverty or a parent's addiction.”—Jim L. Wilson https://www.npr.org/2020/02/20/807665085/mindfulness-transforms-culture-at-high-needs-elementary-school…