I realised an important thing about myself while going through some literature about anxiety:

Although anxiety is a **fear disorder**,

my anxiety has a few important **non-fear components**:

- **complaining** incessantly
- taking **objection** at every other thought
- taking **offense** at trivial slights
- feeling **insult** where there is none intended
- loud, repetitive, annoying **screaming** (in the mind and nerves) about how bad the danger is.

**These are not fear**.

But these prevent happiness and peace of mind just as much as fear does.

So over time (months) I stopped complaining, started objecting lesser, complained once and then registered it as "already complained" and decided to grow thick skin and see what happened if I did not take offense or insult.

"Already complained" reduced the intensity of grumbling.

Not taking offense and insult did not cause any danger or loss of security, there was only more silence in my head. Nothing attacked me. I lost nothing. I was not more vulnerable. I was did not end up in danger. There was more silence due to which I could think straight more often, without interruptions.

I taught my mind to recognise that the brain was a simulator only and so it was an organ of lies, doing its own thing, to which I, the mind and body need not pay attention ("up there, above the neck, is the mixer-blender that does not stop simulating, idiotic machine, ignore it, I'm safe")

Most importantly I stopped objecting to every other thought. This seems to be a co-morbidity unrelated to anxiety, but I find it common in other anxious people - Many of us go into loops objecting and counter-objecting thoughts, having full blown arguments inside our heads.

I started with "I won't object and wait to see if not objecting kills me". Turns out it did not.

So I did this more and more - "I won't object, let's see what happens"

Once the objecting mind realised that it did not need to object to protect me, it quickly stopped objecting.

The result of all this is that fears are now handled much more logically, have lost their sting and bite, and have become easier to handle.

It is worth keeping in mind 3 things:

- medication is very useful and often necessary

- you need to sit with your thoughts, empty and silent, not doing anything, away from the computer and smartphone, alone in a quiet place and observe and sort out your thoughts.

- you cannot modify your thinking habits if you do not sit alone, in silence, and watch your thoughts. It simply needs alone time with zero distractions.