Pick a song, any song...

My daughter recently was auditioning for her college musical and had a bad case of the stage fright. She explained that she couldn’t control it and when it happened it affected her breathing which of course affected her singing. I started to think about how this is relative to other areas of life. When we let fear enter the party before us and it brings its friend anxiety, then nothing good can come from that. How to handle the fear is another story all together. Some people practice breathing. I know it sounds silly but when you actually pay attention to how you are breathing, it can be quite calming. Meditation is another way to go. You can do this even in a crowd of people by repeating your mantra to yourself. Eventually you will clear your mind and be able to concentrate with the task or situation at hand. I used to be incredibly shy and scared to speak in public. I had to learn to find my voice and turn that fear into determination. What I do is to think of one song in particular and I play the song in my head while picturing the calming waves of the ocean reaching the sand. I swear that I have even done that at the doctor’s office and my blood pressure which used to be high has been perfect. Anxiety is not something to take lightly though and I understand it can reach debilitating levels, but like everything else sometimes you have to try new ways to deal with it. Not all of us have auditions every day, but the stage of life can be quite gnarly and the unknown is always frightening. There is always a line of a song that will relate to any situation you are struggling with, so I say “turn it up” and let the power of music do its thing! Oh and don't forget to breathe! Keep Smiling! :)