True Confessions - Anxious about Anxiety

 by Dina Sleiman

Somehow it does not surprise me that around the launch of my Valiant Hearts Series with its goal of inspiring young women to be strong and courageous, I found myself under attack. An attack of anxiety. Isn’t that the way it always seems to work? 

I’m generally a pretty peaceful person. Sure, I’m prone to stress just like everyone else, but I try to keep my life manageable and focus on the positive. I don’t have a tendency to sweat the small stuff or get mired in worry. In fact, I’ve even had the experience of passing through incredibly stressful situations on a cloud of supernatural peace.

However, I have had a few bouts with physiological anxiety. Usually it occurred when I’ve tried a new medication (for unrelated issues like headaches or cholesterol) that didn’t agree with me. I’ve also noticed in recent years that I’ve had some anxiety issues due to food sensitivities.

Those experiences taught me an important lesson about anxiety that most Christians don’t seem to realize. “Anxiety disorder,” in our modern use of the term, can sometimes occur when something in your body goes haywire. It can be a purely physiological phenomenon. Yes, I realize the Bible talks about anxiety in some translations, but I’m going to use the newer disorder definition of the term to indicate a medical condition and contrast it with words like worry, fear, and stress, which are emotional conditions and involve a greater degree of choice.

It would be easy for me to feel guilty that I’m not trusting God enough, not having enough faith, or even in sin. That I’m not staying in perfect peace and casting my care on God the way the Bible instructs. But perhaps the gift that God has given me in this situation is the clarity to realize my anxiety makes no logical sense and isn’t coming from my mind or my spirit at all. 

Worry happens when you fixate on a problem and allow fear to take over. You think about it again and again, often picturing worst case scenarios, until your body becomes stressed and anxious and even sick. To contrast that with a physiological anxiety disorder, this anxiety happens when your body gets out of whack due to nutrition, hormones, or brain chemistry. It begins with your body feeling the anxiety, and then your brain looks for any minor issue, or every minor issue, to attach those anxious feelings to. At that point, your brain might begin to fixate on those issues and it seems like fear or worry. 

Oh, and as I’ve been learning, hormonally based anxiety is especially prevalent in teens, pregnant women, new moms, and middle aged women. (Isn’t that most women?)

So what are those physical symptoms of anxiety? They can include any or all of the following.

A tight or constricted feeling in your chest

Numbness or tingling in the hands and feet

Dread or sick feeling in your stomach

Tension throughout your body

Pressure in your head

A racing heartbeat

Difficulty breathing

Difficulty sleeping

Dry mouth

Sweating

Shaking

Fatigue

Anxiety stinks. It can completely paralyze you. I’ve been pushing through my anxiety. I’m not letting it stop me, and I’ve been praying and researching to find ways to manage it. In fact, for now at least, it’s pretty much gone.  Here are a few of the simple methods that I’ve found helpful so far.

Journal to isolate food and medication triggers

Avoid caffeine

Cashews and pickles

Probiotics and vitamin D

Chamomile tea: double, triple, or quadruple strength

Contemplative prayer

Worship music

Deep breathing

I think too many people take guilt over their anxiety and just become more anxious about being anxious. Hopefully this article will help you to spot physiological anxiety for what it truly is and give you some tools to manage it. Don’t be afraid to reach out and ask for help when needed. You might require the support of understanding friends and family or even medical care to get through anxiety. If your anxiety is caused by old emotional wounds, ingrained habits, or post-traumatic stress disorder, you will likely require professional counseling. 

Bravery is not the absence of fear; it is the determination to go on in spite of fear. Being a valiant woman of God doesn't mean denying your symptoms and trying to muscle through on sheer will power. It means facing your issues hand in hand with God and being determined to come out victorious!

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Dina Sleiman writes stories of passion and grace. Most of the time you will find this Virginia Beach resident reading, biking, dancing, or hanging out with her husband and three children, preferably at the oceanfront. She also serves as an acquisitions and content editor for WhiteFire Publishing. Check out her novels Dance from Deep Within, Dance of the Dandelion, and Love in Three-Quarter Time, and look for her Valiant Hearts adventure/romance series  with Bethany House Publishers. For more info visit her at http://dinasleiman.com/

The Joys of Snail Mail

by Jennifer AlLee

It used to be that one of my favorite times of the day was when I'd check the mail. By check the mail, I don't mean sit at my PC and look at email. I mean walking out of the house, to the mailbox, and peering inside, hoping to find something addressed to me personally. Back in the days before every home had a computer, the mailbox was something of a mysterious portal. You never knew when you might get a correspondence from a friend, or a card, or even better, a package!

Checking the mail is not nearly as exciting now. Yet I still get a twinge of anticipation right before I pull the door open... what might be in there? Usually, it's junk mail and/or bills. But on rare occasions, I'll find a card, picked out by a friend just for me, and written by their own hand. That's pretty special.

I don't think I'm alone when it comes to these nostalgic feelings. A lot of us still enjoy physical mail, ripping open envelopes, and pulling out what's inside. Not that I don't appreciate eCards. Heck, I send those, too. And email. But there's nothing like the surprise and excitement of holding a paper card in your hand. So I've decided I need to send more cards. Birthdays and holidays are good times to do this, but what's even more fun is to send happy, encouraging notes to people for no reason other than the fact that you care about them.

Want to join me? Let's make it a challenge. Pick at least one friend and send him/her a card by the end of weekend (Sunday, July 11). Tell us how you did, and if what kind of response you got. Let's spread some joy around!



JENNIFER ALLEE was born in Hollywood, California, and spent her first ten years living above a mortuary one block away from the famous intersection of Hollywood & Vine. Now she lives in the grace-filled city of Las Vegas, which just goes to prove she’s been blessed with a unique life. When she’s not busy spinning tales, she enjoys playing games with friends, attending live theater and movies, and singing at the top of her lungs to whatever happens to be playing on the car radio. Although she’s thrilled to be living out her lifelong dream of being a novelist, she considers raising her son to be her greatest creative accomplishment. She's a member of American Christian Fiction Writers, Romance Writers of America, and Christian Authors Network. Her novels include The Pastor’s Wife, The Mother Road, A Wild Goose Chase Christmas, Last Family Standing, and Vinnie's Diner from Abingdon Press; Diamond in the Rough, Vanishing Act, and Curtain Call from Whitaker House and co-written with Lisa Karon Richardson; the novella Comfort and Joy in the Christmas anthology, Mistletoe Memories from Barbour; and A Worthy Suitor from Harlequin's Heartsong Presents.

Shattered Image

I wanted to let you all about this wonderful debut novel by my friend, Stacy Monson. Shattered Image is an important look into how society says we must appear to the outside world, versus how we really should view ourselves. 

Kiera Simmons’ career as a high-profile fashion model ends abruptly when a failed relationship nearly lands her in jail. Now she forges a quiet life helping teens understand their eternal value in a world saturated with the distorted messages of society.

Peter Theisen is on the fast track to everything the celebrity life promises, with every step of his meteoric rise in the music world orchestrated by his ambitious manager.

Their sweet, unexpected romance is threatened by her past and his future, a life-changing diagnosis, and financial devastation. As they struggle to find their way back to each other, and to the One who matters most, the allure of wealth and fame may jeopardize everything.

What people are saying about Shattered Image:

“This is a must read book. I generally read only non-fiction books but, the story line intrigued me and Stacy's writing style pulled me in. What a great inspirational story! I can't wait for the second book.”

“This book was a really fun read. Clean. No worries if your teen daughter wants a "romance" novel. I think this author will go far with this series.”

“Once I started reading I had a hard time putting this book down. I could smell the fresh air by the lake in Minnesota. I could feel the heartbreak several different times and then I could feel God's love.”

Stacy Monson writes stories that show an extraordinary God at work in ordinary life. Her current release, Shattered Image, is the first book in the Chain of Lakes series. A member of ACFW (American Christian Fiction Writers), she is the current secretary and past president of MN-NICE, as well as the area coordinator for Minnesota. Residing in the Twin Cities, she is the wife of a juggling, unicycling physical education teacher, mom to two amazing kids and two wonderful in-law kids, and a very proud grandma.

Her debut novel, Shattered Image, released in April 2015. Book 2 in the Chain of Lake series, Crisis of Grace, releases September 2015.

Author Links:

Website:  www.http://stacymonson.com

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/StacyMMonson

Twitter:  https://www.twitter/@stacymonson

Pinterest:  https://www.pinterest.com/stacymonson/

Amazon Author Page:  https://www.amazon.com/author/stacymonson

Goodreads:  click for my Goodreads page

Summer Reading

Summer is going fast already! Of course, not liking heat, bugs, sweat, dirt, yard work and high utility bills, I am not a fan of summer. However, I do love to curl up with a cold drink and "an improving book" (as my beloved Jeeves would say), and I have a huge stack that I'm eager to dive into.

Here are a few I'm especially looking forward to:

Until That Distant Day by Jill Stengl and Sactuary for a Lady and The Soldier's Secrets by Naomi Rawlings. Having just finished a French Revolution book myself (Decadent Deceit, coming out at the end of August, 2015), I can't resist other novels set during that period. And, in Christian fiction at least, they are few and far between.

Melanie Dickerson's fairytale-inspired series, starting with The Healer's Apprentice. I love fairytales, and I've been wanting to dive into this series for a long time now.

Marylu Tyndall's pirate series, starting with The Reliance. I read and loved the first two books years ago and just had the privilege of reading the ARC for the fifth book in the series, The Reckoning. The pirate hero reminded me of Killian Jones, and  how could I possibly resist that?

Heartless by Anne Elisabeth Stengl and the rest of her fantasy series. I started the first book several months ago and was captivated by the writing and the story. Then, sadly, other obligations got in the way and I had to set it aside. I'm eager to get back to it.

Lisa Bergren's River of Time Series. This was another series I started and really enjoyed and then was forced to set aside because of real-life deadlines. I loved the characters in these time-travel books, and I want to get reacquainted.

Tiger's Paw by Kimberly A. Rogers. This is a novella, the prequel to her long, ambitious urban fantasy series. Rogers is imaginative and has the skill to touch minds and hearts with her writing. I'm eager to find out where her characters will take me.

And, somewhat related to each other, I want to read The Monogram Murders by Sophie Hannah and Poirot and Me by David Suchet. Hannah's book is a new Poirot mystery sanctioned by Agatha Christie's estate, and how could I miss the story of how actor Suchet spent twenty-five years as the incarnation of Christie's classic Belgian detective?

I could go on for several pages on the subject of books I want to read. And I have deliberately not included any of the wonderful books by my fellow Inkwell writers. First off, there are too many to list here. And if you want to see them all, you can look at our books page.

So what's in your TBR pile? And why?