Guided Meditation Helped Ease My Anxiety During an MS Flare

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by Jessie Ace |

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“Take a breath and give one away.” — Marisa Peer

Recently, I started doing guided meditation by Marisa Peer, a rapid transformational therapy trainer and best-selling author. Her meditations are freely available on Spotify and cover a range of topics to help with anxiety, sleep, fitness, relationships, weight loss, and other things. 

She is amazing. I’ve listened every day for about a week, and I feel my confidence building. I’d heard that guided meditation is tremendously essential to personal growth and development. Meditation can help to reduce stress and therefore MS symptoms. 

Previously, whenever I tried to meditate, I would sit quietly and try to clear my mind, but it wasn’t effective. Since discovering guided meditation, the results have been much better.

Ongoing anxiety challenges

Anxiety has always been a significant factor in my life, even before MS. Maybe it was an early indication of the disease, I’m not sure. But what is anxiety?

The National Health Service here in the U.K. defines anxiety as “a feeling of unease, such as worry or fear, that can be mild or severe.”

The majority of MSers have anxiety. According to Johns Hopkins Medicine, “Anxiety disorders are three times more common in MS than in the general population.”

According to the MS Trust, up to two-thirds of people with MS reported having anxiety.

The reason anxiety is so prominent in MS is that the disease is so unpredictable. Having just had an MS exacerbation, I can relate. One of the big challenges is the uncertainty about what new symptoms may mean, how long they will last, whether they will worsen, or whether it means the disease is progressing. It’s difficult not to worry about the body when experiencing this. 

Living with MS, I have found that people outside of the MS world don’t understand the disease’s unpredictability and the emotional impact it has on the sufferer. When my hands started experiencing a burning sensation and my body was going numb from the neck down a few weeks ago, my husband didn’t understand why I was anxious. 

“It’s just numbness. It’ll come back,” he told me. 

But to me, it wasn’t just numbness. To me, it was a reminder that MS is ever-present, lying dormant in the back of my mind and finding ways to take me over and win the game. 

At that point, I was the most anxious I had ever been. I lost confidence in myself and my abilities. I needed some serious help, so I turned to Marisa’s meditations.

I also reached out to a hypnotherapist, and am excited to get started on our first session next week. I’m not afraid to ask for help when I need it now, which is something I’ve learned with MS.

Does your MS give you anxiety? Please share in the comments below.

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Note: Multiple Sclerosis News Today is strictly a news and information website about the disease. It does not provide medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. This content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read on this website. The opinions expressed in this column are not those of Multiple Sclerosis News Today or its parent company, BioNews, and are intended to spark discussion about issues pertaining to multiple sclerosis.

Comments

Heather avatar

Heather

Meditation is helping me on a daily basis to address many of my MS challenges. Specifically anxiety. Anxiety has impacted my life in a big way over the last five years. Before meditation and the use of CBD oil things sometimes felt out of my control. I agree that guided meditation works best. I also have found meditation helpful in dealing with pain and sadness. Headspace is my favorite!

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Kerri avatar

Kerri

I have been well aware of my own anxiety, but I was not aware of the prevalence of anxiety in the MS population. This has been helpful for me to read and learn about possible solutions.

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Jessie Ace avatar

Jessie Ace

Thanks so much Kerri, glad you found it helpful :) - Jessie

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