Poems for the Anxious Soul
This is not an easy or peaceful time. Anxiety, fear and dread are running high for lots of people, not just folks in anxiety therapy.
Nature and art can help soothe an anxious heart.
I’ve got this whole other blog post on perimenopause I’ve been working on that I was going to get out this week, but I’m going to let that simmer for a minute because THIS is the post that I need to write so hopefully it’s helpful to someone else too.
When I get really overwhelmed with strong emotion, I find myself looking for ways to connect with nature and art of all kinds (visual art, music, performances, poetry, etc). Find more about the connection between processing heartbreak with music in this older post (complete with my heartbreak playlist). You can also see this post about creative rest. Today I want to focus on poetry and share a few poems that I have been turning to recently.
My Favorite Poem
Do other people have a favorite poem? Is it weird that I do? No matter. My favorite poem, The Peace of Wild Things, by Wendell Berry, is the one I reach for when I get swamped by worry and doom. Every time I read it, I feel like this poem points me home. It helps me remember that I, too, am soothed in nature, and that I am not alone in my waves of despair.
The Peace of Wild Things by Wendell Berry
When despair for the world grows in me
and I wake in the night at the least sound
in fear of what my life and my children’s lives may be,
I go and lie down where the wood drake
rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds.
I come into the peace of wild things
who do not tax their lives with forethought
of grief. I come into the presence of still water.
And I feel above me the day-blind stars
waiting with their light. For a time
I rest in the grace of the world, and am free.
No matter how many times I read this poem, there is something that strikes me fresh within it. It also often encourages me to actually go outside too, which is always helpful for me as well.
A Poem of Belonging
When I get tangled up in my own loneliness, in the midst of my worry or sadness, Wild Geese, by Mary Oliver, is the poem that I read for comfort and encouragement. Her poem reminds me that I don’t have to be striving, or even good, in order to be able to belong in the world. My place is already here, with so many others in our longing and despair.
Wild Geese by Mary Oliver
You do not have to be good.
You do not have to walk on your knees
for a hundred miles through the desert repenting. You only have to let the soft animal of your body
love what it loves.
Tell me about despair, yours, and I will tell you mine. Meanwhile the world goes on.
Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain are moving across the landscapes,
over the prairies and the deep trees,
the mountains and the rivers.
Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the clean blue air, are heading home again.
Whoever you are, no matter how lonely,
the world offers itself to your imagination,
calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting - over and over announcing your place
in the family of things.
My heart aches with the recognition of having my sorrows and hopes seen and expressed in this beautiful poem.
A Poem of Encouragement
When I start getting irrationally mad about how little control I have about not only events in the world, but even what arises within me hour-to-hour and day-to-day, The Guest House by Rumi is my invitation to TRY and meet all of it with a welcoming heart.
The Guest House by Jalaluddin Rumi, translated by Coleman Barks
This being human is a guest house.
Every morning a new arrival.
A joy, a depression, a meanness,
some momentary awareness comes
as an unexpected visitor.
Welcome and entertain them all!
Even if they’re a crowd of sorrows,
who violently sweep your house
empty of its furniture,
still, treat each guest honorably.
He may be clearing you out
for some new delight.
The dark thought, the shame, the malice,
meet them at the door laughing,
and invite them in.
Be grateful for whoever comes,
because each has been sent
as a guide from beyond.
Even if I can’t muster gratitude for the meanness and crowd of sorrows, this poem can help me loosen my fight against all those things that arise and fade within me, coming and going like the tides.
Dance can demonstrate the embodiment of human experience.
What soothes you?
Where can you find connection and comfort? Perhaps you’re a more visual person and would feel soothed by looking at works of art that speak to you. Or, if you’re a music person, finding that song that feels like it expresses exactly what you are feeling. Theatre and dance performances can transport us away and bring us back to ourselves with greater awareness and understanding. Find what moves you, what helps you feel understood and encouraged.
Try it out yourself
Hell, yeah, kid. Keep singing!
There is immense value in appreciating and enjoying the works of others. If you are inspired, you can try creating your own works as well. YOU DON’T HAVE TO BE GOOD AT IT! AT ALL! Art is for everyone. Dance is for everyone. Music is for everyone. You don’t have to complete something or get better at anything. You are free to play and create just for the sake of doing it.
Are angsty teenagers still writing poetry? I really hope so. Since alienation, longing and fraught emotions are still part of the teenage experience today, I hope they still feel like they have poetry (as terrible as it may be) to express it all. And who remembers the sincerity of affection that went into making a mix tape for someone you liked? Man, I miss that.
If you have one spark of willingness to try some form of creative expression for yourself, please follow it. Dance with abandon, write terrible poetry, sing off-key, create weird and wonderful works of art. In the words of singer Cass Elliott: “But you've gotta make your own kind of music. Sing your own special song. Make your own kind of music. Even if nobody else sings along.”
Reach out for skilled support from a maryland anxiety therapist
Looking for more support in sitting with anxiety or the crowd of sorrows in life? I offer specialized anxiety therapy appointments in-person, located in College Park, MD. Online therapy appointments are available anywhere in Maryland. Contact me to schedule a free 15-minute phone consultation and take the first step toward taming your anxiety.
Other services I offer include hypnotherapy, mindfulness-based therapy, life coaching, and support for LGBTQIA+ clients. Additional information is available on my counseling practice home page.
About the author, an anxiety counselor:
Beth Charbonneau, LCSW-C, is a Maryland therapist, specializing in anxiety therapy and treatment. With over 20 years of experience, she brings a holistic approach to calming both the mind and the body, and helping her clients feel empowered to find more joy in their lives. Learn more about her College Park-based counseling practice here.
