Question: When caught in an anxious state, it seems that the more I try to be awake and aware, the “tighter the grip.” I know I’m resisting yet somehow embracing the state. Something’s refusing to “get it.” Help!

Answer: We cannot resist anything within us that we are not identified with. This means that the more we resist something, the more we strengthen the bond between ourselves and the “unwanted” state. When we see something within us actively clinging to what we don’t want, we realize our resistance isn’t ours, but belongs to the negative “I” that has brought forth the state. See this. When you do, you’ll begin to drop both the state and the “I” involved.