Hi, it's Shamash here. I've been asked the question, how much anxiety is normal? If you're listening to this, I'm guessing you're going through this experience yourself. And I want to say to you, I already feel for you. Feeling really anxious is hard. It reminds me of the first time.

I felt really overwhelmed with anxiety. I was trying to be a school teacher. I only just entered the classroom and really struggled to teach my classes effectively. Of course that's normal. I was new to teaching teenagers.

The regular teachers were just too busy to support me and the classes has got harder and harder to teach, actually. My feelings of anxiety were getting higher and higher every day as well. I remember the feeling of dread as I stepped out the station and walks towards the school gates. I also wondered if it was normal to feel so much anxiety. Actually, I felt disappointed with myself that I was feeling so anxious for something that, in some ways, seemingly was not so much of a big deal.

Fortunately, to cut a long story short, after many months of stress and anxiety, fortunately it did subside as I learned how to teach and facing my fears together with more supportive teachers and trainers. But the question is, was my anxiety normal? And you may be wondering, more importantly for your own case, if your own anxiety is normal too. First of all, let's remember that the feeling of anxiety itself is normal. The levels of anxiety that we all experience varies, but one thing's for sure, us human beings, all experience anxiety. Some people experience anxiety more than others.

And if you're listening to this, I'm guessing that you're experiencing what you feel is quite a lot of anxiety. If you're finding you just feel anxious when you're facing a challenge, for example, you're about to do an exam, have an interview, or you're facing a deadline, that's perfectly normal to feel some anxiety. Especially in the run-up to such experiences and during the experience itself. Your body's actually energizing you to prepare you for that challenge. Your body and mind are showing you that you care and that this is important.

If you didn't care what happened at all, you probably wouldn't feel anxious. So your anxiety is showing that you care. However, if you've been feeling anxious longterm, or find your anxiety gets in the way of you doing whatever you want to do in your day-to-day life, then I'd recommend you visit your doctor. They can advise you on your next steps. Feeling lots of anxiety is very common nowadays, and there's a lot of support and help that professionals can offer you.

So, thank you so much for your practice. I wish you really well as you work with your anxieties. Remember today, just to be gentle with yourself, to take your time to notice any beauty around you, and most importantly, do your best to be kind to yourself.