"You yourself must strive. The Buddhas only point the way." I have been thinking about this lately. At times I have tried to use Buddhism in the same way I used Christianity. I was expecting a miracle without effort. I need to remember that this is a practice. You practice to improve. The other night I had insomnia and was listening to a Thich Nhat Han audiobook to relax. My husband came in an accidentally knocked into something. The insomnia brain instantly charged up again and the worry and anxiety started rolling. I also became incredibly angry. I was also a little mad at Thich Nhat Han. Grrrr! Why didn't his magical monk voice stop me from getting angry? Also, there have been a couple of times, after meditating where I have had panic attacks. Why didn't the magical meditations stop the panic attacks. Usually if I am calm before I meditate I don't have a panic attack afterwards, however sometimes I would experience anxiety and meditate to make it go...