You’re just about to go to sleep then a worry thought pops up, then another one and another one – before you know it, anxiety has taken full control. Your mind is just filled with these thoughts – thoughts that are constantly drowning you. Anxiety sucks – it’s a thief. It robs your chance to be happy and to enjoy everything with a carefree heart. It stops us from living our lives to the fullest.
Now, I know I’m not in the best position to tell you exactly how you can overcome it because I myself also struggle with it, every day, but I won’t let this stop me from really living and neither should you. So, that’s why today, I have decided to share to you the 5 things I do on those days when anxiety gets the best of me.
Write down your thoughts
I have already said this in previous pieces I’ve written and I’ll say this again, writing helps. It helped me a lot. I write about my feelings, my emotions, all those thoughts rambling through my mind. I know there are times when we tell ourselves that we have nothing to write about but trust me you have. Grab that pen and just start writing. You’ll be surprised when all those thoughts just keeps flowing.
Writing gives me a sense of clarity, it allows my mind to detach from those thoughts. It gives me a feeling that I ‘am in control and those constant what if’s are nothing. For me, that’s calming.
Coloring
I ‘am no artist. Coloring is not a hobby, I don’t even have an act of choosing colors that’ll complement each other. But every time I was on the verge of having another panic attack, doing this helps me. This may sound silly but it does. It keeps my mind focused on the task that I ‘am doing – keeping my mind off those anxious thoughts and it keeps me calm. It helps me live at the present moment instead of worrying about other things.
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Practice Self Care
Self-Care is crucial towards our overall well-being. If you’re not doing anything to take care of yourself, you are more likely to feel overwhelmed, stressed and will eventually lead to anxiety. This is what happened to me, I forgot to take care of myself that it drained me. It took so much toll on me that I was constantly having panic attacks because of it. So, my greatest advice would be to never be afraid to do something for yourself. Self-Care is not selfishness.
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Do a digital detox
As soon as I was diagnosed with Generalized Anxiety and Major Depressive Disorder, I decided to unplug myself from Social Media. I just couldn’t take it anymore. The constant standard for perfection, all the perfect this & that was just too overwhelming. It just triggered my anxiety and it made me feel worst about myself. Other’s kept telling me that doing it was a form of isolation (which is not good in my case) but for me, it wasn’t. I was not isolating myself, I was giving myself a time to breathe. A time to reconnect with life. So, start taking a few hours of digital detox, or a day or even days and just do something that you love. Read, go for a walk, watch the sunrise, just breathe, relax and enjoy the moment. You’ll be surprised how refreshing and therapeutic it will feel.
Don’t be afraid to ask for help
Remember that not all battles could be conquered alone. I know how difficult it is to step out of our comfort zone and let other people in. I know it’s terrifying to open up to someone, share with them all your thoughts with a constant fear of being judged or misunderstood. I’ve been through that road but I’ve realized while other people may judge you or diminish what you feel, there will be more people who will do the best that they can to be there for you. They may not exactly understand all the thoughts going through your head but they will be there to hold you and assure you that everything’s going to be okay and most of the time, hearing those words is all it takes to calm us down.
So, try to ease gently back to the world and talk to someone you trust, you can talk to a friend, a family member or your partner and once you’re ready, try talking to a therapist. Doing this helped me a lot, it made things more bearable. I felt safe, that I was no longer alone.
We all have different coping mechanisms, it’s not always a guarantee that all these things will work for you but don’t let that stop you! There are a lot of ways to fight and overcome anxiety. The important thing is to not give up. Join me on my journey and let’s fight this together!
If you have any tips that you would like to share or if you want to share your story, leave a comment below or send me an email, I would love to hear from you!
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