Alright, let’s talk business. Since the semester is starting to kick into gear, I’m expecting my anxiety to rise a bit. Remember my last post about being realistic? I’m doing JUST that! I’m keeping in mind that this is a time of adjustment, and that this period usually comes with some anxious thoughts. So, if you’re also expecting a forecast of anxiety over the next few weeks, listen up! I’ve come up with a few magic tips to help you on those mornings when it just feels like the universe is against you (ps. The universe is never against you).
1. Accept your anxiety. There’s no point in getting down on yourself for something that you can’t control. It’s not your fault, you’re not an inconvenience, you’re not weak. As cliché as it sounds, accepting the things you dislike the most about yourself makes a big difference. Even if right now it feels like you could never love your anxiety, if you just practice a little bit every day you will get there. If you can’t learn to love every part of yourself by repeating affirmations in your head, write them down! Listen to songs that inspire you. Read a book by one of your role models. Just find little things in your life that gives you the same feeling of sunlight kissing your skin and your dog licking your face. Be proud of yourself for every single step you’ve made.
2. Make decisions based off of what feels best for YOU. Don’t judge the situation (or yourself) by society’s standards. T hat’s when feeling like a failure can occur and that is not right! Social media and the rise of the internet has made it so easy to compare yourself to others. I mean, the only things people post are the pictures they look best in and the times when it looks like they couldn’t be having more fun. And by the looks of my Instagram, I’m guilty of this too! My feed doesn’t look like I have even an ounce of anxiety, yet I have so much that I created a blog. Do you KNOW how passionate you have to be about something to make a blog??? VERY.
But I digress. Anyway, just try to remember you are responsible for taking care of yourself. It’s okay if you can’t go to class. It’s okay if going out with your friends tonight gives you an instant knot in your stomach. Life happens at a different pace for everyone. Allowing yourself to have setbacks and bad days is so important. So next time you wake up under a cloud of anxiety, respond to it in the healthiest, best way for YOU. No one else!
3. Drink a glass of water and eat something healthy. This is a lesson that my stubborn self has taken longer than i’m willing to admit to learn. And sometimes, with the busyness of life, it’s easy to forget to eat and drink enough water. It’s also hard to pick up on when you’re not nourishing your body enough (especially when you’re a college student and you feel like you barely have enough time to think). Personally, my mom was the one who put together that my OCD increases when I have no food in my stomach. We’ll be out in Homegoods, looking at beautiful couches that we can’t afford and wouldn’t even be able to fit in our house if we tried, and my OCD will be going off in my head like a young kid ringing your doorbell…repeatedly and without pause. Then my mom, knowing me as well as she does, will ask if I ate yet that day and the answer is usually a resounding, “No”. We’ll grab food or I’ll go home and eat and bam, a grilled cheese and an apple and I’m back to myself. It’s crazy how chemical anxiety is, and that something as simple as a piece of fruit or a tablespoon of peanut butter can make us mentally feel better. But little things like that do have the power to help us, so lets let em!!
4. 4, 7, 8! This is one of my favorite “instant relief” remedies. It only requires a minute or two and, from my own experiences, is one of the BEST remedies for an anxious mind. All you do is inhale for 4 seconds, hold for 7 seconds, exhale for 8 seconds. Now, if you’re one of those people who insists breathing doesn’t do the trick, have no fear! This is a really helpful breathing exercise that genuinely, GENUINELY makes a difference. Believe me, for a while whenever I was having a panic attack and my mom or counselor would remind me to breathe, I would get even more upset. It felt like people were trying to shrink my anxiety to the simple problem of not breathing deeply enough, and that sucked because I knew how crippling my anxiety was and it seemed like I couldn’t get anyone to understand. But no one was trying to tell me that breathing would fix it all. No one was saying “just breathe you’ll be fine”. They were just trying to find little ways to clear my head enough, so I could remember my anxiety does not define me. So I had to learn how to open myself to new, potential coping mechanisms. This is definitely one of the best ones I have discovered. It works by shifting your sympathetic nervous system to a parasympathetic response. Basically, what that means is it switches you out of the “flight or fight” response that causes panic/anxiety attacks. Anxiety is literally science…so weird. But hey, who am I to fight science?
5. As much as our minds mess with us (i mean, so annoying right?), they also contain the power to help us. The cool thing about this is that you can be a little skeptical about it. You can think that just saying “im okay” in your head won’t do diddly- squat, but literally just thinking it has positive benefits. Don’t believe me? (no judgement) Check out this website that explains it way better than I can: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/embodied-wellness/201704/affirm-or-not-affirm.
So…find some affirmations or quotes that really speak to you (or make your own), and give yourself just a minute every day to say them to yourself. You don’t have to do it in front of the mirror and make it a big thing. Simply reminding yourself of them in bed before your feet have even touched the floor that day is totally okay! Whatever makes you feel comfortable is the way to go. Remember, what is watered grows! Surround yourself with self- love and you’ll bloom.
(p.s. look at this experiment that proves words have power. Plus it involves plants, and any experiment with plants is a cool one, right?????
So those are my 5 pieces of magic that I keep in my back pocket at all times. It’s funny because this morning, I woke up after my 3 alarms and felt that oh so familiar feeling of anxiety that I find myself waking up to on some mornings. I know it like the back of my hand, and waking up to that feeling is eons from what I want on a Monday morning. I was in a situation that just made me feel like crap, fumbling through all my thoughts, trying to find the words that I would tell one of my readers if they were in my place.
These tips are exactly what I’d say.
So be kind to yourself on bad days and forgive yourselves for the ones where you just can’t get out of bed. No matter how much progress we make, we’re never too perfect for a bad day. Believe it or not, that’s actually a really good thing…pressures off!
Thanks for reading and comment your favorite anti- anxiety tips below!! Remember the light within you and that you're not alone.
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