Anxiety can creep up on you out of nowhere. It feels as though you are being smothered with a permanent feeling of dread and your heart is pounding so much that you think it is going to stop. It makes you feel weak as a person and embarrassed that this is happening to you. Does this sound familiar? Well read on for some top tips as you shouldn’t suffer alone. Help and support is out there for you.
The first step to recovery is acceptance to begin your journey to being well again, then follow these top tips:
Surround yourself with a positive support network of family and friends and seek help from your GP and other sources.
Breathing is key to calming the adrenals and feeling in control again. Lie down somewhere quiet and place one hand on your heart and one hand above your stomach in between your rib cage. Take a deep breath in through the nose for 7 slow counts and breathe out for 7. Keep doing this until you feel calm again. Acknowledge any thoughts that pop into your mind but try to keep concentrating on your breathing.
Writing a journal is a good way to offload what’s on your mind and identify patterns/triggers for the cause of your anxiety.
Set yourself a positive mantra that you can recite every morning to keep in a positive and calm mindset. Keep positive affirmations on post it notes and place in prominent places around your home e.g. on the fridge, mirror. Also checkout You Tube and Ted Talks for inspiration.
Most important of all is to be kind to yourself. Guard your thoughts on how you are talking to yourself, stopping any negative thought patterns. If you are having a bad day, don’t worry, for tomorrow is always a new day.
Set yourself a daily routine for the day so that you have a sense of purpose and structure. Do something for yourself that you enjoy whether it is a walk in park, sitting in the garden, reading a book, soaking in a hot bath – anything that is relaxing. Being outdoors for at least 20 minutes every day is beneficial for your wellbeing, topping up your vitamin D levels and getting some fresh air. Being in nature is also very therapeutic.
Although you may not feel like it at the moment, you will get through this and there is support available. There are many other people suffering from anxiety too, so you are not alone. Your main priority is to seek help to be well again and find what works for you. You will have learned wise lessons from this experience and will develop a toolkit to maintain your mental wellbeing going forward.