Don’t Let Your Anxiety Win! How to Take Back Your Peace
Anxiety is epidemic and it’s not a coincidence that there is a lot of money to be made from keeping the population in a constant state of fear. How do we best deal with the onset of an anxiety attack and how do decrease the frequency and intensity of our anxiety overall?
Well, we have meds to take us down a notch but they commonly create more need for the drug. Our bodies and brains like the effect the drug has so they send more frequent and intensive physical responses in order to get more of the drug. They can also mask the need to learn and utilize the tools needed to cope with our stressors. Don’t get me wrong, they can be helpful but be careful.
This article will focus on those helpful tools but does not, of course, replace the care of a medical professional. I am a person who is sharing what I’ve learned through my own experience and what works for one may not work for another. It’s about trying different things and keeping what fits for you.
How do I come out of a full fledged anxiety attack?
While there’s no magic wand to pull us out of it, we can keep it from escalating even more and slowly bring ourselves back down. Here’s a few different ways to do that:
1. Use Your Words
When we’re in the midst of our attacks we tend to tell ourselves all the worst stories about what is happening and I know that you know that only makes it worse.
Time to break out the logic. Look around you. There’s obviously worry but in most situations there is no immediate danger. Remind yourself that this will pass and tell yourself that if there is a problem, you will be best able to find a solution or safety net when you are calm.
2. Use Even More of Your Words
Call a friend, knock on your neighbor’s door, join an online or real life group of people who have similar issues but place their focus on solutions and improvement.
I joined a couple of depression groups that only made me feel worse so I learned quickly to find groups focused on humor, self help, and positivity.
Other people help us to see things from a different perspective.
3. Feel Some Stuff
Touch something. Take your shoes off and feel the grass or grab that cup sitting in front of you. Describe to yourself what it feels like, what does it remind you of? Can you tell a story about it?
Take in a few deep breaths, feel them expand your lungs and diaphragm. Clench your body and relax it inch by inch, paying attention to how it feels. I even saw a movie once where the person was told to name all the streets she could think of in order proximity to her childhood home.
When your brain hits the flight, fight, or freeze state, you’re running on autopilot so the idea is to try to pull that logical part of your brain back into the mix.
4. Write That Shit Down!
I utilize a pretty even mixture of all this stuff but putting pen to paper is my favorite. I’ve steered away from telling my journal about what’s already happened and focus my efforts on writing down what is and ideas to improve it. Weighing my options and putting lists and goals to paper helps purge and gain perspective. I’ve recently discovered bullet journaling which has the bonus of making you utilize your creativity, I highly recommend you check it out!
5. See Also…
*Music – Pink Floyd and some Indian stuff is my go-to when I need to take it down a notch.
*Smells – kinda like aromatherapy but use a smell that you enjoy rather than what they say is good. Fresh ginger gets me every time.
*Pets – does this need to be said? Probably not but I think we all know the effect they have on us.
*Create – also well known but should never be overlooked
*Do something that you keep putting off. Sometimes even just making one phone call can take a lot of weight off.
*Clean stuff? I say this carefully because for some it might create more panic but for others it finds a way to use that anxious energy and has a similar effect to making that phone call mentioned above.
In the end there are as many ways to cope with anxiety as there are people who suffer from it. Try different things and keep what works for you, make sure you give them a fair shot though because all of it takes some practice and consistency to be increasingly helpful.
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