I have dealt with anxiety for as long as I can remember. Whether it’s during a high-stakes exam or just sitting on the couch, it always creeps in. Over the years, I have attempted to take control of my emotions and pinpoint exactly what could be causing the issue. To be honest, nine times out of ten I have not a clue where the emotions are coming from or what started the stress. Therefore, my solution is to mostly distract myself or keep digging depending on how comfortable I feel. In the past, I have not been honest with myself or put much emphasis on my mental health as I just got stressed, freaked out, and eventually calmed back down. But I would suggest to anyone who is struggling with anxiety to take a deep breath and try to strategically figure out what to do next. I am a very logical person at heart, so I don’t always completely understand my emotions.
The first thing I always do when I start to feel my heart pounding faster, my head getting foggy, or my hands shaking is to close my eyes and take a deep breath. I begin to think through anything in my current life that could be causing stress, whether that be a future exam (as I tend to think very far ahead) or a crowded social gathering that I agreed to without thinking through the decision. Allowing myself to get into the proper headspace of analysis often distracts me or puts my life into a better perspective that doesn’t allow for negative overthinking. If I am feeling more in control of my thoughts, then I am more in control of my anxiety and stress. I will be honest–sometimes the first step does not work for me, as I will continue to overthink and start to spiral out of control. My next step would be to talk to someone I trust and get my thoughts out in the open in order to work towards comprehending what is happening. I find it very helpful to talk through struggles even if I don’t have the exact words to describe what is happening. The comfort of having my closest inner circle near me does more than I knew it did. I truly value people in my life and having someone there for me can often create a feeling of relief that goes a long way for me personally.
The past few tactics are what I learned through going to therapy and wanting to work through my feelings. There are often times when I don’t want to talk about what I’m thinking, because that sounds more stressful than the anxiety itself, which therefore causes more stress. In those circumstances, I often try to take my mind off the stress for a bit to move on and begin going about my day. I will usually stop whatever task I’m doing and watch a short show that I think of as my ‘comfort shows.’ For me, those are shows like “Friends”, “New Girl”, or “The Big Bang Theory”, which often make me laugh and put my life into a better perspective. On a day when I have a lot of free time and the stress overcomes me, I often take the day for self-care by spending most of the day on my own to recharge myself. I will watch my favorite movies, light a candle, read a book I love, order my favorite takeout, and relax on the couch. These days are some of my favorites and lead me to feel much better the next with being more refreshed to begin my busy schedule for the day. Having time to myself is one of my best remedies, especially since the COVID-19 pandemic as I started to get more social anxiety than before. I notice that this practice makes me feel in control over myself and without the social worry about thinking what others are thinking of me. For me, it allows me to be in my bubble for a day without anyone else influencing my already strong, stressful thoughts.
Life is filled with stress as we go to school, relax at home, or even hang out with our closest friends, but in my experience, it’s how we handle it that makes the most difference in our mental health. We as a community need to shine a light on how important our mental health is and how it affects our functioning and quality of life . At some points, we need to put ourselves and our health first in order to help others or complete a job successfully. I have realized this through many issues during the COVID-19 pandemic, and it has helped me become a stronger individual. I de-stress by putting my life into perspective on how I want it to be. Therefore, many tactics work for me to calm my mind and body down. I would also like to mention that everyone is different, so the things that work best for me may not work best for the audience reading. Everyone has a different journey through life, and discovering how to take care of your mental health is one of the endless tasks of living.So, let’s all take care of ourselves this week and attempt to relax from the daily stressors of our lives!