Anxiety…what to do?

We’ve heard it all before, “just be happy, everything’s going to be okay.” Do you know how many times I have told myself that in hopes that maybe my brain would finally believe what I was telling it? The truth is, everything really will be okay. Anxiety has a funny way of making it seem like everything will go wrong and everyone will eventually hate you. Here’s a secret…some things will go wrong and some people might not like you, but that’s life. Anxiety is one of those things that left unrecognized can make you feel legitimately crazy and sometimes even more so when you acknowledge it. If you let people know you are having anxious thoughts or feelings it can often times lead to a downward spiral that just makes that anxiety one thousandtimes worse. So, how do we deal with it when nothing is going right, everything feels overwhelming and you’re drowning in a four-inch puddle of water that feels like an ocean?

There are ten thousand remedies for anxiety, a million people who think they can help you and millions of pins on Pinterest offering the latest and greatest solutions for how to “cure” anxiety. There is no magic cure and there is no magic pill that will make it just go away. I’m certainly not going to sit here and tell you that if you do steps 1-5 you’ll get rid of your anxiety and be a happy butterfly, but I am telling you that if you do just one of these things and focus some attention on it, you might find yourself in a different headspace. 

In my previous post I touched on what I’ve been going through mentally and here are just a few of the things that have helped me push through the hard days that are filled with anxiety.

In conclusion, just know that you are not alone and that if you are dealing with anxiety others are too and you just have to reach out. If you have relationships with people (friendly or romantic) make sure they know how you feel and don’t ever apologize for those feelings. Sometimes focusing on yourself is more than okay and if people can’t help you create a better space for you (anxiety and all good included) walk away and create that space for yourself.