Anxiety tips. Posting here for traffic.

[Kaypee28]

Can anyone share their tips for anxiety?

I'm currently on cilatopram (uncorrect spelling) have just invested in a weighted blanket. Love it. Have a salt lamp, plants, a essential oil thingy & a CD player that plays relaxing music in my room. It all works great.

Is there anything else I'm missing? What helps everyone threw the day?

Magnesium. Hugely helpful for me. Plus B vitamins

What helped me (as well as exercise and reducing my blood pressure through running and diet) was something I read in a book.

It said that you should try and remember that anxiety is just your inbuilt protection/alarm system trying to keep you safe, but being a bit OTT about it! It was designed to protect you from real imminent danger (sabre-toothed tiger attack etc). But if yours has got a bit over-active, it can start reacting to almost anything as though it's a sabre-toothed tiger. And because your daily worries and concerns are there all the time (unlike the tiger), your alarm system can be on a lot of the time.

Anyway, the point is to remember it's there to protect you. So when it blares out with the anxiety symptoms, try thinking "Aww bless, thanks for the heads up, alarm system, but there's no tiger. You can switch off now!"

I know that sounds a bit daft, but it really helped me to not see my anxiety as something to be scared of. And once I learned that it gradually reduced.

Deep, slow breathing. Really works.

Exercise and eating well. I used to get myself into a cycle of eating poorly, not leaving the house and not exercising.

Just walking is enough - fresh air/nature helps. Tai chi is good too.

I had terrible anxiety last year - I couldn't make it into my kitchen without having a panic attack, had heartburn constantly, my blood pressure was doing silly things (I would start to black out when standing up). I felt like a rabbit in front of a predator, whenever I faced a challenge my brain would just power down and try to put me to sleep.

Here's what saved me:

I took some time out from normal life. I had to get on a bus because I couldn't drive, and stay with a relative for a week. It was drastic, but I had to 'put on my oxygen mask first'.

I realised that the anxiety was caused by a combination of current stress and past trauma and I used the time out to separate them by writing about it, listing things in each category, really tidying my mind.

I had to forgive myself for being weakened by the traumatic stuff. I had to look at it written down and say "Wow, that was a shitty, shitty time, no one should have to cope with that". And then I found I could shelve it.

I had to honestly look at the current stress, be brave enough to say "I hate this about my life and I feel helpless about most of it".

I had to ask for help for the things I couldn't change alone. A loan, more assistance from agencies, specific help from husband and new house rules.

I have been getting stronger and stronger since then, my anxiety is gone, I can face stressful days now, and I'm getting my old life and interests back. I hope this helps you, I had to hit rock bottom before I worked it out. You aren't alone, and I'm cheering you on.

TLDR
Take a total break if you can
You aren't weak or "ill" you are responding to trauma or stress in a natural way, and it can be resolved
Demand help directly, without any shame

I came on here to say just what lazylinguist said! When I feel anxious, it's not because there is something actually to worry about, it's because my brain has got itself stuck in "Arg, tiger!!!" mode and can't get itself unstuck. Knowing that really helped, because it meant I wasn't constantly hunting for the tiger that I couldn't see but thought must be there if my brain was so worried about it. Also, don't beat yourself up for being anxious. I used to, and then I reasoned - hey, I wouldnt be so hard on myself if I couldn't climb stairs because of a broken leg, so why so hard on myself if my anxiety means I can't do this paperwork right now?

Phew Throckmorton! I often post that on threads about anxiety, but people rarely comment on it. I always assume they think I'm nuts, banging on about tigers.

The book that helped me get it is called "The Compassionate Mind" by Paul Gilbert. It's kind of a bit Buddhisty and Minfulnessy, but it also talks about how our stone age instincts aren't very good at coping with the modern world.

@lazylinguist my cbt therapist told me that about the tiger and it helped me too!
It helps me because I used to think "what is wrong with me, why do I get do anxious, I'm an idiot", whereas by thinking about it in the tiger way, I can think of it as "my brain is just trying to protect me, but if I can see that rationally that there is no danger that is worth true alarm bells over, then I can tell my brain 'hey thanks for trying to look after me, but I can handle this one'

Yes, exactly, maryqueenofpots! For me, the fear of the anxiety itself was what fuelled it. It didn't help that mine started as postnatal health anxiety triggered by being diagnosed with dangerously high blood pressure. So because I knew that anxiety could push my bp up, every time I felt anxious I became terrified that my anxiety was going to cause an imminent heart attack or stroke. It was a vicious circle. Learning to see my anxiety as a slightly trigger-happy but benign security system helped me not to be scared by it.

@FredMerc I have never heard that before. Have you found cutting out coffee has made a big difference? This seems such a simple trick I could try to control my (at the moment) uncontrollable anxiety thank you x

Exercise. The type that makes you out of breath and sweaty.

Same for me, it’s the fear of panic attacks that fuels my anxiety. Understanding that it’s my in built flight/fight ‘tiger’ adrenaline kicking in has helped. It’s early days but I seem to be able to lessen the strength of an attack using techniques I read in a book by Dr Claire Weekes.

Yy to vigorous exercise and cutting out coffee and alcohol (and chocolate for me ). I find my diet has a massive effect on my state of mind. When I have a good phase of drinking plenty of water, eating lots of fruit, veg and fibre, avoiding alcohol, caffeine and too much sugar, I feel so much calmer and more positive.

Interesting. Thanks for sharing!

Alcohol gives me the WORST anxiety!

Interesting. Thanks for sharing!

Alcohol gives me the WORST anxiety!

For an anxiety disorder medication and therapy are key.

Lifestyle changes that help me include monitoring caffeine intake, burning off extra energy with exercise, good sleep hygiene and avoiding too much procrastination.

You’ll learn coping techniques in therapy. But on bad days when logic goes out the window it helps to have a rational, caring person in your life who can help you find perspective when you start to spiral and fixate on things.

Hello, I have suffered from Postnatal Anxiety since giving birth to my little man 9 months ago, and have a few go-to techniques I use on a daily basis to help me manage. I recently started a blog, and although it has been written around Postnatal Anxiety, I wonder if any of my tips could be of use to you. If you would like a read, I will leave the link below. Scroll down to the section titled, 'How to Handle Postnatal Anxiety'. I hope this helps!
wingingitmama.com/2020/06/12/postnatal-anxiety-what-it-is-and-how-to-cope/