To ask your anxiety beating tricks and tips

[auntfester22]

Not medication. I've done that before and although it helped in some ways, I don't want the fogginess of it again. I've also tried CBT which was a waste of time.

Sometimes breathing exercises work for me. But overall I can feel my anxiety is creeping back in again. New, unfamiliar or high pressure situations send me into a panic attack. I swear, shake, retch and often need the toilet urgently (this is a massive issue in itself as I then become panicky about finding a loo). At night I feel myself tensing and then in the morning my muscles ache. I don't know what's causing it. I have a 7 month old baby and am tired and stressed but overall I'm happy. I think I overthink.

Meditation and yoga helped me before but I barely have time to wash my hair these days so I struggle to fit it in now. Would love to hear how others battle this.

With yoga, I find that just doing one or two moves can help. I'm like you in thinking I "don't have time" which would make me give up the idea completely. But recently I've been doing 5 mins here and there, made up of only 2 or 3 moves.
Exercise always helps. When mine were little I would stride around the local area with the pram/pushchair several times a day.
B12 supplements make a difference for me.
Definitely do some slow breaths if you feel really tense. And force yourself to relax/unclench muscles even if it's for a minute or 2 throughout the day.
Years ago counselling (psychotherapy) helped because I got to the root of why situations made me anxious. It did reduce anxiety exploring that.
Can you plan your week so that you know what's coming up? What high pressure situations are you having to face?

The book that really helped is an old book called " self help for your nerves " by Dr Claire weekes.

@MakeItRain thank you for replying.

I could maybe try to do a few shorter yoga sessions or even just some stretches before bed.

To be honest they aren't even high pressure situations they are just obligations that I feel I have to fulfil. Things like taking my dc to their clubs or attending medical appointments. Things that I know I am obliged to do. I get terrible panic around taking my ds to his Sunday football matches because I know I have to do it for him, I know there will be lots of people there, it's sometimes an unfamiliar place and often there are no toilets for if I get an anxious tummy - this fear seems to trigger the anxious tummy even more. I need coping strategies to calm myself down in these type of scenarios because it's taking all of the enjoyment out of things that should be fun.

Sertraline! But I’ve seen you don’t want medication. It might help though with everything you’ve got going on with such a young baby, even just in the short term.

If not, plenty of sleep and exercise. And maybe more therapy.

@VestaTilley I did take citalopram for about a year before I got pregnant and it did help me feel a bit stronger in some ways but also more detached and fuzzy.

Is there anyone else that can take your ds to football on the days there is no toilet nearby? Or someone that could go with you so that you could drive to a place nearby with a toilet? Would you have time to drive to venues before the match so that you know what to expect/ what facilities are available?

I wouldn't worry about lots of people, just ignore them if you don't feel like talking, or sit in your car!

Don't be hard on yourself if you find it stressful. Try to think of practical ways to help you cope, rather than feeling you must calm down. (Eg Friend comes/ you check the venue beforehand/ you walk around or sit in the car rather than talking to people you don't know/ you find out where the nearest toilets are and see if someone you trust can keep an eye on your ds while you drive or walk to them. It might be that knowing you can do this helps you feel calmer and not actually need to go anyway!)

I had to ride it out and remind myself ill always return to balance. Once I got okay with being anxious it started to go. I tried exposure therapy too for just about any situation making me anxious and that seemed to work although no results are immediate. Keeping busy also helped even when I really didn't want to be. I was severely ill with anxiety and ocd and for the first time in a long time a week ago I sat on my sofa with a clear mind and thought 'I'm happy'. You will get there I promise, no matter how unlikely it seems. I also gained a bit of weight and that helped. I was very underweight and think my body was possibly more anxious because of all my resources being used up. I'm still what people would describe as skinny but having energy definitely helped even though it was hard at the beginning