Storm Clouds of Anxiety and How I Learned Self-Care Can go a Long Way

About ten years ago I started down the path of anxiety. It came at me in a rush I had not a clue as to what was wrong with me. Everything scared me and put me in a panic. I would sit in crowds and sweat from the panic of wanting to run. I would get this warm shooting feeling down my spine. I couldn't catch my breath and I'd wake at night in a panic. I felt like my world was crashing into a fiery mess and there wasn't anything I could do about it.

I went to the doctor and was put on antidepressants the one I was put on can cause anxiety....so that didn't help. I lost friends because they didn't understand. I was depressed but that wasn't the worst of it the anxiety controlled everything I did. I would cycle through thoughts around and around with no resolution, and I felt like a failure at everything.

Now fast forward ten years and those days of snapping at people in a panic or waking in the night struggling to breath are not altogether gone but are rarely seen. Now I am not a medical professional at all and what I've learned has helped me they may or may not help you. Here is a list of eight suggestions that have helped me so that my anxiety doesn't control me.

1. Cutting out caffeine. I haven't altogether cut it out today but at the time it helped a lot. The wakeup call was in the grocery store one day when my husband and I bought a soda to share as we shopped, and it hit me hard in the bread aisle. One minute I was happy and the next I wanted to run from the store. My husband pointed out the soda and we stopped drinking them and other caffeinated drinks and the anxiety related to them stopped.

2. Journaling. Remember I lost friends and those I didn't lose I didn't want to burden them. So, journaling became a big outlet for me most days I would write the same things over and over from one day to the next. I was homeschooling my kids at the time and while they studied, I journaled it was therapeutic. I don't have those journals anymore I burned them and that was a kind of release as well.

3. Routines we were homeschooling, and we had routines, but I refined routines for myself. This seemed to focus me give me a set purpose, so I didn't feel I was aimlessly floating through the day.

4. I started taking Omega 3 and listening to my body and what things I put in it that triggered things. I found when I was tired the anxiety was just below the surface, so I worked on getting enough sleep. The routines helped with this and cutting caffeine out.

5. Walking or hiking. This is something I love to do especially on my own. It clears the head and releases pent up energy that I've noticed can be a trigger for me. It doesn't have to be far and on your own, but for me I like to feel tired when I'm done, and I like to be alone in a place with no one around.

6. Meditating. Early on I was having trouble with sleep and deep breathing helped calm me down, so I started mediating when I woke at night in a panic. We live in the country and one night I went outside and watched the stars to mediate and in turned into a routine. I visualize myself breathing in goodness, peace, tranquility and breathing out anxiety, fear, and turbulence. I have gone out in the yard by my garden at 2 or 3 in the morning and just laid on a blanket in the grass watching the stars.

7. Releasing expectations. This one I am still working on. A family trait is worrying about what people think this makes us set our expectations high for ourselves. We don't want people to talk about us or think bad thoughts. We are in competition with what we perceive people are thinking about us. But in the end who cares what they think and if they are thinking about you good or bad it's their thoughts and their business, we have better things to worry about.

8. Let it go and saying no. Learn to say no is maybe a cliche but it is such a game changer. We don't have to be like everyone else in this life, we are not in competition with anyone or anything. So, if your social calendar is so full it stresses you its ok to let some of it go and start saying no especially when you need down time.

I learned a lot about myself, and I learned a lot about my relationships. My husband was a rock for me during my darkest time. My friends I lost well they weren't friends to begin with if they walked away from me. I'm OK with them not being there anymore. I learned that I am an HSP or highly sensitive person and an introvert and I'm OK with this about myself. I dance to the beat of my own drum, and this is a blessing to be cherished.

Anxiety isn't the end of the world, but it is maybe a signal that something has to change. I'm still a work in progress and every day I learn something new that only helps the progress I've made. Though these suggestions have helped me don't be afraid to find your own suggestions that will help you. In your journey learn to embrace your uniqueness and learn from your adversity it will only make you stronger. The storms in your life will open up to sunny days as you take your own journey of self-discovery and healing.