Hello, and welcome back or to The Stoker Story! As you’ve clicked on this post, I’m assuming you or someone you know suffers with anxiety. No matter how big or small, I feel your pain. We all experience anxiety and mental health problems in different ways, and what might help one person might not help the other. Although it’s taken me some time to find what does help me, I hope by sharing them with you, it might help you heal your anxious mind ever so slightly. Here we go…
SWITCH OFF THE PHONE – TURN ON THE LOUD MUSIC
Having those anxious feelings means it’s so easy just to dive deeper into our phones. Well, I know it is for me anyway. I think it’s a way of me telling people, go away and don’t talk to me now. When really, shutting myself off from everyone is the worst thing I could do. So when I’m feeling at my most vulnerable, I switch off the phone and turn on the music I love. Whether it’s Taylor Swift, Beyonce or just a feel-good playlist – Alexa gets cranked up and the rest of the world gets drowned out. It’s just a nice little escapism.
GO TO THE GYM
When I’m feeling anxious, the last thing I want to go and do is work out. I bet you’re the same, right? But when I actually force myself to go I feel so much better about myself. By focusing on running that little bit further, lifting that little bit more, you can get your mind thinking about something other than what is causing you so much anxiety. Your body won’t only thank you for going to the gym, your mind will too.
RETAIL THERAPY W. THOSE YOU LOVE
Anxiety can be absolutely crippling. There has been times where I have stayed in bed all day and couldn’t get up because my mind was just filled with bad thoughts. It’s 100-percent a victory when anxiety is getting the best of you is to just carry on. And one of the best things I have found that has made me feel better is retail therapy. There’s nothing I love more than going and getting a new outfit, a make-up pallet or a book. I know this is a personal one, and not everyone finds going shopping a relaxing experience – trust me, I do understand. So if you don’t find hitting the shops a way to heal your mind, just spending time with those you love most doing something you love is such a good way to help your anxiety.
YOGA
Every time I’d mention to someone that my anxiety just keeps getting worse, they’d tell me to try yoga. And believe me, I tried to get into it but I just couldn’t. It was only until I tried YouTube videos where people were using yoga to get fit that I actually thought hang on, I actually find this is helping my body as well as my mind. From there, I kept doing more and more videos and soon, I’m going to a yoga class at my gym. That’s something that my anxiety would have stopped me doing only a couple of months ago.
HAVE A LITTLE CHUCKLE
And lastly, I don’t want this one to sound patronising but I didn’t even think of it when I felt at my lowest point. Sit on the sofa, get some nice food and watch something funny. It could be a comedy DVD, a funny film, or just a sitcom that makes you laugh out loud. I’ve found when I’m actually smiling and laughing it just makes me feel better. And maybe because it’s so obvious, we don’t even remember to do it.
So these are just five things I’ve found to help me heal my anxious mind a little. I hope these work for you slightly, and if you have any more, please share and we can all feel better together. Please take note that if you really need to speak to someone about your mental health, please see your doctor and don’t suffer in silence. Always remember to be kind to yourself.
If you’re looking for more help with anxiety or mental health online, here’s some helpful sites:
- https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/types-of-mental-health-problems/anxiety-and-panic-attacks/#.XQZ38y2ZPBI
- https://www.theodysseyonline.com/five-websites-calm-your-anxiety
- https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/generalised-anxiety-disorder/
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