My Anxiety: Ways I've Been Doing "Self-Care"
I’ve actually had this post written for about 3.5 weeks now. I just planned to shoot visual content for it and then hit publish. Then over the course of the last 2.5 weeks I hit a really really low point. I had the hardest period of my life, putting me in horrid physical pain, my mental state hit the lowest it ever has and I just kind of went silent. I stopped doing everything, whatever I felt like made me happy during the day, I just did it and forgot about anything else. I was just trying to cope.
So now the content of this post has to shift. From 5 ways to engaged in self-care to here is what I’ve been up to and how I’m slowly bringing myself back from the hardest time I’ve had in years.
My original intro:
I think self-care is so much more than taking a day at the spa, or going for a manicure. Physchcentral.com said it best, “Self-care is any activity that we do deliberately in order to take care of our mental, emotional, and physical health.” — The last year has been a pretty tough one on me. I’ve been challenged with my work, relationships & overall well-being. So the last few months I’ve made self-care a bigger priority in my life.
Before I get into this post, I just wanted to state that self-care can mean so many different things for each individual. I am not saying that the way I do things is 100% right, or the way to go.
The anxiety was the worst. All I could think about all day everyday was the worst possible situations, my germaphobia hit an all time high, making me want to never leave the house again - thinking about every person that had touched or breathed on the item I was touching. Then finally a few panic attacks decided to join along for the ride. When I wasn’t mind racing or panicking or crying I was just emotionless. I felt like I had been thrown all over the place and had nothing left in me. I don’t know exactly what started everything, it was kind of like a perfect storm. I’ve dealt with anxiety in the past but didn’t know the true burden it could be until now.
If you’re feeling stuck, having a rough battle with anxiety, or just need a mood booster, here are a few of the things that have worked wonders for me over the last few weeks.
Reading Before Bed
Currently reading: Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn
Over the course of the last few days I found myself lunging toward my books. You sit down & are taken into a completely different world. This helped me so much erase all of the wandering thoughts and focus on one single thing.
My favorite time to read is before bed — it helped me tremendously with falling asleep and getting myself on a better night time routine.
Talking to a therapist
BetterHelp.com
I was nervous at first to add this point to this post. Talking to a therapist is something that I have gone back and forth on for years. Like I said, I’ve had anxiety a few times a year for as long as I can remember and every time I thought about talking to someone, I found one way to cope with whatever had been going on. When the ideas ran out this time around and I was desperate to have a better understanding & new techniques to handle my emotions I decided to do some research.
After I found Better Help (not sponsored) I immediately felt a sigh of relief. Even taking this step forward I felt lighter. On Better Help you are matched with a licensed therapist that is best to help in the areas you need for your lifestyle. You have access to 24/7 chat, schedule phone/video meetings, journaling and more.
Cleaning
10 minutes evenings & Sundays
After doing nothing day after day I quickly learned that messy spaces did not help a messy state of mind. So I wanted to share my 2 favorite cleaning techniques that help me mentally (and physically aka dust).
10 minute cleanup: Who doesn’t have 10 minutes to spare, right? Every night before I get in bed I make sure everything is picked up. Laundry that needs to be hung or folded into drawers, props that need to be put in their place, makeup, etc.
Sunday deep cleans: I use my Sundays to clean everything. Each week I like to dust, vacuum, & clean my wood floors. I do this because of my allergies (after I’ve been outside and bringing pollen in, as well as growing dust)
When I started cleaning I found it to be calming. I knew I was doing something that was a positive and moving me in the right direction, and it was easy. I highly recommend cleaning/organizing whatever you can in your home (and in turn your mind!)
wim hof method
I’m taking 1.5 minute freezing cold showers?
During my time away my Mom let me know she was about to try Wim Hof’s new 10-day program. I will link it here if you are interested, after the 10 days it is $49, but I highly recommend it!
If you don’t know who Wim Hof is, he is the ultimate figure to look up to in the mindfulness and meditation space. So far in the lessons I have learned to alkalize my body first thing in the morning through breathing and holding the breath for 1.5 minutes, how to connect to the deepest part of my brain, and how to withstand the cold better (we have to take 1.5 minute cold showers so far!)
One big thing when trying to put your mind in a better space, is to having things to look forward to or get excited about. This program has been someting that when I wake up in the morning, makes me excited!
Focusing on health
Grains, prebiotics & Goop
Having psoriasis, allergies, leaky gut, etc health has always and will always be a bigger part of my life. When my germaphobia started to get worse the last few weeks I found myself researching a lot. Then implementing better healthy techniques not only helped me mentally, but similar to the cleaning it felt good to be doing something good.
Following in my Mom’s footsteps (she’s the health nut in the family) I decided to research things like: why it’s so important to use safe beauty products, what is really means to have a leaky gut, and just how much yoga/meditation can have on your overall wellbeing.
I found that focussing more on my own health, going out and looking for my own knowledge, had made me more confident in who I am and where I am going.
Mental health is not a simple subject
Mental health is not a simple subject. While I wanted to share what the last few weeks have been like for me, and a few of my tips, I am not a doctor and think that if you are suffering it is important to find what work for you! I’m learning every day how to process what the last few weeks have brought to me. But, I wouldn’t be as far as I am without Bryce & my Mom. It is important to surround yourself with people that love and support you, even in tough times.
If you ever feel alone or need someone to talk to sign up online at BetterHelp.com or for a free alternative call SAMHSA’s National Helpline – 1-800-662-HELP (4357). We are all in this together!