Dealing with Anxiety

Hi everyone❤️

Today's blog post is something a little different to my previous posts as I am going to be talking about something that I deal with that I don't usually talk about often which is anxiety. I am not a doctor or a professional on dealing with anxiety, everything I talk about in this post is based on my personal experiences and views.

I am writing this post not only for the people who suffer with anxiety but also for people who may have family, friends or a partner that suffers from anxiety, to help them understand what it is like and how to go about helping them when they are anxious.

I have been dealing with anxiety on and off for the last couple of years. My anxiety started to get really bad at the start of last year and although I would experience panic attacks before this, they started to get a lot worse and more frequent. Last year wasn't the best for me as I was dealing with a lot such as my final year of college, toxic relationships with people in my life etc but the anxiety I was experiencing made everything so much worse and had a really bad affect on me.

I was distant from the people in my life, never wanted to get out of bed, struggled to sleep, when I slept I was always so restless and would have bad dreams, never really had an appetite so I struggled to eat at times, I would get upset and sometimes not even know why I was upset and I found it hard a lot of the time to explain how I was feeling to others.

Anxiety is not only something that affects you mentally, it affects you physically too which a lot of people are unaware of. I would get really bad headaches, feel dizzy, feel really nauseous like I was going to get sick, get really bad pains in my chest as if someone was standing on it, my body would feel numb, I would get pins and needles and overall I would just feel weak, tired and drained.

When I have panic attacks, sometimes they are small. My chest feels tight, my heart starts racing and I just breathe through it. When my panic attacks are bad they are really bad and it would feel like I am going to have a heart attack. My chest would be really tight, my body feels numb, I feel sick, dizzy, I feel like my body is taking in no air and I cant breathe at all. There has been many times when I have had to go to the doctor, phone the ambulance or go to the hospital because I thought there was something wrong with my heart and lungs and it has just been my anxiety.

Some days are better than others but I still experience all of these things often as my anxiety is still quite bad. I find that when I am going through hard times my anxiety gets a lot worse than it would usually be and with everything that is going on in the world today and personal situations also, it has been bad. I just try to be positive and tell myself that I have been through this before, I was okay and that these times will also pass and I will be okay.

If you are someone who is dealing with anxiety my advice would be:

• Try to pin point what triggers your anxiety. Once you know what triggers your anxiety you will be more aware when you are in similar situations in the future.

• Keep busy. This really helps when you have anxiety because you have less time to think as you are busy doing other things and because of this you don't feel as anxious. I always find that when I am working or keeping busy through the day I feel better.

• Talk to someone when you are feeling sad, anxious or like things are getting too much for you. This is so important. If you are someone who finds it hard to talk about your feelings, writing them down also helps.

• If you are having a panic attack, try to center your mind. Look around you and pick out 3 things you can see, 3 sounds you hear and move 3 parts of your body. This helps to bring you back to the present moment and stops your mind from racing.

• When you feel a panic attack coming on, tell yourself that it is a panic attack. In your head remind yourself that it is just a panic attack, to keep breathing slowly and it will pass soon. Do this as soon as you realise that you are starting to feel anxious and panic as it will help slow everything down.

• Try meditation or yoga, personally this is not something that is helpful for me but it does help some people.

• Do things that make you happy. For example seeing friends, listening to music or going for a walk. This will help lift your spirits.

• Don't be hard on yourself when you feel like you don't want to do anything. When you feel like this just take your time and do things at a pace that is comfortable for you.

If you are someone who does not have anxiety but has a family member, friend or partner that suffers from anxiety my advice would be:

• If they come to you and tell you they are having a hard time, don't ask them if they are okay. Instead ask them is there anything you can do to help them and let them know that you are always there for them.

• If they are having a panic attack, dont tell them to 'relax' 'calm down' or 'breathe' because they are already trying to do that but feel like they cant. Instead sit with them, count slowly to 10 and breathe with them to help slow their breathing down.

• When I spoke to someone I was close to before and told them that I wasn't feeling great they told me that "I will be fine, other people have it worse than me so I shouldn't complain." This only makes the person feel worse.

• Understand that sometimes they might not be able to tell you exactly whats wrong but let them know that you are there for them if or when they do figure it out.

• Overall just be there for them and by doing that you are doing the best you can for them.

Some things will work better for you than they will for others and some things wont work for you at all. When dealing with anxiety it is all about finding things that help you get through it and it really is a trial and error process.

My family and my friends are amazing and they really do all they can to support me and be there for me when I am struggling. However sometimes no matter who is around you and there supporting you, you may still feel alone. I know the feeling well. You are never alone though, there will always be someone there to talk to and be there for you.

Mental health issues are hard to talk about. Talking about this is hard for me also. But when we talk about our experiences and what we go through it shows people who are going through something similar that they are not alone. If talking about my experiences and offering advice can even be of help to one person then it makes talking worth it.

If you are ever struggling or having a hard time, you can always message me. I will be there to listen and talk to you. Whether I know you personally or don't know you at all, I am here for you❤️

Sometimes life may be tough, but by being there for one another we will all get through it together. It is okay not to be okay and with time things do get better, I promise.

I hope you are all okay during this pandemic, it is tough to deal with. Better days are coming we just have to keep the faith and try to stay positive until then❤️

Stay safe everyone, you are all amazing❤️

Much Love,

Shannon💛