I have a list of well over 100 actions I can take to pre-empt or deal with Anxiety. I don’t refer to it as much as I should. Okay, to be honest, I rarely look at it. That’s a shame. I’ve received tons of great advice from my therapists over the years, as well as actions I’ve taken from other resources.
Today, I have decided to review the list and draw out the ones that speak to me currently. I thought that sharing them might be helpful. If you like, feel free to offer advice you find useful when dealing with stressful times or when you experience Anxiety.
Actions to pre-empt Anxiety:
- Commit to daily exercise. If you can, start your day with exercise that taxes your muscles or cardio that makes you sweat. For me, Anxiety is both emotionally and physically demanding. I find that exercise is a positive way to use and relax your muscles so that Anxiety has a harder time tensing them up. Besides that, exercise releases Anxiety-fighting chemicals into your brain, making irrational Anxiety harder to set in.
- Commit to daily expressions of gratitude. Expressing gratitude also releases Anxiety-fighting chemicals into your brain. This action is another thing I put towards the beginning of my day. When I’m being really proactive, I reflect or meditate on the expression for a few minutes. This deeper interaction accomplishes two things. First, it devotes more time to the positive chemicals washing your brain and framing your day correctly. Second, I find that if, within the next few days, I come into contact with the person I am grateful for or the thing I appreciate, my mind returns to the time of reflection and positively charges my experience with the person or thing.
If Anxiety strikes:
- When engaging in self-talk, ask if you are talking as if you were a friend. Anxiety is not your friend. It is trying to coax you into irrational and harmful thoughts. So, when you feel It approaching, and your self-talk is turning negative, ask yourself if you are talking as if you were a friend. Refuse to listen to enemies’ thoughts that do not serve you.
- When Anxiety attacks, ask if what you are worried about will matter in six months. When Anxiety strikes, your brain often amplifies negative things that are not important in the long run. It’s helpful to realize this and then actively tell your brain to stop catastrophizing.
- Listen to music. Music is another thing that releases positive chemicals into your brain. I find listening to music extremely helpful when I am in the throes of Anxiety. I also know that some parts of my week are especially trying (e.g., Sunday afternoons and evenings). I set aside time during these periods to put some headphones on and escape for a while.
- Look at photos you love. I thought about this one by myself! I have a collection of pics I love, along with a paragraph written about each, stating why each is important to me. I look at the image. I read the paragraph. Then, I look at the picture again for at least a minute, soaking in the happiness.
- Acknowledge Anxiety if it’s already pounced on you; let It sit beside you, not occupy you. Have you wondered why I capitalize the “A” in Anxiety and the “D” in Depression? It comes from a conversation I had with a prior therapist. She drilled into me that I was not my illness. About Anxiety, specifically, she said, it was a good practice to see It as being unto Itself. When I saw It approaching, I would be served well not to let them occupy me. Instead, let it sit beside me, have Its way, and then let It get bored. Does this sound strange? I thought so. But then she explained that Anxiety loves a fight. So, when It taunts me, she said, don’t let It get Its way — well, at least for not too long. Don’t let It win. Don’t engage.
- Take a sick day if you’ve lost the battle. Let’s face it. Sometimes, Anxiety hits hard and fast. You fail to pre-empt It. It hits you when your defenses are down, or you are already having a terrible day. Perhaps you’ve wrestled with Anxiety when, instead, you should have just let It sit beside you. Your brain becomes impenetrable to anything helpful or positive, and your muscles are taut and in extreme pain. Let’s face it: Your day is shot. Recognize that Anxiety is an illness. Take a sick day. If you’re at work, go home. Take a nap, if possible.
Writing out tactics to address Anxiety is helpful to me. It makes them easier to remember. Did you find reading them useful as well?
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