January caused a bit of increased anxiety for me. When I feel anxious It is sometimes hard to know what will help and what won’t. It’s important to listen to your own needs, and these may be different to everyone else. I thought I would share some things that I’ve found really helpful lately. Sometimes simplifying life can be the greatest gift and if we focus on less then it all becomes less cluttered in our outlook too.
Having A Good Night-time Routine
As a mini “New Year’s Goal” I wanted to try and focus on my sleep a bit more. We know that when the body and mind is deprived of rest, it can be bad for anxious minds. I am my most anxious during the evening time and so I have learnt not to do too much during the evenings. I need time to relax and unwind and this dramatically helps my sleep. Call me a granny but I have loved getting to bed earlier and giving myself more time to read, instead of watching as much TV. I also write in my worry book and gratitude journal. This routine seems to be really helping and I actually look forward to going to bed now, so that I can curl up and read my book. I can’t always go to bed early because of life and I work late sometimes but if I can achieve it most days then I am happy with this!
Colouring In
I had forgotten how therapeutic this is for the mind. It’s almost like you can let go of any stress on the pages and “scribble” it out. I love how calming colouring in can be and the book I have contains so many pages it will definitely keep me going for a while. I have been trying to colour in when I am feeling most anxious and it gives me a bit of escape from reality.
Doing Less
Some days I have been kinder to myself by doing less. Whether this is planning some easy meals to cook, saying no to some things, and not practising my violin when I should… I’ve let myself off thinking I have to do everything on days I know it will make me spiral into a panic attack.
Focusing On Little Things
Whether this is a cup of tea during the day or a biscuit treat to pick me up, I have been enjoying small daily victories. I think it is important to build little things to look forward to throughout the day.
Making Some Time For Me
On my busier timetable now, time is not something I have a lot of… However, I am still trying to focus on my Sunday off and my Monday. We often catch up on chores on Sunday, so Monday is more of a self-care day for me. I try not to look at any work emails or do anything work related then. I have had to do some work occasionally, but I try not to.
Playing An Instrument and Pilates
I teach violin but I also really enjoy playing it. It is so nice to get absorbed into a piece of music and it is actually great therapy that doesn’t involve a screen. I have to practise for my job, but I also feel so uplifted after I have played. I also try to go to Pilates every week to help with my nerve irritation from stress and also to strengthen my muscles. It feels nice to take some time to look after myself in a busy week.
What do you do to help your anxiety?
