Self-Help Techniques For Sufferers With Anxiety

In today's society it is common that more than one in ten people suffer with anxiety and only a hand full of people will in actual fact seek professional guidance to help treat and support there anxiety. Like many others myself included who suffer with anxiety can often feel embarrassed and ashamed about discussing there anxiety problems with others. The shameful feeling often prevents the individual to seek help from a professional. 
            I personally have been in and out of therapy seeing professionals such as doctors , psychologists , psychiatrist, counsellors , mental health nurses and occupational therapists for the past 13 years for my anxieties problems. Unfortunately none of these interventions and professionals have been able to help me over the years , as I have always found it difficult to communicate with others and express my feelings . The more difficult I found it to talk about my anxieties problems , the more ashamed I was and became reluctant to share my feelings. However over the years I have picked up several self- help techniques to help with my anxiety which I would love to share with you all and will hopefully help others reading this blog post. Some techniques may work for some individuals and may not for others , it is important to find what is suited to your needs to help decrease your anxiety. 

Self-Help Techniques

1) Identify the triggers - Drawing out a mind map of what is making you anxious can be useful for some individuals as it helps identify the problem causes the anxiety. Analyse why it is making you feel anxious and then come up with possible solutions to help resolve what is making you anxious.

For example - There is an over crowded shopping centre , you begin to feel overwhelmed and your anxiety starts to increase. Find an empty bench , seat or an empty corner to seat on the floor if no seats are accessible. Take deep breaths and always have a pocket book or quiz book handy to help you focus on the book rather than your anxiety.

Key words: Identify , Problem solving , Trigger , Solutions 

2) Exercise -  Physical exercise can be a good self-help for anxiety as it releases endorphins ( also known as the happy hormones) in the body which creates a more positive feeling. Exercise does not have to be a intense exercise work out but can include , going for a long walk , hula hooping , swimming , dancing , tennis , yoga or even golf. 

Key words : Endorphins , Positive feeling , Exercise 

3) Diet -  It is important that an individual maintains a healthy balanced diet. Diet can be a big factor of triggering anxiety relating to a high volume of sugar and caffeine intake , as well as being dehydration . Sugar and caffeine can lead to anxiety symptoms because of the " Sugar rush" effect. 

Keywords: Balanced , Maintain , Sugar , Trigger

4) Keep a diary / journal - Keeping a diary or journal can help an individual to record and express there feelings and thoughts. Many find it useful to write there feelings as it has a sense of release for a person suffering with anxiety. It can also help to identify some of the problems you wasn't aware was a factor of your anxiety .

Keywords: Write , Feelings , Thoughts , Release 

5) Relaxation - Relaxation techniques may be helpful to some suffers with anxiety as it helps the individual to relax and focus on the relaxation techniques rather than their anxiety problems. Relaxation techniques can include , yoga , pilates , meditation and breathing exercises. Each of these techniques can be done from the comfort of your own home by following a DVD , CD or book.

DVD's 

Everyday Yoga For Stress Release £10.99

Yoga For Depression And Anxiety £10.68

Element Yoga For Stress Relief  £7.49 

CD's 

Relax Guided Meditations To Ease Stress And Anxiety  £12.95

Find Inner Peace  £8.99

Mindfulness £8.46

Books

The Anti-Anxiety Workbook £12.21

How To Master Anxiety  £7.22

Key Words : Relax , Meditation , Techniques

  

6) Complementary Therapies -  Some individuals may find complementary therapies such as spa treatments , massages and herbal products helpful. Individuals may find it relaxing and a way to help decrease stress and anxiety. 

  

7) Hobbies And Activities - Finding a hobby or activity that is of interest to you can be a helpful to decrease anxiety as it helps you to focus on something you enjoy and creates a more positive feeling , rather than focusing on your anxiety problems. Hobbies can include anything from art , photographer , dance , sports related activities , joining charity groups , music , reading or even gaming.  

Key words: Hobby , Focus , Positive 

Other Anxiety Related Blog Posts

Living With Anxiety And Understanding Anxiety

Understanding Phobias And The Difference Between Specific And Social Phobias

Understanding And Knowing Why People Self-Harm

Reading Is Good For The Mind

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Too Embarrassed To Eat.... ( Eating Disorders )

Hello everyone , I hope everyone is well! :) Today's blog post is on the topic of being "Too Embarrassed To Eat." Many people with an eating disorder or are close to somebody with an eating disorder will understand what I mean by saying "I am too embarrassed to eat in front of people." 

If you have followed my blog for awhile now , you will be aware I have suffered with Anorexia Nervosa for a long time and I have touched on the subject in previous blog posts. Although I have wrote about my story about having an eating disorder , I have never really gone into too much detail about the embarrassment you feel when eating. Which I am going to talk about today....

When you are put in a situation of having to eat in front of others , such as a family do or party , a cafe/ restaurant or even in front of others at home , you feel ashamed of eating. You feel judged for not eating but you feel MORE judged for eating. I tend to hover and crouch over my food to hide what I am eating when I am out in public , I only take bites out of my food when people aren't making eye contact with me or I don't feel as though people are watching me. After eating I feel embarrassed and ashamed of myself for eating and mood is at its lowest for the rest of the day. Often I start to cry over the embarrassment I am feeling and become distressed in public , which often means my outing is cut short because I can't handle the shame. When eating at home I will cut myself of from everyone else and go to my room and eat where there is privacy , but just because you have privacy doesn't stop you from feeling the guilt of eating. If I have to eat in front of people at home , I will sit on the couch and hide my food down the side of the couch where nobody can see it and I will lean over to eat my food. The shame and guilt just doesn't go away , often I feel like I have to hurt myself as punishment for eating. My head tells me you have done a bad thing for eating , you deserved to be punished. You feel people are judging you for eating and when somebody says "oh you have eaten it all" or " You have eaten more than normal" it doesn't feel like praise , it feels like an insult! You start to feel more and more repentant about eating that meal and then the cycle starts again when it is the next time to eat. 

Personally I am finding it hard to eat at the moment I feel more and more pressured to eat as much as possible because I am almost 5 months pregnant with my first child. I feed myself for my baby's sake even though it makes me very unhappy eat , I want my baby to be healthy and I keep reminding myself every time I eat it is for my baby. I feel more under pressure now as I feel like I am being watched 24/7 by people making sure I eat. It is taking a mental and emotional toll on me , I want to be brave but I am struggling to cope. My head can't seem to separate " Pregnancy" and " fat" in my mind all I see is I am fat and eating makes me feel worse than ever. I feel so appalled at myself  for eating but then not eating for my baby makes me selfish. I know eating  is something I will always struggle with but I am hoping I find the strength to handle eating for my little baby's sake.

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