5 Ways to Deal with Anxiety

Anxiety: a mental rollercoaster. There are so many types of anxiety, and sometimes it feels like it'll never go away. Being an anxiety sufferer means that you need to be able to deal with it, and to try and carry yourself through the day even if you're worried about something, or worried about nothing.

Although some things help anxiety, and some things don't help. I gathered five different ways to deal with anxiety, from people around me and anxiety sufferers just like myself.

1. Search for food.

Although it seems like a silly idea to look for food, when you're feeling a little nervous, one suggestion that helped someone with anxiety was looking for food. Look for things that you can make, or things you want to eat. Distract your mind with food, or change that anxiety into excitement for the food you're looking at. It sounds silly at first, but can be helpful, especially if you are a foodie!

2. Beauty Treatment

One thing that really helps a lot of people out there with anxiety, is just getting a beauty treatment. It doesn't have to be going out and spending some money on getting something done, it can all be done at home. Get your favourite moisturiser, you can lie down or sit up in your bed, but just relax and get into a comfy position, and massage your face. Use circular motions around your face, and keep your eyes closed! Do it all over your face and neck, and put a face mask on afterwards, and you'll feel totally relaxed. It helps calm my nerves a lot. This can work for both men and women, it helps to clear the mind a little. Even if you don't want to massage your face, you can always keep cucumbers on your eyes, or a cold towel to just help calm you down.

3. Talk to someone.

This may not necessarily be popular to those that prefer to be alone when feeling anxious, but a lot of anxious people, including myself, feel a lot better after speaking or talking to someone. It doesn't mean talking about your anxious feelings if you don't want to, it can be about anything in the world. For example, I video chat with my best friend who lives in another part of the country when I feel anxious, and I feel pretty normal after talking. It can even be talking to a member of your family. The feeling that you have people there is reassuring.

4. Watch a movie or a TV series.

I owe a lot to my television; it has helped me in times of terrible anxiety. There are times that I have definitely wanted to be alone, and definitely wanted to be lazy, and sometimes with anxiety, you can't help it. Watch a movie that is very funny, or re-watch one of your favourite TV shows; watching old shows reminds me of different parts of my life, and I guess makes me smile. It distracts your mind from what you're feeling now and focuses you on what makes you happy. Everyone has something that makes them happy; re-explore a plot of your favourite movie, or dive into the episodes with cliffhangers of your favourite TV show.

5. Breathe, Remember

When anxious, it can be hard to breathe and it may feel like your entire world is coming down on you. But take a moment, count from five to zero, and breathe. Think of a square; on the first side, breathe in, on the second side, hold your breath, on the third side, breathe out, and on the last side, relax. Keep doing this to remind yourself you are in control, you are controlling your life, and that you are safe, that nothing will happen. Breathe to control your emotions, to stop that adrenaline around your body and to stop that flight or fight response. Finally, remind yourself that you shouldn't let your thoughts control you. Remind yourself that you are strong enough, to get through whatever life throws at you, that you are not going crazy, and that your anxiety will go. Your anxiety will not take over you.