Do you suffer from panic attacks and/or anxiety? Here are 8 proven tips to help you cope and overcome them.
1. Sleep – Try to make sure you get a good night’s sleep. Sleep is very important so that your body is fully rested for the battle ahead. It is hard work to suffer from an anxiety disorder and fatigue can occur frequently. When you’re tired, you let your guard down. Try to get 8 hours of sleep each night, if you can achieve a good sleep pattern and schedule, you are preparing your mind and body in the best possible way.
2. Eat Right – Make sure you eat a good variety of fruits and vegetables every day, as well as complex carbohydrates and protein. These foods are known to increase levels of serotonin (the happy chemical) in the brain and will improve your mood. You should try to eat plenty of foods that contain B vitamins, such as vegetables, beans, eggs, and lean meats such as chicken and fish. I always start the day with a tall glass of fruit smoothie, the store bought ones are great, but you can also have fun making your own! As an extra boost, I sometimes add a couple tablespoons of flaxseed.
3. Exercise! – I cannot stress enough the importance of exercise to overcome anxiety. Light to moderate exercise every day, it doesn’t have to be strenuous. 30 minute walk, swimming, light jogging, sports. It’s totally up to you, but something you enjoy. Exercise improves your mood and also helps you sleep.
4. Hobbies: The key to overcoming harmful anxious thoughts is distraction. There is nothing worse for someone with anxiety than sitting on the couch and reflecting. Find something to distract yourself and something that gets your full attention, but is also fun to do. Arts and crafts, pets (I have 4 cats and love to play with them) Photography, cooking, anything you like to do. It makes you feel good just to realize for an hour or so that you didn’t think about those nasty “what ifs.”
5. Write a journal: writing down your thoughts, fears, anything that worries you can be very therapeutic. Many of our anxieties are repressed within us and we reflect on them. You may suffer from physical symptoms of anxiety, write them down too. Keeping a journal is like keeping a record of everything you felt and feared, all the symptoms, all the worries, all the things on your mind that you wish weren’t there. Write them down and get them out of your head.
6. Sunlight: Vitamin D is crucial and there is no better way to get it than from the sun. 15 minutes a day go a long way. Feel that sun on your skin, that sensation of heat, summer and fresh air. It is a great mood enhancer. Of course, always remember to wear proper clothing and sunscreen if necessary. But do yourself a favor and take 15 minutes out of your day to sit in the sun, relax, read a book, whatever you want, but let the sunlight shine through your eyelids.
7. Breathe! – Often we don’t even realize it, but when we are anxious, we often don’t breathe well. Shallow breathing through the chest doesn’t provide enough oxygen and you can easily find yourself hyperventilating, and we all know what happens then, panic! The answer is belly breathing, nice and slow. Inhale through your nose, exhale through your mouth, and notice as you breathe in that your belly rises and falls. Do it gently and slowly and you will feel yourself calming down. You can find breathing exercises online that suit your needs.
8. Relax! – Take 30 minutes to an hour every day just to relax, just for you, ‘me time’ Whatever you want it to be. Yoga, meditation, a good bath with lavender oils and candles. Read a book, play a game, paint your nails, video games. This bit is personal to you and is to give you a reward at the end of the day, or at the beginning of whatever you choose, the point is that it’s for YOU. Because you’ve earned it.