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Seen folks chat about difficulty balancing work-life and managing anxiety in these crazy times. Sharing a few strategies that work for me.
For reference: I have multiple anxiety disorders, including OCD. No pandemic needed for me to worry about getting sick from touching stuff!
For reference: I have multiple anxiety disorders, including OCD. No pandemic needed for me to worry about getting sick from touching stuff!
1-Stop blaming yourself. Anxiety is a feeling, not a state of being. You aren’t an anxious person, you’re a person who often feels anxiety as a response to situations. Given the environment you’re in, that makes sense – it’s times like these that make the feeling more frequent
Want to be clear – that’s the first step forward, but it’s the hardest one to take. Involves forgiving yourself for the things you can’t control – like the way that you feel
2–Remember that anxiety comes & goes. It’s not about not feeling things, it’s about recognizing that just because its there doesn’t mean anything is wrong. Is it uncomfortable? Yup. But you can’t make it go away. Accept that discomfort and stop fighting yourself for feeling it
3–Remember that awareness of your anxiety can make it feel more intense. This is Panic attack 101 – we get more anxious/panicked when we realize we are panicking. Anxiety isn’t bad, it just is.
So when you feel it, let it wash over you like an uncomfortable wave, and accept that it’ll pass on its own. No sense panicking now, it’s already happening.
4–Make a routine and stick to it. Your days need structure, even if it’s just beginning the day with a 20 min personal reflection or having breakfast with your kids sans email. You should have a routine to start & end your work day – otherwise it’ll never feel like it ends
I start my day with coffee/30 mins to myself & go for a walk every day at the end of the work day. It’s not much, but it creates the mental space I need to feel like “okay, that’s over now”. Yesterday, my work day ended at 9:30pm – but you still go for a walk, and it helps a lil
5–Listen to yourself. What do you need right now? A break? A shower? Some movement? Fewer snacks? Then go do that whenever you get a chance. Feeling less overwhelmed can start with taking back some control of meeting your own emotional needs
6–For the love of god, try to move once a day, and take some Vitamin D pills. Your body needs endorphins and nutrients to function. I try to workout a bit every day (and occasionally take calls while doing it). You don’t need SAD to be sad these days, so make your life easier
7-Less news apps on your phone. You can check them on your desktop, you don’t need to check them when you’re in life mode. There’s nothing you can do about any of it. Just take a breather, recharge a bit - and if you must check your phone, watch some TikToks about dogs
As an aside – Smart watches and Fitbits designed to keep you plugged in even when you aren’t staring at a screen. Probably a good idea to consider whether having one is improving your life in any meaningful way. If so, great! If not, maybe reflect on that one a lil bit.
Finally–and this is hard–try to do it every day. Make a plan and stick to it. Is it easy? No. Do I want to every day? No. Sometimes I miss days. When that happens, I make myself a lovely dinner and remind myself that being imperfect is what makes me me. Then I try again tomorrow
Living with anxiety is hard, but so is living in general. These are not happy times. Turn off the goddamn news and go outside. Remember discomfort is normal, and your feelings can’t hurt you. And try to do a lil bit every day. It won’t fix things – but it will 100% help. Fin/
