So Anxious

Anxiety /æŋˈzaɪ.ə.t̬i/ - an uncomfortable feeling of nervousness or worry about something that is happening or might happen in the future.

"All of a sudden, my heart started racing, I could feel my pulse rising with every second that went by, my breathing became unsteady and my head was spinning. It felt like someone had punched me in the gut and the only remedy was to close my eyes, to find sleep. I looked for it but it skilfully avoided me… this feeling was new, it had surpassed nervousness and was something more intense, what had triggered it? Was there a name for this? It was heart attack, I was sure. It had to be a heart attack..." (Excerpt from my journal)

We have all been there before, not exactly the same scenario but still somewhat similar. In the middle of crowded places, or at home in our room when we were all by ourselves. The feeling of the world crashing down on our head, something we didn’t ask for. For some it is when something disrupts their daily routine, when something out of the norm happens and throws them ten steps back disrupting their progress, it can be triggered by stress and Lord knows we have a fair share of that on a daily. But in times of social distancing it is triggered by uncertainty, by worrying about the health of loved ones and my own health. This situation right here is everything but normal isn’t it then bound to be that we don’t feel normal inwardly? How do we then deal with anxiety? Something that a lot of the older generation brushes off like it is nothing but it is lowkey clogging your inner being, leaving you constipated because we sometimes don’t deal with the issues at hand to help us find a much needed relief. Anxiety can be the root of so many sicknesses, that migraine that appears from time to time? The difficulty to digest food properly? Sleepless nights?

I have learned that simple breathing goes a long way. I breathe in and out, audibly to concentrate on the act itself and not on my body and soul going wild. Trust me, it helps. Staying grounded when my head is somewhere floating off right into the land of total breakdown. After calming down a little I pray, and tell myself some positively self affirming words. "This too shall pass." Acknowledging that right now in this moment I am not okay but affirming that I will be okay, no matter what happens. I won't lie, there have been times when anxiety kicked in for a few minutes, a few hours and then left and there have been times where it had opening hours, staying with me from 9 to 5 just to return the next day. The struggle, right?

I did a questionnaire a while back asking how some of you deal with anxiety, here's what you had to say:

These are all amazing steps towards dealing with anxiety. Seeking professional help especially when it occurs one too many times is something that should be considered and that no one should be ashamed of.

How do you deal with anxiety? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comment section.

Love,

Maame