15 People Share What Helps Them Cope with Their Anxiety

For any number of reasons, anxiety, depression, and other mental illnesses seem to be even more common these days. People are always looking for ways to cope (outside or in addition to modern medication) and these 15 people are ready and willing to share the mechanisms that have worked for them.

#15. Running.

“Exercise- I find running has helped me a lot and built up my confidence.”

#14. Just saying.

“Vodka, comrade.”

#13. Counting backward.

“Counting backwards in a foreign language and or basic math.”

#12. The happy painter.

“Watching Bob Ross! His voice is so soothing, and he exudes positivity. Wrapping up in a blanket, touching something soft, or running my hands under warm water also help. I also have a squeezable pineapple keychain with little popping eyes that helps me re-focus when I’m on the go.”

#11. Reaffirmation.

“Deep breaths when a heavy feeling is preventing me from breathing correctly. (Shallow panicked breathing) So countering whatever it makes me want to do.

I have to remind myself that not everything is the end of the world. Even if I might feel like it is. Even if I feel all hope is lost and everyone hates me. I can’t ‘indulge’ myself in these thoughts. They only spiral out of control if I focus on them.

I remind myself that I can do things and that no one judges me. (At least not as harshly as I do myself) No one wants to see me fail. No one would be happy if I disappeared out of their lives. If they didn’t want me as their friend, I wouldn’t be their friend. They don’t invite me to things out of pity. Strangers on the internet don’t automatically hate me. Written text is hard to convey emotion.

That are things I know I should do. I should tell myself these things but as you probably know. It’s not always as easy as this. Tbh I’m not the best at dealing with my anxiety. I panic very easily. And the feeling just drowns out any rational thoughts. But those reaffirmations is something I can do before the feeling drowns me.”

#10. Take a step back.

“Reframing the situation.”

#9. I’m golden.

“Weirdly enough, having a little mini breakdown helps a lot. I go home, go into the shower and freak out for a bit then all of a sudden I’m feeling a lot better. Add a game to that and some solitude and I’m golden.”

#8. Give in.

“Crying.”

#7. Creativity.

“Being creative helps me along with breathing exercises.”

#6. Temporary relief.

“Stretching. Doing a little, five-minute stretch session makes me feel a lot better. It’s relief is temporary, but it helps a lot and is easy to do.”

#5. It helps me so much.

“Something I have been doing recently is talking to myself. I get bad anxiety when I’m driving sometimes, so I’ll turn off the radio, focus my mind, and speak to myself out loud. Really try to believe what you’re saying. Instead of saying “you’re gonna be fine” try saying “you’ve dealt with this before and you know you will come out the other side.” It helps me so much to hear my own voice. It sounds silly and I’ll admit it is a bit strange, but dammit if it doesn’t help me a ton.”

#4. But also.

“Meditation, and deep breathing exercises. But also pharmaceuticals.”

#3. An important first step.

“Forgive myself for feeling anxious and then step back and work out how I got there and discard what isn’t valid and work through the emotions / feelings that are.

Forgiving myself is an important first step or I end up in a spiral when I get anxious about being anxious and so on.”

#2. Every single day.

“Meditation. Breathing exercises. Positive thinking. Not just for a week but every single day. Make it a habit. Set goals. Meditation in particular has helped me a lot. Also don’t be afraid to talk about it with family and friends. Just knowing that someone understands what you’re experiencing also helps.”

^{#1. You were ok.}

“Sometimes when I’m having a “there’s-no-hope/no-tomorrow” kind of episode, I remind myself about the last time I felt that way, then I ask myself a question. What happened between the last time you felt this way and now? You were ok. You were ok and you will be ok again. <3″

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