Breakfast With Neighbors...A Success!

I was invited to a going away breakfast with 9 of my neigbors this morning. From a social anxiety perspective, this is a huge trigger for me.

In the past I definitely would have bailed out. But this would only have made me feel horrible for not standing up to my anxiety.

So, I prepared myself and went. Overcoming social anxiety is a work in progress for me, and I intend to get better and better at it.

You can read more about my morning here: http://panicfreeme.com/3020/overcoming-social-anxiety-a-work-in-progress/

Choosing to Have The Best Day Possible

I woke up to the most beautiful sunrise you could ever imagine. I snapped a picture of it on my phone, but the picture just doesn't do it justice.

Learning how to control anxiety is something I have to deal with every day, wherther I like it or not. Today I am choosing to have the best day possible, anxiety come what may.

I find this is a much more productive way to face the day. Living a very happy day staying int he present and making sure my thougths are on track and in the present...

To read more see http://panicfreeme.com/3002/learning-how-to-control-anxiety/

Oh, and here's that sunrise I was telling you about...  ;-)

So Grateful For...

It's so easy to get bogged down with the trials and tribulations of living with anxiety. It is a lot of heavy stuff and it can be tough to deal with for sure.

That's why I'm really excited to start bringing you Thankful Thursdays! I kicked off volume one today. I think it will be amazingly helpful for all us anxious folk to sort of support each other and show anxiety we have a lot to be thankful for!

Focusing on gratitude is a wonderful, life affirming, healthy practice, so I really invite you to partake in my little gratitude roundup! Take a minute to relax and be grateful.

Thankful Thursday Volume 1: What are you grateful for today? :-)

Anxious...and Angry!

Since being anxious has put a huge dent in my self esteem, you probably wouldn't think I have a problem with anger. And you would be wrong...

I have always snapped at my poor husband and sort of taken my anxiety out on him. Not unlike a bully. He's not perfect, but he sure as hell doesn't deserve my wrath. After all it not his fault I have panic and social anxiety and all that fun crap.

When I was younger I used to take out my anger and frustrations over dealing with anxiety on my parents and siblings.

I am learning to be nicer. One day at a time. My marriage and family is worth it and I am worth it too.

Anxiety, stress and anger management..

Gluten Free & Making Progress!

I am really thrilled to be at just over 3 months on my gluten free diet. I cannot believe how much better I feel just making a few simple diet changes. I have really had a significan decrease in my anxiety symptoms. I wish I'd known about gluten free eating years ago.

Click here to read my gluten free diet update and all the anti anxiety benefits - and other health benefits I am enjoying.

Gluten free rocks!

Praying For Anxiety Help

I spent a lot of time over the years praying for divine intervention to help me stop panic attacks and get rid of the anxiety that was ruining my life.

Today, thankfully, I am learning that getting better has a lot less to do with depending on doctors and medicines and praying for miracles, and a lot MORE to do with making choices about my thoughts and beliefs. I am finally understanding MY part in MY anxiety recovery... :)

Wake Up & Smell The Flowers...

Smell the flowers, smell the cinnamon, but whatever you do, if you're anxious, try not to reach for the coffee. The caffiene can make anxiety even worse and can certainly last well into the day. Not fun.

Because I was so darn groggy this morning I decieded to look for natural energy boosters that wouldn't have anxiety as a side effect. here they are:

Natural Energy Boosters that Won't Make You Anxious.

Enjoy ;-)

The Strength Inside An Anxious Person

My girlfriend has been going through a major setback with her anxiety recovery recently. This morning she feels very down, and I did my best to encourage her.

It's important to realize the strength that lies inside you - a powerful healing strength.

People with anxiety and panic attacks usually carry on despite how crappy we feel. This is amazing strength. Please remember you are strong and you do have what it takes to heal.

Do You Know How Strong You Are?

Does Getting A Haircut Make You Anxious?

For years I hated going to the beauty salon. Being in that chair made me feel trapped and so I used to put it off for as long as I could.
I'm much better with this aspect of my anxiety now. Here are some tips I came up with that help me cope with anxiety at the hair salon:

Getting a Haircut with Social Anxiety

Does Anxiety Keep You Awake At Night?

Anxiety suffers often suffer with problems related to sleep- namely falling asleep, staying asleep, getting a good quality of sleep- and some of us have panic attacks at night too.

Here are some practical tips I came up with to help with sleeping:

Anxiety & Sleep: Tips That Really Help

Prayer & Faith in the Face of Anxiety

Did you know that prayer has been proven to help with anxiety? As I work towards my personal recovery from anxiety & panic attacks, I have faith that my Higher Power is there holding my hand every step of the way.

Who or what can you have faith in? I discuss that in this post:

 Faith & Coping With Panic Attacks

Feelings & Panic Attacks

It helps me to identify how I am really feeling in any given moment. There are some feelings that increase the likelihood of having a panic attack. Once I am aware of my underlying feeling, I can easily do something about it, and I explain that here:

HALTS- For Coping With Panic Attacks

Having The Proper Attitude

It's so tempting- and easy- to get discouraged when trying to recover from anxiety & panic attacks. Setbacks, pressure, fear, uncertainty can take it's toll. That has been my experience at least.

Today I know attitude plays a huge part in how well I do in overcoming my fears and anxiety. Do you have the right attitude?Attitude is a choice- and you can choose positivity. :)

Taking a Positive Attitude About Anxiety Recovery

The Waiting Is The Hardest Part

Waiting in lines- at the store, at the post office, to register for classes. Standing there, waiting, with people behind you, can't you just feel everyone looking at you being uncomfortable?

Why does waiting in a line or queue fill us with so much anxiety and dread?

Anxiety and Waiting - tips to make it manageable.

Taking The Anxiety Bull By The Horns

I've often described anxiety as a beast and that's a pretty accurate description for me. Anxiety is when fear is multiplied and magnified to such a degree that it makes living difficult to say the least and almost unbearable at its worst.

And panic attacks are like having sickening explosions of fear.Sometimes they occur when you're in a trigger situation- a store, church, standing in line, driving. And sometimes they just strike out of the blue. Like in the middle of the night.

Living at the mercy of anxiety and panic attacks is like living in shark infested waters.  Or like living in a corral with an angry bull and you are wearing bright red from head to toe.

So how do you take anxiety by the horns and start to live with some sense of normalcy in your life? For me, I had to embark on my own journey of anxiety recovery. I learned over 30 years that no doctor, pill, therapist or magic bullet was going to cure me. This I had to do for myself.

Sound like a tall order? Well it is. But to me I got to the point where living in those shark infested waters was a crappy way to live. I just couldn't do it one more day. So I redoubled my efforts and gave it all I got.

And you know what? I'm getting better. Little by little. I can sit in church, go grocery shopping, go to a party, and more without fear of panic attacks. And with A LOT less medication. It feels light and wonderful.

Getting better is no cake walk, but it sure beats living life so restricted and afraid all the time. You can take your anxiety bull by the horns too and succeed.

Get psyched about your recovery and get going! Your awesome life is wating...

Anxiety Recovery

Can Hypnosis Help With Anxiety?

People suffering with anxiety and panic attacks look to all kinds of things to help find relief. Hypnosis for anxiety is one of them. But can it really help?

It's a common misconception to think that hypnosis involves being put into a trance where you are not in control of your body. This is the kind of thing you may have seen on cartoons or even in a demonstration where a hypnotist can make a man walk around clucking like a chicken. Entertainment variety hypnosis is not what I'm talking about today.

Self hypnosis done while listening to mp3 audios is a subtle but effective way to help manage anxiety and even overcome panic attacks. The listener is in a relaxed state- usually with eyes closed- and listens to the suggestions on the mp3. These suggestions go into the listener's subconscious and can help "re-train" the anxious mind to think differently- calmer and healthier.

I have been using self hypnosis mp3s to help manage my anxiety for a few years now. You can learn more here: Self Hypnosis for Anxiety.

Are You Breathing Correctly?

Most anxious folk breathe shallowly and use just the chest muscles. But this can actually exacerbate anxiety symptoms because shallow breathing upsets the balance of oxygen and carbon dioxide in your body. The correct way to breathe is called diaphragmatic breathing and this is really simple to do.
How To Do Diaphragmatic Breathing.