Anxiety is typically viewed as a hinderance to once’s life. But are there situations where it can be a blessing? We often set up expectations for ourselves and struggle when we fail to achieve these goals. Instead of overly relying on the advice of friends, it can be helpful to turn professional counselors and learn helpful self-care skills.
As you work with your counselor you can begin to address lingering pains and heal complicated relationships. You are now building a bridge of self-care and self-love. This bridge will help you forge a better relationship with yourself and your loved ones. Through your work you will grow to become a better listener and increase mindfulness.
By working with your anxiety, you can grow to appreciate the blessings in your life. This will be accomplished by fostering more gratitude. You possess an array of skills that have been cloudy by not addressing your mental health. When you learn coping skills, you can actually learn to appreciate your anxiety. Some helpful practices include meditation and journaling.
One of biggest component of self-care is learning how to ask for help. Seeking the assistance of a professional therapist is particularly useful. Once you learn how to establish and maintain boundaries, you can once again begin to share your experiences and skills with your loved ones. Sometimes the best medicine is being a service to someone else.
Next, become aware of what triggers your stress reactions. This can be especially helpful if you are a parent as triggers can be passed down between generations. As you become aware of what aggravates you, you can help your child avoid any similar pitfalls. This can help lessen the cycle of mental health toxicity. You can also become more aware of how your triggers and stress impact others in your life. Offer proactive hugs or compliments to a parent or spouse, before opening up to what is happening in your life. This will help you be more present in their life and cultivate mutual feelings of love and gratitude. People may not have been able to attend to your past struggles, and it has contributed to your current problems. Now will greater awareness and compassion you can create the support system you need and deserve.
Work to continue cultivating empathy within and around you. Perhaps you grew up having people tell you to “relax” or that you were “overreacting.” Statements like these simplify problems that anyone other than yourself will never fully comprehend. It can inadvertently through fuel to an emotional fire. Instead to help yourself and others understand that anxiety is like a runaway train that needs helps to be slowed down before it crashes or goes off the rails.
Breathe, and listen to what the anxiety is trying to tell you. Reflect, don’t react! Instead of saying or typing something you can’t take back, try to make peace within yourself. You may not find the answers you seek or be able to fix a problem. But you can show love for yourself or anyone else going through a hardship. Sometimes the most caring thing you can do is not add to another’s turmoil with harsh words, explosive reactions or gaslighting acts. Use your anxiety as a catalyst of change. Let its insights inspire you to show love and support to yourself and others. Remember, anxiety can alert us to when something is wrong in our life and with grace and kindness, we can make the necessary improvements to help us grow and succeed.
