If you suffer from anxiety, you probably experienced having spur-of-the-moment decisions that range from simple to drastic. It could be you changing your hairstyle multiple times in a month or two—from something simple like having a trim or something extreme like turning your blonde hair to purple. You probably even have multiple hair treatment products for those recurring spontaneous decisions.
Sometimes, you don’t even know where the desire is coming from. Why, all of a sudden, you feel the need to escape by booking a ticket to a country in another continent, or why you maxed your credit limit on a certain month.
It’s difficult to determine if what you’re feeling is normal stress or anxiety disorder, especially if you continue to function normally. Only your psychiatrist can tell. However, these feelings tend to affect your daily life. Spontaneous decisions can be grave. It’s not always a bad hair day in which you attempt to turn good—literally. Those decisions can affect your relationships, finances, and career.
Here is a list of healthier alternatives that can help you cope with your anxiety.
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Practice meditation.
Meditation exercises use breathing techniques that can help you stay calm. The good thing about meditation is that it can be done anytime, anywhere. Normally, it does not require props unless you want to go the extra mile by adding oil diffusers or scented candles. It’s only you and your breathing.
There are numerous meditation apps you can download online that have their own background music to back up the activity. When you’re in transit, in the office, or any place where there is a crowd, you can put your earphones on, play calming music, and breathe deeply.
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Find the exercise that works best for you and stick to it.
It’s best to add exercise on your to-do-list. Studies show that physical activity such as exercise can help fight exhaustion and increase alertness. Exercising can keep you focused on your tasks, so you can keep track of your priorities. In addition, exercising produces endorphins, the hormones which provide an analgesic effect to your body. It can help you sleep better, thus reducing stress.
Knowing which exercise works for you can make exercising feel less of a chore. You’ll manage to stick to your fitness plan better. The sweat is all worth it. After all, one rigorous exercise session can help alleviate symptoms of anxiety for hours.
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Include a hobby into your routine.
You don’t have to be the best in what you do to call it a hobby. The purpose of a hobby is to provide you with happiness and satisfaction, an element which people tend to forget. If you love music, you don’t particularly need to know how to play an instrument to say that music is your hobby. Sometimes, you only need to be immersed in a song. You are already participating by listening.
However, if your heart is telling you to explore further, you can try learning a new skill or going outdoors. Spending time on an activity that makes you fully content is great for your mental wellbeing.
On top of therapy and meds, people have different ways to cope. What works for others may not work for you. It’s an endless trial and error case, but once you find what works, it can help you live better.
