Anna

I know many of us here deal with anxiety on an ongoing basis and sometimes it can feel like quite a struggle. I found this tip awhile ago and I want to share it.

I always give myself a grounding moment. Find 5 things you can see, 4 things you can touch, 3 things you can hear, 2 things you can smell, and 1 emotion you feel. This (at least in my case) reminds me that the things around me are concrete and not changing much in this very moment, so I can feel a little more at peace with my surroundings.

Fearlessat50

Thank you, Anna. I have been feeling anxious this morning. Lack of sleep, work stress, general worry, etc. I read this and put it to use. The first two things that came to my mind were my big Maine coon cat right next to me, and the nature I see and hear outside my window. Not only am I reminded of the concreteness of these things and my surroundings. It also gave me a moment to get outside my own head and to feel grateful as well.

least

That's a very useful tip. Thank you! When I get anxious I try to take Billie for a walk, or at least pet her and get her to lie on my lap. She relaxes me with her loving presence.

2muchpain

Great advice Anna. Anybody that has experienced an anxiety or panic attack knows how disabling they can be. They can be so bad they can actually cause physical pain. I was pretty much a shut in for a while until I got help. Thank God I haven't experienced a panic attack in a long time but it's something you never forget. I'm still a pretty anxious person, but no where as bad as it used to be. Your thread helped me to remember just how bad things were and to appreciate how better things are now. John

MantaLady

Thanks Anna. I had an attack this week and it’s been over 16 months since I had one, it was terrifying and lasted for quite a long time. I just couldn’t ground myself at all. It’s only from all the things I have learned since getting sober and going through rehab that I realised what I had been experiencing was actually anxiety attacks.

I am much better at preventing them from happening now as I manage my stress levels better and are more aware. But I was frightened by the one this week as I couldn’t get grounded, couldn’t think straight and I was fighting so hard not to flee that tears kept rolling down my face uncontrollably in waves.

I am going to write down your suggestion on a card and stick it in my purse as when I am anxious I forget and get confused easily. x

Dee74

Thats a great tip - thank you for sharing that Anna!

D

Liberty30

Great tip Anna. I suffer daily from anxiety since I kicked the bottle. Zero coping mechs so I'll give this one a go.

aasharon90

Thank you Anna for listing another useful coping
skill I can use when I am anxious or full of anxiety
down the road.

About a week or so ago, I was sitting in the dentist
chair where my mouth was just numbed by the needle
before a procedure was about to take place.

I was told to sit for awhile while the numbing agent
tookaffect and then they would return to proceed.

Well....There I was, alone feeling this numbing agent
begin to numb my mouth and making it hard to swallow.
Anxiety came over me along with fear that this stuff
was making it hard to naturally swallow and thinking
I was gonna suffocate to death.

They had the tray infront of me with all the dental
instruments to where I couldn't move it to stand up
or get out of the chair.

Then, I tried to remember some of the other scoping
skills I read on yrs before about breathing. So, I tried
to relax and count my breathing, looking out the window,
just anything to keep my mind off my anxiety and uncomfortableness.

Then the nurse came in and I asked her to help me
stand up because I felt sick, confind and had this
smothering feeling. As soon as I got up and walked
out of the room letting them know I was beginning
to feel better, saw my husband, then returned to
the chair for them to proceed. Whew....

Going to the dentist or doctors is not my favorite
thing to do and will avoid going by all cost. In fact,
yrs ago, I was on some anxiety meds until we had
that historic flood here in Baton Rouge causing many
businesses to close down for months at a time including
my physicians office for a refill.

Well.....I became even more anxious about not
being able to get them refilled down the road
that I decided to ween myself off them with the
few I had left and never went back to get them
refilled.

Anyway......I learned from the very beginning of my
recovery that my recovery program is used to help
and guide me to remain sober. My doctors are there
to help me stay heathy and running as smoothly as
possible.

Coming here to SR I continue to learn from you
amazing guys how to live a healthy, happy, honest
less anxiety way of life.

Thank you sooooo much.

Zevin

Thanks, Anna! Those are great tips, and I'd never heard of them before.
I used to get panic attacks quite often, usually in a grocery store. I've read that's a common place to get them and that it might have something to do with the fluorescent lighting.
One Dr. told me to go to a quiet corner of the store and tell my mind, "Brain, you are ok. Brain, calm down." LOL, that did nothing except make me feel foolish.
Also, trying to find a quiet corner in a grocery store where I could mumble things to my brain just increased my anxiety!

My panic attacks pretty much stopped when I quit drinking, although I do get "auras" now, which happens before I have a seizure. Very similar to panic attacks but I will smell something or get a taste in my mouth that's not real. Very scary but luckily, my anti-seizure meds (and quitting drinking!) have stopped grand-mals.

Anna

Yes, Zevin, grocery stores are a problem for many people. In my city, one of the large grocery store chains is getting rid of almost all in-store lights and sounds for two hours every week. They will make no loud announcements, carts are not gathered and staff are encouraged to speak softly. Isn't that fantastic!

abgator

Interesting. When I had an issue with social anxiety many years ago, it was the worst in grocery stores and restaurants. Maybe because I felt "trapped" there and didn't have an easy escape root. A cart full of groceries or a table of food and unpaid bill.

I do know I'm very photosensitive and I can't tolerate fluorescent lights for long. I can see the flicker in even a brand new bulb and it kills my eyes/head.

KTB5000

Thanks Anna. I tried this today, I have been especially anxious today (Day 2)... And Zevin, Its good to hear that I'm not the only that has marked anxiety in grocery stores...i will not attempt a Costco membership for this reason; and I cringe anywhere with no 'self-checkout'...

I 'am' grateful to be sober today, if and only, I can at the very least make a plan to decrease my anxiety episodes and get some help. (I cut down the caffeine, bc he was making me a whacko and shaky while driving.)

Please pray for me Family.
Peace & Love to you ALL.🙏🏽

abgator

Odds are good that you'll see your anxiety greatly decreased once you're sober for a while.

I think a lot of us frequently drank due to anxiety or panic attacks, only to have them completely gone once we hit 3 or 4 weeks sober. It's a cruel joke that we treated the symptom with the cause.

I didn't drink caffeine at all, not one sip, for nearly 15 years because it gave me anxiety and palpitations. When I was drinking. Once I was sober and well past detox, I can drink a few cups of coffee and feel perfectly fine.

There's a very bright light at the end of that miserable tunnel you just entered.

Dee74

They are doing that where I live too - its great

D

KTB5000

This is true, driving became much easier and speaking to clerks became less awkward...But after 4 months the anxiety crept 'back' into my life and I would have very short periods of panic where, say im driving, and I feel like my car is going to break down on the highway and cause a severe accident. One time, in my Zumba class, an instructor approached me to spark up a brief conversation, and I had intense fear and panic that she means to harm me. Subsequently, these isolated situations made me hesitate to take the car a diatance and also not attend some classes. Eventually I shy away from most people in passing, but even people xlose like my family.

Soturi

That is a fantastic tip, Anna. Thank you.

least

Besides petting my dog Billie, I like to pet my cats too. I find I can't feel anxious while I'm petting them. Especially with petting Billie. I concentrate on the feel of her fur on my hand. It feels like satin. And sometimes when I'm petting her she'll just raise her head and look me in the eyes, as if to say, I love you!

Zevin

That's wonderful about keeping grocery stores calmer for a few hours every week. I imagine it would also be helpful for kids with autism!
I would start to panic when checking out....my hands would start trembling and I would get tunnel vision. I started carrying cash so I could skip trying to write a check or use a credit card.
People also looked very odd to me....as if their faces didn't quite match up. Very difficult to explain.
I would also go late at night when it wasn't crowded. Or BEG my kids to go in with me.
I had all kinds of tricks to try and avoid the attacks, but as everyone knows who has them, just thinking about having one can make it 100 times worse.
Sometimes, I would drive around and around the parking lot, sit in my car and have to go home.
But they completely disappeared after about 2 months of being sober.
Keep going abgator...it WILL get better!!