Coping with anxiety - my story

I've read some really brave, insightful posts by other bloggers recently - bloggers that I admire and bloggers who (whom?) I thought had everything going for them. Turns out a lot of them suffer with depression and/or anxiety.
This is something I can relate to first hand, and they say you should write about what you know!

I first realised that I was suffering with depression when I was referred to a counsellor at university. I had actually been suffering since the age of 14 but I didn't realise that my feelings weren't normal. I felt sad a lot of the time. I would cry in the toilets on nights out and I used self harm as a way of coping.

At university I lost a lot of weight and would weigh myself every day. I slept a lot. I ended up quitting my course. My parents got divorced which hit me hard.

Counselling helped me a lot, as did some medication and a good support network of friends. I gained some confidence and started to like myself. I realised how much I had missed out on by being depressed and scared.

I'm pleased to say that I have not self harmed for many years now and I can mostly realise when I'm feeling down. I am strong enough to ask for help when I need it and I can see the good things in life and appreciate them.

From time to time I now suffer with anxiety rather than depression, and also I get stressed very easily. Pregnancy and a having a new baby have been a shock to my controlled life and I found it very hard to cope for the first few weeks. Luckily, I asked for help and went to my GP and started taking my medication for anxiety again.

Yesterday, I went to my babies' hospital appointment all by myself and didn't have a meltdown! We even went for a cup of tea and I fed him whilst drinking my tea with one hand! I feel that I can cope. At least for now. And that's a big deal for me.

This book changed my life

I wouldn't say there are many things that I can honestly attribute to changing my life......I'm always looking for that wonder hair product that will transform me into a model, or that holiday souvenir that will become a "trendy vintage find" etc but realistically, it never happens. However, this book that my mum bought me a few years ago has changed everything about the way I live my life.


Don't sweat the small stuff omnibus - my Richard Carlson

You can buy it from Amazon - I've got the omnibus edition which covers money, work and general day to day life.

You could say that in the past I have been stressed and anxious and even depressed about things that were probably not that big a deal. That's not to say that anxiety and depression aren't serious illnesses.....but there is a way out and there is a way to change how you live your life.

Here are some of my favourite strategies from the book: (in my own words)

Self fulfilling prophecies:

How many times have you thought "I've got a really long day ahead tomorrow, I'm going to be really tired." Well done. You have just decided that you are going to be tired tomorrow! Don't live in the future, you have little control over it......

Living in the future:

Is this "problem" only relevant now or is it actually going to ruin your life ? By this I mean : is the thing your worried about going to be a big deal next week, month or year? Or will you have totally forgotten about it by then? And if the answer is yes, then it probably isn't worth worrying about. Sounds simple. It is.

The biggest disaster:

Have you ever thought "this is the best thing that will ever happen to me" or "the worst thing ever"? How do you know? You don't. You don't know what will happen in the future so how can you know that you are having the worst ever day? Things might get better, they might get worse. It's how you react that matters.

Putting it in perspective:

It's all small stuff!!! That's what you really learn from this book. Obviously you are still going to have bad and good days, but the bad days won't be such a big deal and you'll appreciate the good days that little bit more!

I love this book! It might not work for everyone....but maybe give it a try?

P.s........



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