Conquering Anxiety: Coping Skills

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@exuberantBlackberry9105 @unassumingEyes @WeEarth @CordialDancer @YourCaringConfidant @daydreammemories @yellowPineapple3652 @BaklavaBaby @CalmRosebud  @Gettingbettertoday @GregariousSky @mytwistedsoul @sincereZebra2546 @pamharley003 @Sugarapplefairy5 @orangish @NovaIsNB @Blahblah1805 @KateDoskocilova

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@Hope I would like to join the tag list.

@Hope

Grounding does not work at all for me. Most breathing techniques work for me but Diaphragmatic breathing works the best. I don't seem to get any benefit from the leaves on the stream either. 

@Gettingbettertoday

It makes sense to have preference for certain coping skills. I am glad you have one that works for you

@Hope

Yes, I think its useful as I tried a few of these techniques before. But do we get anxiety again when we face the same situation? Is the techniques a complete solution for the anxiety or is there anything we should consider on?

@WeEarth

Those are great questions. The techniques are often not a solution to breaking the cycle of anxiety. Just like you wearing a raincoat while going out in the rain is not going to change the fact that it is raining but it is certainly more comfortable to carry an umbrella or a raincoat!

Think of these as a way to get some comfort and make the experience more manageable. However, these work in collaboration with exposure therapy or other forms of therapy to help manage the anxiety and reduce it over time. We will cover exposure therapy in posts to come, these posts are laying the foundation, providing tools and information. So essentially what we are saying is, we will no longer avoid the rain but before we go out in the rain, look at why we shouldn't run away from the rain, here pick an umbrella or a raincoat. The series will make more and more sense as the posts unfold, the best way is to learn the techniques/internalize the information bit by bit, week by week and we will get where we need to go!

Thank you @Hope for this wonderful response 💓 Looking forward to the upcoming posts 😊

@Hope

sometimes grounding does not work but willing to learn this so i can get better at it 

@pamharley003

You can try other techniques mentioned and see which ones work the best!

I use 4-6-8 breathing rather than 4-7-8 and I use it whenever I notice my breathing starting to quicken and get away from me.

I actually use the leaves on a stream meditation on a daily basis too. I find that visualizing the leaves on the stream allows me to be non-judgemental towards my thoughts.

@NovaIsNB

The goal is to focus on your breathing so whichever way you can do it, works!  am sure there are quite a few variations. 

I agree about the meditation. It is one of my favourites!

@Hope

Done and done! The exercises are quite helpful, but it takes time for us to grow into them, and for them to work efficiently.

And, for trauma survivors or currently dealing, or the ones with DID, it can be hard to be present and mindful since the present seems, not good. But I believe it can help in the long run. 

@daydreammemories

I agree, it takes some practice. That is a good point, people need to consider whether the exercises suit their needs. There are plenty of coping techniques out there. These are just a few

@Heather225

Great to see you here! It is so fascinating how something so simple can at times make such a big difference 

@Hope thank you for this post Hope!

Share with us how these exercises made you feel and one way you can incorporate at least one of these into your daily routine

@KateDoskocilova

I am glad you feel better! 

@Hope Thank you for this post! I'll be honest here, it's after 3a where I am and I just completed the grounding techniques and meditation video. The only one that I got anything out of it was the one requiring me to use all my 5 senses. And still, I would be lying if I said I would take this grounding technique with me for the next day and onward. I am open to trying new things but may not be consistent more than likely. I watched the video leaves on the stream meditation and 8 minutes was quite lengthy. Even in the wee hours and in pure quiet, my mind was not receptive. I tried sending the negativity on its way on that leaf down the stream but that is something I will have to try another day when my mind is open and receptive and actually willing. I appreciate your time you give into posting these series for us anyway, so thank you. ☆

@YourCaringConfidant

I think it maybe challenging to do the 5-4-3-2-1 technique late at night! So that makes sense

Leaves on the stream may actually work better during the day time or at a time where your thoughts tend to run a bit wild. It is 8 minutes but you can even start with 2 minutes and work your way up

There are a few other techniques mentioned that you may find more enjoyable as some take 1-2 minutes to do

Hi! Thanks for posting this! It seems well written.

For me, in the moment, without specifying how long to hold my breath, just taking a deep cleansing breath through my nose, just one, and just holding it as long as I can, not counting or anything — my mind, during these times, needs something super simple (maybe to someone like you, almost comically simple)— and then expelling my breath forcefully through my mouth, with a loud noise if I happen to not be in a public place, seems to work.

Also works (for me)—- this might sound funny, if I am not in a public place, then lying flat on my back on the ground, literally grounding myself by physically putting myself on the literal ground, and noticing the feeling of the ground working its way up through every pore of my skull, back, hips, legs, backs of arms, and gazing at the ceiling or sky above and letting my eyes wander to the clouds or the light fixtures until I am fully relaxed and calm, falling asleep optional if I am in a safe space and time permits, works for me. This one is so powerful for me by now that I can bring myself out of a panic attack by even just imagining lying flat on the ground.

A favorite sky to imagine would be a velvet black night sky 🎇with blazing stars 🌠, perhaps a light pleasant breeze 🌬️🍃💨, no mosquitoes ✋🏽🦟🦟🦟🚫.

Your mileage may vary. You do you! ♥️🥰

Love and Courage,

Rose

@CalmRosebud

Thank you for sharing your experience. 

I also prefer not counting and just going off what feels natural. Others may find the seconds count helpful. To each their own!

That is some next-level grounding! It does seem to work in theory, you are using all the same senses, just in a way that feels more natural. It does feel less intensive than remembering the original method. 

haha the mosquitos! 

I have a couple of different things I try when it comes to grounding because what works one time might not work the next. Sometimes nothing works

The breathing exercises I use often. They're more useful and helpful the sooner I notice any changes in breathing. The numbers often vary

Meditation is harder because often it's hard to stay fully present during. But it was nice to imagine leaves floating down the stream :)

@mytwistedsoul

Thank you for sharing. I agree, it is important to try a few different techniques and some will work better in certain situations over the other. 

@Hope I tried out all the techniques mentioned in your post and I think they make me feel a lot more relaxed right now, maybe because I just did all of them just right now. The 4-7-8 method was quite nice and helpful and I'll try to do it daily.

I think the 5-4-3-2-1 method helped me look around a bit and observe what's around, but it didn't help with anxiety a lot because I was still quite distracted in my thoughts and worries and feeling tensed even as I tried to list those things. I guess the diaphragmatic breathing method might be nice, but it needs quite a lot of effort and it's hard. I tried to do it lying down and it was easier than sitting up but still quite hard.

I was quite reluctant to do the leaves on the stream exercise because I usually never do well with meditation techniques, but I was forced to try it for this series, and it wasn't that bad. Does make me feel a bit calmer and relaxed, even though I still have a lot of worries going on in my mind. I might try to do it again when I can and try to incorporate it in my daily routine.

Thank you for this post and thank you for forcing me to try the leaves on the stream meditation, lol.

@exuberantBlackberry9105

I am glad you found them relaxing. It is expected that some methods work better than others, it differs from person to person. 

haha I am glad the meditation helped

@Hope I am glad too, haha.

@Hope

I have utilized all the ground exercises and the leaves on the stream meditation before. The ones that help me the most are the Diaphragmatic Breathing and the leaves on the stream. The Breathing gets my whole body to calm down, while the Leaves on the stream slow down my mind. Using the 5-4-3-2-1 Method has been helpful in situations where I do not want others to know I am working through grounding exercises. It has helped me stay in the present moment. I have also used the 4-7-8 Method, which has helped when I do not remember other grounding exercises. 

@CordialDancer

Thank you for sharing your experience. 

@Hope

Hi, didn't do all of the exercises but I had to chance to try 2 out of the three.   

@CreativeKombucha

Hopefully you can try the remaining ones soon!

@Hope Ive tried all these methods and they are quite relaxing. I use the 5-4-3-2-1 method regularly when dealing with overwhelming thoughts and emotions, it is extremely helpful. I am trying to incorporate the breathing techniques ib my daily life as well. 

@unassumingEyes

I am glad you have found it helpful!

@Hope

Share with us how these exercises made you feel and one way you can incorporate at least one of these into your daily routine

The exercises made me feel gratified, fortuitous and effervescent. One way I can incorporate at least one of these into my daily routine is to add them to my Finch app.

And here's another good, cute picture of a frog.

@communicativePond1728

I am glad they were helpful/positive. That is a good way of ensuring you can do them consistently

@Hope

Upon completion of all of these exercises, I felt exhilarated and in control of myself, but calm.  I think the 4-7-8 breathing is probably the easiest and most accessible for me to incorporate into my daily routine and life.  

Leaves on a stream reminded me very much of a meditation that my therapist introduced me to.  She said that the thoughts I have that start my cycles of compulsions and activate my OCD are similar to someone going fishing- like I am the fish, swimming calmly and peacefully under the water.  Then, an intrusive or stressful thought is like someone casting their line and it plops into the water.  It ripples and affects the water, and if I choose to take the bait, then I am fighting for my life, thrashing in the water, being pulled in directions I don't want to be.  But instead of taking the bait, I can observe the thought plopping above me, and choose to just keep swimming.  

@yellowPineapple3652

I love that analogy given by your therapist! That is so on point

Not choosing to take the bait is an important part of recovery from OCD. 

@Hope

I did all the exercises & meditation too!

I have tried grounding technique & meditation before too.

Meditation helps me mostly, but I couldn't visualize anything while meditation, idk how some people do that : 0 

..and grounding technique is helpful sometimes & sometimes not. 

But, Diaphragmatic Breathing & the 4-7-8 Method worked the best for me! I'm definitely going to add them to my routine! I have tried Diaphragmatic Breathing for the first time, but it was the best. 💗💗  

@Hope  I like the leaf meditation best. I use this when teaching others to meditate and for anxiety relief. The 54321 method I think works well when either you are with someone who is having anxiety and helping them - or they are helping you.  the diaphragmatic breathing kind reminds me of childbirth...

@Hope

most grounding techniques don't work for me. for the most part, I forget about these techniques when I'm having anxiety. i more so try to challenge my thoughts.

@Hope

The 5-4-3-2-1 technique is very nice. I've never tried it or heard of it before but it's good it helps me recognise my feelings and worries. I've been always using the 4-7-8 technique. It's the only one that helps me during my panic attacks. 

The leaves on stream meditation seems good but doesn't seem to have immediate effect on me. And I'm someone who finds it difficult to stay consistent with things so I don't know how it'll work. 

Thank you for reading. Have a great day.