My anxiety peaks when I don't have anything to do, I feel as though I should always be doing something and I can't relax. Is this normal, and if so how can I cope?

there will always be something to do but we dont find it attractive, from cleaning your personal space to practice some of your favorite hobbies, its also a great opportunity to try new things out that we have been curious about in the past, be conscious of where our anxiety comes from, understand ourselves so we can stay focused and in total control of our thoughts and also our actions as no one else will ever have control over what we think or do, we have total control of managing our time and activities to fill up every day and make it the way we want it how we want it

I often feel the same way. When I have nothing to do I tend to overthink because when I’m bored all there is to do is think. When this happens, I find myself having panic attacks and an increase in anxiety. To combat this, I use breathing techniques which can be found by searching online. These can help get your body back under control and even release some stress from your body and mind. You don’t have to be doing something all the time, but when you sense these feeling strengthening, use coping mechanisms that work for you. It may take some trials to determine what works, but stay patient and try to find what works best. YouTube videos to relieve stress can also be very helpful.

This is a perfectly normal feeling. Your thoughts and feelings are completely valid. People who suffer from anxiety tend to have very busy minds, this means when your mind isn't working it's struggling to relax. Sometimes people may even experience guilt as they feel they should be doing something better with their time. All feelings along these lines are completely valid and understandable. Anxiety can effect people in very different ways so to relax different things can be useful, some people find music helps, others appreciate meditation and some people simply like a quiet walk alone. Any and all ways to take a break and let your brain relax are important and beneficial

While I do not have the oversight to properly say for certain weather or not this is normal, my gut feeling wants to tell me that it is normal. I actually feel this way myself and pride myself on my ability to be busy and productive. It's important to develop a balance between work and play, productivity and relaxation. Too much works leaves us drained which can be leveraged with some recreational and relaxing activity. Too much relaxation leaves us lethargic and keeps us from accomplishing things in life that fulfill us which can be leveraged with hard work. From the sounds of things, someone experiencing this could use more relaxation and time spent away from work and thoughts. Before trying anything, it helps to clear your mind. Writing down your goals and tasks helps to free your mind and allows you to pick up where you left off before which can ease the anxiety. There is nothing more stressful than forgetting important details. To properly separate work from relaxation, it's important to debrief from one or the other, and writing is a therapeutic and pragmatic way to go about it. The next step would be to start allocating time to relax without any distractions. You've written down everything you needed to already, so no excuses. Look within and ask yourself how much time should you relax for. Baby steps, start with small amounts and build up over time so that you don't throw yourself off balance by introducing this new variable into your life. Slowly but surely, you'll be able to breathe and relax again knowing that you've properly separated work from relaxation and will enjoy breaks and will use breaks to make you an even harder worker. Cheers.