3 Steps for How to Deal With Anxiety That You Can Do Right Now

Last night I lay awake for an hour working through some anxiety and attempting to prevent a panic attack. 

My husband lay on one side of me and my toddler lay on the other, with his soft, pudgy arms wrapped securely around my neck. I listened to their steady breathing and worked to control my own.

It used to be completely random but, at this point, it often starts with some physical symptoms that are similar to the evening when I collapsed. 

 

One day I’ll share the full story and how it affected my day-to-day life but the short of it is that I was picking up take-out when I was 8 months pregnant with my now 2.5yo and fainted (to put it mildly). I ended up waking up 45 minutes later in an ambulance that took me for a 2 day hospital stay. In spite of lots of tests, they never could figure out why it happened. I had several near-fainting episodes over the next years but they have gradually become further apart. The most recent episode was about 8 months ago.

 

So last night I lay in bed wondering if it was happening again. I’m at the same point in my pregnancy so the trauma of that event has been on my radar regularly which means I’m watching extra closely for symptoms similar to that first event. I have had a few busy and stressful weeks so I have been more fatigued than usual and not watching my diet as closely. 

 

I feel as though, if it were to happen again, I would be powerless to stop it. What a hard concept to wrap my head around! I have no choice but to plan for the possibility as well as I can and leave the rest in God’s hands. 

 

And yet I become anxious.

Back to last night, I listened to my loved ones’ steady breathing. I let my husband know I was going downstairs to the bathroom, both so he would know he was on toddler cuddle duty for a bit and so he could wait for my return (and check on me if I took too long).  I ate something (for the record: cheese strings are a handy midnight snack). I laid back down and my mind went to that fateful February night.

I managed to catch up to my runaway memories to stop and redirect them. 

 

I reminded myself of my emergency plan and how it would play out. 

 

Then I started thanking the Lord for my blessings. 

 

With one arm wrapped around my toddler and one hand on my husband, I prayed over them. Then I went through each of my boys in the other room and pictured myself putting my hand on them to pray over them. (I learned recently that the physical act of touching something during a moment of panic or anxiety is called “grounding” and helps keep me connected to reality rather than drifting off into mental lala land.)

 

Last night I barely made it through praying over my own family before falling back to sleep but other nights I have moved on to friends, extended family, community, government etc. A Mama friend from a long time ago had a little one who had her nights and days backwards and my friend decided that, if she was going to be awake alone all night, she might as well do something productive so she prayed all night with her newborn in her arms. I have never forgotten her idea and have applied it often over many years of insomnia. 

Anxiety and panic disorders suck. I have been dealing with mental health issues (depression and mild anxiety) since I was a teen but I never really understood how severe the physical symptoms of a panic disorder can be until a few years ago. It can be so much more that a racing heart and sweaty palms. It can feel like a heart attack!

 

To those who deal with them regularly: I feel for you. I now understand. I hope you find help and I pray you find hope in trusting the Lord. He may give you a miraculous cure or He may be a safe place to rest your mind. Because it is so difficult and scary to deal with.

In the meantime, I work through my 3 steps for how to deal with anxiety:

 

While I largely found some ways to cope on my own, I wish I had gotten professional help sooner (I only started seeing someone a couple months ago as my pregnancy has increased my anxiety). Only time will tell whether I’ll end up in the hospital again during this pregnancy and trusting God’s path for that still has it’s hard moments. All I can do right now is take it one day at a time, sometimes one moment at a time.

Disclaimer: Please keep in mind that I’m not a trained therapist and I do think it can be really beneficial to talk to a professional about your particular situation, which will probably look very different than mine. Everyone has different triggers and a different level of severity and it’s just amazing to have someone to talk to who can walk you through some coping mechanisms. 

 

I share bits of my journey every week praying that it encourages you and helps you feel like there is Hope and that you’re not alone. Sign up for my weekly updates below to make sure you don’t miss a post and, as a bonus, I’ll send you a free printable Habit Workbook that walks you through a few simple steps to help you bring more peace and positive direction in your life.