Doing What You Didn’t Think You Could

We all have fears – whether they’re irrational or not. Something that I’ve always feared is swallowing pills. I’ve always been afraid that I’d choke. Therefore I’ve either taken chewable medication when I was younger, liquid forms, or pills that were crushable. However, recently I had to take something that wasn’t suggested it be crushed. At first I was told that it couldn’t be, but then I was told that it was just that it wasn’t suggested. In the end, I decided to cut the pills in half and swallow them – I was still scared.

I had to take two pills a day for a week. While perhaps some of you may think it got easier, it didn’t always feel that way. I was still nervous I would choke. But you know what? Every day I took those pills and in the end, everything worked out! I never skipped a day and nothing bad ever happened. I did really well and I’m so proud of myself! It just goes to show how important it is to have faith in ourselves and to go out of our comfort zones.

I’m not going to lie – I’m still going to ask if medication can be crushed in the future if I have to take something else. Still, I know now that I’m capable of swallowing pills and I’m confident that if I ever have to do it again, I can. It feels so good to know that! The saying really is true – we’re often much more capable of things than we think. We really need to start having more faith in ourselves.

I’m also proud of myself because, while the last few days for me have been difficult and I’ve had to do a lot of things that made me nervous, I’ve done pretty well. While I did struggle a little, I also got through things that I wasn’t sure I could. We all have the strength inside of ourselves to conquer our fears – we just have to constantly exercise facing them and remind ourselves of our true strength.

I hope that each and every one of you are doing well and please remember how strong you truly are. I know that getting through anxiety and overcoming other obstacles can be extremely difficult, but with time and consistent effort, you can accomplish your goals!

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Progress

Hey guys! I recently wrote about how I was struggling with an issue when taking a new medication I am now on. I am happy to say that I have been making some progress! I knew that distracting myself was the key to success, and I am proud to say that I was right.

I know that I mention my struggles on here a lot, and I thought it would be a good idea to share with you my progress. When I take my medicine lately, I’ve been trying to put my mind on reading something. Even if I only read a sentence, it helps me get my mind off of taking my medicine and on to something else.

When I wrote about my issue with taking my medicine, I noticed that there were a few people who spoke of experiencing the same (or similar) issues. I highly recommend finding something calming – whether it’s watching something on TV you can really get into, reading, or something else that you find distracting – so that you are focusing on something other than the issue at hand. I really believe that if you try to do this and continue to do so, that you will get through whatever you’re struggling with!

I just wanted to share with you my progress so that you know that it is possible to get through your struggles. Also, while it may have been a small issue in comparison, it was something that was really bothering me. The fact that I can get through this shows me that I can, with hard work, get through my other forms of anxiety as well.

2017 New Year Resolutions

Hey everyone! I thought I would share with you my new years resolutions and invite you to do the same if you’d like.

2017 Resolutions

-Exercise more on a consistent basis

-Practice facing my fears on a consistent basis

-Write more and try harder to work on my new story

-Think positively

-Try to read more

 

How It Feels

I hope that everyone had a Merry Christmas yesterday and a great day! Today I’d like to talk about something pretty amazing that I experienced while out for the holidays.

While usually I’m pretty calm when I’m at somebody else’s house, I don’t usually walk around a lot.My anxiety makes me feel kind of shaky, weak, and off balance so I usually stay on the couch while away from home. However, yesterday I actually got up myself and walked in and out of the kitchen. I also sat down at the kitchen table and talked to my aunt.

Now maybe to some, this isn’t a big deal. Heck, there was a time when these kinds of things wouldn’t have been a big deal to me either – man I miss those times. However, it felt really good yesterday doing something with little anxiety – I felt like my old self.

These times in our lives remind us that we have the strength to get through our anxiety and that there is physically nothing wrong with us. Anxiety can play tricks on us, but in the end, that’s all they are. Anxiety lies to us all the time and it’s times of success that we have to hold on to, for these are the times when our true selves are revealed.

Something else that these times show us is the importance of practice. If we want to continue to experience times that are free from anxiety, we need to be consistent in exercising and facing our fears.

We can get through our anxiety! We just need to believe in ourselves and work hard! It feels wonderful to see ourselves making progress and returning to a life that we can fully enjoy!

Hardships and Consistency

I’ve been struggling the last few days, especially last night. Between feeling like a burden to those around me and struggling to do simple things, I’ve been feeling pretty crappy.

I know I always talk about staying positive and remembering how amazing we all are. While I mean every single word of that, it’s not always easy to follow through with. It’s not always easy to put a positive spin on everything or to magically just snap our fingers and stop feeling depressed and sorry for ourselves.

Last night I was going through a lot. A family member said a mean comment and it just made me realize how many people I’ve disappointed with my anxiety and other issues. It made me remember all of the times when people have said cruel things to me or made it like I was this impossible individual to deal with. That feeling sucks. It sucks to know how many people you have let down and to feel like you’re a burden to everyone. My other family member assured me that I’m not a burden, but let’s face it, sometimes it’s hard to shake the feelings of inadequacy and sadness.

I have to admit, I still don’t feel great about myself. I still feel like I let a lot of people down and drive a lot of people crazy with my anxiety and other issues. Don’t get me wrong, I know that I’m loved and cared for. I just sometimes feel like I’m not really liked – like I frustrate everyone around me. It’s hard to feel otherwise when some people have actually come out and said how frustrating I am.

I’m not writing this post though to whine (although it does help to get things off my chest). I’m writing this post to show you that it’s okay to sometimes feel down, to sometimes struggle with putting a positive spin on everything. It doesn’t make you a bad person to struggle. Usually I realize quickly that I’m not a burden, but this time it seems harder to shake off the feeling that I am.

My family member who was trying to help me brought up a good point though that I think is very important to share. While it didn’t help me feel 100% better, I know that he has a point. Many people say mean things to us because they don’t understand what we go through. It doesn’t make it okay, but it’s true. Just because people get frustrated with me due to my anxiety, does not mean that they don’t love me or that they hate me as a person – it just means that my anxiety is frustrating or that when I go through it, I’m frustrating at that moment.

I’m not saying that this makes it all better. I’m not saying that it’s okay for others to be cruel, it’s not. What I am saying though is that we are not burdens. It may be hard for us to believe at times, but it’s true. We’re loved, sometimes we’re just not understood. Our family and friends love us though and they care about that. Please don’t ever forget that.

Another thing I want to talk about is consistency. I know that I talk about this subject all the time, but it’s important. As I mentioned, I’ve been struggling lately. There’s little doubt in my mind that the cause for this is that I haven’t been exercising and practicing facing my fears as much as I should be lately. Just like staying positive, while I  consider consistency incredibly important to practice, it’s not always easy to follow through on. Even though the most important thing to me in terms of my health is to get through anxiety, I still struggle with practicing and exercising on a consistent basis.

Sometimes I wonder why it’s so hard to do something that I know is so important. I want to get through my anxiety more than anything, so why don’t I do what I know is necessary? Honestly, I think it’s because other things get in the way. They shouldn’t, but they do. Let’s face it, as human beings, sometimes we just don’t feel like doing things – sometimes we get lazy. Other times as important as things are to us, we just forget about them. You wouldn’t think this is possible, but it is. Other times I think my anxiety stops me from facing my fears. Sometimes I feel too anxious to do stretches or other exercises. Whatever the reason, I need to stop becoming complacent. I need (and we all need) to exercise and practice facing our fears on a consistent basis. We need to figure out a way to hold ourselves accountable. Remember, it’s worth the time and effort to get better. We are worth the time and effort.

 

If anyone has any tips on how to practice facing ones fears and exercising on a consistent basis, please feel free to comment!

Moment To Moment

Something that many anxiety sufferers are probably familiar with, are the many waves of anxiety. One moment you can be doing really well and noting all the progress you’ve made and then in another, you feel as if you’re struggling more than ever. This feeling is not fun and more than that, it’s frustrating. Don’t get me wrong, I’m always grateful for those moments and days when I’m doing well, but I always hate when things come falling – or crashing, down.

Take yesterday, for example. I got outside quite a few times, pedaled about 4 miles worth, did some sit ups, and did some other stretching. However, during that same day, I struggled with other things that I wish I would have done better at. Also, so far today, things are a little rough and I’m feeling kind of lousy.

I know that I’m not a failure and I know that I’ve made a lot of progress. I’m proud of myself. Still, it doesn’t feel good to struggle – to have a hard time doing things that are simple for so many people. These things were once simple for me too and now, due to my anxiety and over-thinking, so many things are way more difficult than they should be.

Something else that’s really frustrating is the fact that sometimes I try so hard and yet it doesn’t seem to amount to much. Yes, yesterday I went outside a lot and exercised, but what about today? I don’t feel like the progress I made yesterday carried over like it should have. I think that’s a huge problem for me. I make progress but it’s like my mind wont accept it and learn from it. I would love to be able to think, “I made tons of progress yesterday and that shows me that I don’t have to worry about these things. I’m capable of getting through my anxiety and getting things done without trouble!” and be able to actually believe it. While I think on one hand, I believe that I’m able to do these things without anything bad happening, I know that there’s still a huge part of me that believes otherwise.

As many of you know, struggling with anxiety is not easy – it’s a constant battle. Many times trying our best or at all might seem pointless, may seem futile. However, the truth is that we have to try our hardest and that it is worth it! No matter how difficult it is to fight the war against anxiety, we must not give up! We can get through this, we just have to refuse to surrender!

I wish you all the best in getting over your fears and through your anxiety. Please know that you have my support.

 

“I Don’t Just Want To Get Through This, I Need To!”

I’ve always considered myself a fairly self-motivated person. I never really needed to be yelled at to do my homework in school or be told to attend. Also, I wanted to go to college and never skipped a day just because (if I didn’t go it was due to really bad anxiety or because I was sick). Even when I had online classes, I was self-motivated. There was no one to make absolute sure that I got my work done, but I did. I was never one to even really wait until the last minute.

However, I must admit, that when it comes to stretching, practicing, and exercising on a consistent and frequent basis to get through my anxiety, I struggle. It’s not because I don’t want to get through my anxiety (man, do I want to get through it!) but rather because 1.) sometimes my anxiety makes me so nervous I’m not even sure if I can stretch, practice, and exercise and 2.) while I’m not living exactly ‘comfortably’ there’s really nothing immediate that makes me feel like I have to exercise right away. What do I mean by this? Let me explain.

Let’s use the example of college. While it was difficult for me to go and stay in class at times due to my anxiety, I knew that it was something I had to do. Sure there were days when I stayed home or left early, but I knew that I wanted to and had to graduate (sure I guess I could have dropped out), but to me, that wasn’t really a choice. Not going and possibly failing my classes scared me and there was a more immediate repercussion: the repercussion of not graduating and receiving my diploma – something I didn’t want to risk.

Not graduating college was an immediate threat. While I took breaks from some classes and changed around my schedule sometimes, I still attended school and deep down I knew I couldn’t afford not to continue to try and go to school. I got through college and I graduated with a B.A. in Arts and Sciences. I went to enough classes and fought through my anxiety to make it happen! I did it with some help, but I still achieved my goals.

As much as I know that I need to practice, exercise, and stretch consistently to get through my anxiety, the threat of not getting through my fears isn’t as immediate. It’s not as if I have to worry that if I don’t do a certain amount of stretches for the day, I’ll fail a class or something or not graduate from college. However, I think I might have to start looking at things that way. I don’t mean that I should put loads of pressure on myself, but think about it. Getting through anxiety is just as important than graduating college, so why shouldn’t I treat it as such?

My advice to myself and others? Make it like in order to ‘pass’ the day, you have to exercise and practice facing your fears a certain amount of time. If you don’t achieve your goal, you’re not a failure, but you should still try to ‘pass’. If you do ‘pass’, why not reward yourself? Treat yourself to a snack you really like or write a fun blog post! Getting through anxiety is important and is something you should both want, and realize you need, to do!

 

Guest Post by B.G. @ Getting Through Anxiety – The Truth About Writing: It’s Not That Simple

Rae from Bookmark Chronicles was kind enough to feature this guest post of mine! Thanks Rae!

bookmarkchronicles

Hi all,

B.G. from Getting Through Anxiety has written another wonderful guest post. If you aren’t familiar with her yet make sure you check out her blog!

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THE TRUTH ABOUT WRITING: IT’S NOT THAT SIMPLE

“Everyone can write.”

I hate when people say this. While I understand that many people can yes, literally write, that’s not what people mean when they say this. No. What people usually mean when they say this is that anyone can write a good story. I’m sorry, but I don’t think that’s true.

Writing takes talent and practice. While anyone can string words together and write about their experiences, not everyone can do it well. I remember telling this woman once that I wanted to be a writer and she made some comment about how anyone could do it. Now she wasn’t saying that writing wasn’t important or that true authors didn’t need much skill…

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Holding On To the Feeling of Progress!

This morning I succeeded at something that I haven’t really done in a long time, or at least I haven’t done it as well as I did today. It’s something that I’ve been struggling with for a while and although I did manage to kind of succeed at it a little while ago, this is the first time in a long time that I really felt like I did a good job at it. It felt wonderful to make progress and realize that I have the ability to achieve my goals.

I just recently went to my therapist’s and he was saying how I have to realize that when I make progress and succeed at something that it’s not just luck. I wasn’t lucky today when I accomplished my goal, but rather I accomplished my goal because I am capable of making progress and facing my fears. I am stronger than my anxiety.

I think that it’s so easy (especially in times of struggling), to forget just how strong we are. I know that for me, it’s almost become habit to worry about things, to feel like I can’t do certain things. However, I have the ability to succeed and I’ve proven that to myself more than just once. It just takes consistent effort and practice to continue to show myself that I can get through my anxiety and overcome my obstacles.

It’s so important that when we succeed and make progress, that we hold on to the amazing feeling that achieving our goals provides. Achieving our goals proves to us that we are capable of making progress. Please realize that when you succeed at something, that it’s not just luck, but rather it’s your hard work paying off!

Accomplishments!

Yesterday I accomplished something that I’m quite proud of! I did this with no anxiety and let me tell you, it felt amazing! For a little while, I was very conscious of what was going on, but then I started to relax and as I was succeeding, I realized just how great it all felt.

I was, and still am, super proud of myself. I told my parents and a friend how happy I was to have succeeded and they were all very proud of me. A part of me felt silly being so proud and expressing this pride, but then I realized something with the help of a friend: there is no accomplishment too small to be proud of and quite frankly, I don’t think my accomplishment was very small at all. It’s one thing to get through something and another to do so without feeling any anxiety, and I’m very proud to say that I did a job well done!

This leads me to another point: any progress that is made should be celebrated in a healthy way, whether it’s considered big or small. Also, while you shouldn’t depend on others for recognition, there is nothing wrong with sharing your happiness. Additionally, while some people may not appreciate your accomplishments, others will and these are the people that you should be most grateful for (not that you shouldn’t be grateful for the other people in your life. Some people just have a difficult time understanding what they do not struggle with).

I would like to thank the first friend I shared my success with (you know who you are!). Thank you so much for being here for me, for listening, and for always caring. Your friendship means the world to me and so does your support. Seriously, I’m so happy to have met you!

I also want to thank everyone who supports me. I want to thank those who take the time to read, comment on, and ‘like’ posts on my blog. I want to thank those who take the time to email me and really get to know me while at the same time respecting my privacy. Thank you so much!

Please remember guys: no amount of progress is too small to celebrate! Even if some others may not understand the big deal, succeeding at something positive always matters! So be proud of yourself, be grateful, and remember that succeeding means that you have the ability to get over your obstacles!