anxiety 101

Anxiety. Something hundreds teenagers have. It can be a dangerous debilitating illness and combined with the usual stresses on the shoulders of students, it can lead to unnecessary conclusions. 

I am a 14 year old teenager who struggles with anxiety and panic attacks almost on a daily basis. It has halted many things within my life such as school and my social life. I remember being 12 or 11 and not knowing and understanding how to prevent these violent and emotionally fueled attacks.  I have friends that I vent to and I’ve simply grown more mature and level headed which helps lessen the stresses but that’s only from experiences. I have had many difficult nights of just crying my eyes out and I don’t think anybody should ever feel that way. I really could’ve used some of the pointers that I will give you in a moment and I intend to help every scared and lost kid with them. 

Anxiety is the feeling when the world seems to be crumbling around you. It’s different from depression in the sense that when you’re depressed, you’re numb but when you’re anxious, it feels as though you’re feeling every emotion at once and becomes quite a big mess. It usually occurs due to overthinking which is not an uncommon thing to, if fact, I find myself doing on an almost daily basis. It’s about learning how to control your thoughts and your physical responses and this  is simply not an easy task because the physical responses are usually unwarranted and uncontrollable. Most people would rid of their anxiety if they could.

There are various causes for anxiety such as links to PTSD, being prone to panic, overthinking, OCD and many many more. Anxiety is normal. Many people experience it at various points in their life and sometimes it simply never goes away. It feels like a looming cloud, a constant worry but, you grow and find your own small tricks that help you to deal with it. I find that most teenagers who deal with anxiety don’t have the proper support of the people around them and this only adds to the mental turmoil. Being anxious and having anxiety are 2 different things. It’s not uncommon to feel totally alone during your attacks and it’s important to remember that you’re fine and that you’ll make i through. It’s the difference between having a full blown panic attack and worrying- either way, I think that these tips will help greatly. 

• BREATHE! One of the most important tips is to breathe! What I tend to do is breathe in for 5 seconds, hold for 6 and breathe out for 7. This helps create a pattern and when your breathing is not erratic, it can soothe the body. 
• Look around you and count the various objects. Find 6 red things, 5 black things, 4 brown things, 3 white things, 2 pink things and 1 orange thing. Counting objects can distract your mind.
• Watch a video or gif that helps you breathe and relax your mind- there are plenty on youtube designed specifically to help with anxiety attacks. Some people make pep talk videos and those help as well.  
• Listen to relaxing and calm music or ASMR. I find that ASMR helps me due to the fact that it feels very gentle and tailored to your liking, however, calm music will do well too. 
• Tell yourself that you’re going to be okay, even if you don’t believe it, just saying it out loud may soothe your racing mind. Just understanding that you will soon be okay again is helpful. 
• Remember that it’s completely okay to seek out and want help. Everything from your parents, friends to your teachers or school counsellor. It’s okay to need someone to rely on. I find that my school counsellor is very good at this. 
• Try and not do anything to hurt yourself. It doesn’t help in the end, it may relieve the pain momentarily but in the long run, it’s only a temporary solution. Stay safe. 
• Finally, take your time. You don’t have to get it right away but it feels absolutely amazing if you’ve worked hard to get to the point you are in your life. 

In conclusion, I know that school has started for many of you and that may be a really rough thing on the mind. The school work can be piling up or you may have drama in your friend group but please keep in mind that high school is temporary and that you’ll make it out okay because if nobody else believes in you, I do. I think you’re going to be amazing. Stay safe dears!

​Lukas