Anxiety Support Group

Anxiety is a physical condition marked by intense and persistent feelings of distress, fear, angst or dread. General anxiety caused by routine day-to-day stresses usually passes quickly and is experienced by almost everyone at one time or another. However, such feelings that linger over time and are very difficult to cope with, and which lack a clear cause, may indicate...

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Besides Medications

Beaumont
Beaumont
I am just wondering what people have tried or are using besides medications to cope with anxiety.

Please note that I think medications are very helpful to people.

I know that some people have companion animals that they take with them when they go out in public. I have seen people with dogs, lizards, and parrots that help them cope with anxiety and stress. I can't have a companion animal myself because I live in a rented room and I simply don't have the means to care for an animal.

I know personally that if I go out in public, when I am with a (human) friend, I immediately feel less anxiety.

I live in southern California, where a lot of people wear sunglasses because so many of the days here are bright and sunny, and sunglasses can help protect the eyes, but I have to admit that I also wear sunglasses because I can sort of hide behind them - go ahead, laugh at me, I won't mind.

Do you have any other methods you use for coping?
BonTemps
BonTemps
First of all , Im jealous that youe in Southern California while Im feezing
my hiney off in Virginia. But seriously, execise is the thing that calms me
the most. I do understand why the sunglasses help. You can tell a persons mod by looking at their eye more thn any other body part. So,
youre not as concerned about people seeing youre anxiety, wich makes you less anxious.For people that develop agoraphobia ,the
fear of having a panic attack in public is a big part.
deleted_user
deleted_user
For me going places I used to feel a lot more relaxed when I had friends with me. My Anxiety is quite bad now so I don't really go out or have my friends coming to see me. When I do go out I prefer to be alone now, strange? I just like the thought of escaping if I need too and not having to explain to anyone.

I also carry a drink of water wherever I go... I mean that is something I do religiously no matter where I am, I have a drink by my side as my Anxiety likes to hit me by making me vomit lol.

I would love to wear Sunglasses too but it's cold and rainy most the time where I live. I do like to keep covered up sometimes though. Hat on, hood up. Wish I could walk around dressed in a Burkha like these Asian women lol.

When I wasn't allowed to carry water around on one previous Job I worked in I would chew gum all day. That personally really helped me a lot to relax the tense feeling I would get in my throat.
benzenering
benzenering
Meditation keeps me grounded and anxiety at bay. Try some deep breathing exercises, focusing on your breath. It helps to start with just 5 minutes at a time, and gradually increasing the time spent doing it. It is so simple but really works!
amandamar
amandamar
I like sunglasses year round in stores, i understand that. I wouldn't like the pet thing bc I have a dog and he's cute & small and when I walk him everyone wants to stop and talk to me or pet him. This makes meVERY anxiuous, even though most r very nice. So if I brought him everywhere I think it would be worse for my anxiety! Unless its a tiny pet u can fit in apurse that wouldn't attract strangers.
deleted_user
deleted_user
I'm in counselling, although I'm not sure if I like it yet.
I would love to be able to wear sunglasses all the time, but because of my anxiety, I'm scared I look silly and cant wear them.
I'm all new to this, so I've only done the counselling and the meds.
deleted_user
deleted_user
I started to take lexapro 10MG for the first time and in two days I was feeling worse then before on the second day. So far L-thaenine, which is all natural that you can buy at a vitamin store seems to do the best for me. I take 100 MG in the morning & 100 MG in the evening which also helps me sleep better in the evenings. The only possible concern is if you are on blood pressure medication like me check with your doctor first .... Other then that there are no known side effects from this. I did some research on the net as well before I started taking this.
MegK05
MegK05
This may sound like a weird OCD thing, but I swear it's not. If I have taken my meds and am in a situation that is still causing me anxiety I do this thing where I take a deep breath, slowly release it as I tap the fingers of my left hand against the thumb individually until I feel better. I start out doing it quick and I slow it down as I calm down. Most people don't even noticed it when I do it. I think it comes from the fact that I played the saxophone for a long time and I always find musical release calming so when I am stressed I imitate the hand motions from playing notes or I do a breathing exercising like I am about to sing. Or I get in my car, play my favorite song as loud as I can with the windows up and sing until I feel better.