How do you cope when things are going too well?

Does anyone else's anxiety stop them enjoying the good times?

Me too! Right now I can't complain about my life. My job is fine as office jobs go, I'm shedding those pounds, my flat is nearly ready, things are going pretty well! 

So why am I worried? It's like my mind is preparing for bad things to happen. If it's going this well then there has to be a punch in the face waiting around the corner. Like a bully waiting to ambush you. Anxiety is such a bully.

Tbh my anxiety isn't even that bad, it's just that I have such a stressed out,  defeatist attitude right now. Which is a mood!

It's like I can sense the anxiety as a little niggle in my gut and it's essentially the end of the world. That tiny little niggle means bad things are coming (no idea what though) and then it will all just become a horrendous mess and my life will fall apart. I also have no reason to be stressed. I think it's just where I have situations going on where I feel like I should be stressed. I'm an over achiever so when I feel like I should stressing then I go all out. I am going to force this emotion until it's real and severe. That's just how I do.🤷‍♀️

It doesn't help that I'm feeling surrounded by a quick paced energy. There's a feeling of urgency even though there's no rush. The way my brain is just spilling words into this post I can tell how frantic it's being. This is a sign that I need to catch myself before I get too manic. I have two levels of manic. One where I'm really down and anxious with low energy where my thoughts run away and there is no way to stop them. Then there is the second where everything is a bit overwhelming and I don't know where to focus my energy. Right now I'm creeping towards the second type. 

It's sneaking up on me, but I've practiced enough to know when I need to step outside of my emotions. To recognise the signs before it gets to far. 

When I need to chill my inner beans this is what I practice every day. I mean I make a conscious effort to do these things. To catch myself as I feel the stress and anxiety rising. 

* Don't sweat the small stuff - no parking? Oh well! Rude customer? Oh well! Small mistake? Oh well! 

* Do the bare minimum - I feel guilty and stress about the things I'm not doing. Missing a gym session, missing a derby session, friends wanting to hang out. Basically anything that means I'm not at home in my pyjamas. Right now it's too much to think about. So I'm going basic routine for now. Get up, go to work, go home and go to bed. Once I'm back in the flow of that then I can add more things in to juggle. 

Get plenty of sleep - I go to bed on time but then I get lost in Twitch streams (the ones I'm into at the moment are American, stupid time zones). I know I'd probably cope better if I was caught up on sleep....but streeeeeeaaaaammmmmmsssssss.

Take a deep breath and let things go - when the anxiety crawls up into my brain I find myself trying to control things. I can't even give any specific examples. I just have the subconscious need to control the things that there is no way I can control. 👍 10/10 good times.

There is no quick fix to anxiety, it's all about endurance. Can you last through this episode until it goes away. It's all about buckling down and bracing. Weather the storm. There are many more analogies I could give but I won't. You know what I mean. You just have to let go and go with it. Get back to your river, your safe place and wait. It's not so much about making yourself happy (though that it a good thing) as it is about not letting yourself get any lower.

Think about all the good things you have going on. Any bad things? Look for the positive. Stuck in a dead end job? At least you have a job, if you don't like it go get a better one. It's raining? It will refresh the air and feed the plants. There's a lot of work to do? Then it will just make the day go quicker. There is always a brighter side.

I hope you guys are getting through your mental health Monday. Good job to the people in a good place and good job to those who are going through the tough times. You're all making it through.

Tomorrow is a new day and it's will be as good as you make it.

L xx

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