A lot of times people say when you're anxious you should do a relaxing activity to calm yourself down, but a post I came across on tumblr the other day seemed to disagree with that statement. Although I am not a doctor, I agree with the person who wrote it when they said that the best way to re-adjust yourself after being anxious is to find something that will stimulate your mind, rather than settling down with something mindless that is supposed to be relaxing.
Although an activity like this is just a temporary distraction, it might be the distraction you need in order to give yourself some time to sort things out and gradually come down from oncoming or present anxiety attack. Anxiety is different for everyone so only some of these activities might work for you personally (or maybe even none), but anyways, here's a list of mind engrossing activities that may or may not offer a solution for you.
1. Mind Puzzles
Any kind of puzzle you can find that will keep your mind focused and sharp- sudoku, crosswords, etc.
2. Math Problems
Okay I don't LOVE math myself, but by printing out a sheet of basic algebra problems and using mental math to solve them, you can easily keep yourself distracted while also feeling productive.
3. Watch Movie/ Tv Shows
Don't watch a show or movie that can easily be played in the background as white noise. Instead, find something that will pull you in and hold your attention for awhile.
Crime/Murder Mystery shows are usually really good for this like NCIS, Criminal Minds, Law and order SVU. Even something like American Horror Story will do the trick as long as you find yourself more invested rather than scared.
Same goes for movies- some recommendations I have are: Inception (2010), Prisoners (2013), The Lovely Bones (2009), Donnie Darko (2001), Nocturnal Animals (2016), Gone Girl (2014), etc. (Most of these are Jake Gyllenhaal movies… whoops ;)
4. Write
Write anything you can think of! Write a small article, a letter to someone, an essay, a poem, a journal of your thoughts. Write honestly and keep it just for yourself. If you're having trouble thinking of something to write about then google some ideas or you can even buy one of those "642 Things to Write About" books to get you started.
5. Play a game or sport with friends/family
Games and sports require lots of concentration and focus. If you're not super athletic and sports tend to stress you out then there's always loads of different board games and online games to choose from.
6. Play a video game
Video games are often very enticing and also require an intense amount of focus. Make sure you pick a game where there are goals and objectives and not something that's just mindless like candy crush.
7. Make a list of things
This one is a very broad idea but it can help keep your mind organized and focused. Make a list of things you want to do in the summer or if you have a trip coming up, make a list of things you need to take on the trip. Make a list of things you need to take back to college ahead of time or even one of things you'd like to buy in the future when you save enough money.
8. Make a playlist for you or your friends
Searching and gathering songs from different places and making a general "theme" for your playlist can be time consuming and overall satisfying to share with someone else when you're finally done with it.
9. Cook or bake
Try out that recipe you've seen on FB that you've always wanted to try! Even if you're not hungry at the moment, all of the measurements and preciseness of cooking or baking will keep you preoccupied until you eventually are, or it will give you something nice to share with someone else.
10. Read
While It doesn't necessarily have to be a novel- it can be a short story, poem set, magazine, online conspiracy theories- something more long term like a novel has a better chance of keeping you invested for a longer period of time and is a great way to help you "escape" for a little bit.
