1. Adult coloring books. Or even kid coloring books.
Whether its primary colors or prime numbers, find something irrelevant to your anxiety to focus on. If you don't have a coloring book on hand, scribbling with a sharpie on computer paper or even your palm will have a similar effect.
2. Anything Tactile.
Giving yourself or a friend a mani-pedi, brushing or bathing a a pet, braiding your hair, or even holding someone's hand can all activate positive pathways in the brain and also ground you in your surroundings.
3. Seek Social Support.
Text your bestie, call your mom, or even tweet some obscure song lyrics. Just reach out, in whatever form or fashion you find most effective to let someone know you're struggling.
4. Make a list of self-care strategies for times when you can't cope, let alone cognate.
It can be something as simple as "take a deep breath" to more complex strategies you come up with via research or meetings with a mental health professional.
5. As the great and powerful Donna Meagle once said "Treat Yo Self."
Buy the twenty-three dollar mascara, get an extra shot of espresso. If you're struggling financially, pop in your favorite film or curl into the couch with a crappy magazine.
6. Try repeating a coping phrase or mantra.
It may sound and feel ridiculous at first, but positive and or truthful self talk can gradually, and greatly, alter the pattern of your panic. Example: "I am safe. My family is safe. My friends are safe."
7. Try a breathing exercise.
Most breathing exercises are quick and it's usually not noticeable to others when you're doing one.
8. Remember that it isn't your fault.
Anxiety, like any other mental or physical health condition, has its own unique set of associated symptoms and struggles. The probably that you're doing your best is high.
9. Engage with all your senses.
Pay attention to the places where your peony wallpaper peels, the tendrils of hair tugging at your ponytail holder, the chorus of "Creep" whining through your roommate's headphones. You are here.
10. Do some research.
What works best for your friend or your mother or even me, the tiny teen tapping out this article with slipping glasses and a smudged heart, may not mesh as well with your specific anxieties. It may sound trite but the internet can be an integral ally.
11. Never forget that no one feeling lasts forever.
You're gonna be okay. Maybe not today, tomorrow, or next week. But you will not be in a state of panic every moment of your entire life. The worst of anything is always temporary.
