Exercise, one of the most critical aspects of human health and wellness, saved me. It is a commonality that exercise helps someone cope with mental illness, a bad day, bad news, good news, and any other current situations. Exercise has been a part of the human race and our biology since the beginning of time. In the beginning, humans were hunters; meant to run and meant to escape from bigger predators. Now, most exercise as a hobby and to get fit. Others exercise for reasons we will never know or maybe even never understand. I exercise for my anxiety.
The rush of running and the thrill of making my heart beat faster distracts me from my daily hardships of a mental disorder. Anxiety is defined as, "distress or uneasiness of the mind caused by fear of danger or misfortune." With this definition in mind, any person can try and imagine feeling nervous all the time because of the thought of something bad happening. It is not just a short or one-time feeling for those who suffer from anxiety; instead, it is a constant worry throughout every day and even at night.
I had always been more of the athletic type through grade school and high school. But after high school and in college, it was hard to keep up with the amount that I was doing before. As a college student, I am almost always stressed about three different things all the time. In addition to this, I was constantly fearful of the next bad thing that could happen to me AND I was not working out quite as often as I was used to. Mix those all together and you have the perfect recipe for a mental breakdown and panic attack.
After my first couple of panic attacks, I made the decision to try and take ahold of it myself. I called both of my parents and discussed the situation. My father, an exercise junkie, and runner in the 2016 Boston marathon told me that I should start working out again and try to make it a lifestyle. I took his advice to heart and started on the journey that saved my mental health and my overall wellness.
The journey began with a long two weeks of getting back into shape. Honestly, it's hard to think that I did not give up at this point because it was tough. It was hard to keep going when everything hurt! I began looking up healthy ideas for eating, exercise, and self-care on websites like Pinterest and tried to make my life different. Exercise was not a cure, but it sure did make a difference. Exercise distracted my mind from thinking about the future or bad things. It made me focus on something totally positive, which included my health but also learning about exercise and everything that plays into it.
At this time, my major had nothing to do with exercise. I was actually more on the pre-law route. I was not happy. I knew I wanted to change my major but I had no idea of where to turn. Again, I called my parents. They suggested that I look into the Kinesiology department because it had to deal with exercise and health. I talked to the advisor and changed my major that day. Since then, life had been a little brighter. Yes, I've had help with medication for my anxiety but without the mental strength that it took to take action over my fears, I would have never ever guessed that I could be the person I am today. My anxiety does not define me. Neither does the exercise or my major. I define me. I am me. I will never let anyone take that ability away from me. Exercise has forever changed my life. I will be forever grateful.
