17 Jul How a “Feel Good List” Helps Me Manage My Anxiety
by Melanie Lockhert
It seems that every day there is a new reason to be anxious. Not only are we in the middle of a global pandemic, but we’re also receiving daily news about police brutality, violence, and coronavirus (COVID-19) cases soaring to new heights. It’s a lot.
For me, all of these things have magnified my General Anxiety Disorder (GAD). On most days pre-pandemic, I’d have low levels of anxiety buzzing in the background. Now with everything going on, it seems like my nervous system is always on high alert, and it’s tough to stay calm and focused.
However, I’ve come up with a simple solution to deal with it: a “feel good list.” On top of therapy and medication, this list serves as a way to reduce my anxiety and offers actionable steps when I feel myself succumbing to anxiety. Here’s why you should create one for yourself.
What is a “feel good list”?
A “feel good list” is exactly what it sounds like: a list of things that make you feel good. I created this after realizing I was having too many moments of anxiety and feeling like I didn’t know what to do to feel better. When you’re activated like that, it’s hard to stay calm and think clearly about what to do next.
“When we are anxious, our nervous system goes off the rails a bit. We are in panic mode, and we often reach for whatever is right in front of us, even if it isn’t the wisest thing to do,” Lindsay Bryan-Podvin, LMSW, author of The Financial Anxiety Solution, tells HelloGiggles. “So having a list is a great idea for when our anxiety spikes and our brains and bodies don’t have a lot of reasoning capacity; we can just glance at a list we made when we were in an emotionally regulated place.”
The list isn’t a cure-all, of course—but it’s a way to cope and manage when your anxiety or sadness is overwhelming. When you’re feeling like that, it’s good to ask yourself: What do I need to feel good in this moment? “Anything that makes life easier when we are struggling is helpful. Especially when our anxiety makes us have thoughts like ‘Will I ever feel happy again?’ or our depression says, ‘You don’t deserve to be happy,'” says Bryan-Podvin. “Having a list of things that we do find helpful, fun, enjoyable, relaxing, etc., is a good reminder that we do in fact have the capacity to feel good and [that] the uncomfortable feeling is temporary.”
… keep reading the full & original article HERE
#happiness #happy #joy #feelgood #positivepsychology