Here’s how to CALM DOWN when your mind is havoc 😮‍💨

I’ve had anxiety my whole life but it wasn’t till I learnt about it in psychology (YES I’m a failed psychologist now just a corporate SLAVE 🤠🤘) that I found out it was an actual thing.

My anxiety got really bad after starting work and I had to see a psychologist because I was having breakdowns every other day and the smallest things triggered me.

Besides getting medication, she shared a lot of useful techniques that have helped me to catch myself and I still use today to help me calm down.

I know anxiety is a super prevalent despite it being sort of taboo in Singapore (especially amongst the older generation), so here are the techniques I found useful to help me cope with my panic and hope it helps you when you feel anxiety coming on, too 🫶🏻💖

😮‍💨 5-5-5 Breathing Method 😮‍💨

Very often people say JUST BREATHE when you feel an anxiety attack coming on, but how do I breathe? 🥲

It can be hard in the moment, but I find that this guided breathing method can help you reclaim some of that calm.

1. Breathe in through your nose for 5 seconds

2. Hold your breath for 5 seconds

3. Breathe out through your nose or mouth for 5 seconds

4. Wait 5 seconds, then repeat

5. Repeat the process 3 more times or as many as needed

I think this is useful as a precursor to the other techniques, as a mindfulness tactic to clear your head a little 😵‍💫

I’m quite high strung so I think this doesn’t FULLY calm me down, but it does help me catch my breath when I feel like I’m gna start hyperventilating… 🙃

📍 5-4-3-2-1 Grounding Technique 📍

This is helpful to ground you in the present by making use of your 5 senses and forces you to catch yourself when your thoughts are TAKING YOU ON A RIDE TO ANOTHER DIMENSION 🙃

The goal is to use your senses to find:

1. 5 things you can see 👁️

2. 4 things you can touch ✋🏻

3. 3 things you can hear 👂

4. 2 things you can smell 👃

5. 1 thing you can taste 👅

This is my go-to whenever I have to give presentations or when I feel the anxiety rising within myself (meeting new people, SCREAMS) 🤪

The breathing alone isn’t enough for me, so I usually follow up with this to help me calm down further.

It’s really quick and doesn’t require much effort, too!

🍃 ‘Leaves on a Stream’ Exercise 🍃

This exercise uses a technique called cognitive defusion, which creates a distance between thoughts and helps you to be an observer to your thoughts and feelings rather than a participant.

1. Imagine yourself sitting next to a stream 🏞️

2. Focus on the stream. If a thought or distraction enters your mind, acknowledge it (I am thinking about this…)

3. After 10 seconds, place it on a leaf 🍁. You can imagine yourself writing it down on the leaf or just attaching it to the leaf — whatever works for you.

4. Place the leaf in the stream and watch it float away till it’s out of “sight”. Continue this process for about 10 to 15 minutes.

This is really helpful for me whenever I find myself overwhelmed (aka ~drowning~) with thoughts and need some time to chill tf out.

Especially before I sleep — it’s a great meditation to end the day on a good note and clear the mind for a restful sleep ahead 😴

✨

Often with anxiety, the more you realise thoughts are flooding in, the more you panic and it creates a vicious cycle :’) It’s important to stop yourself from letting the thoughts overtake you and return yourself back to the present!

Hope you give them a try if you suffer from anxiety like me and take care of yourself 🥹💖

#LoveMyself #Lemon8 #Lemon8SG #lemon8health #mentalhealth #mentalhealthawareness #anxiety #breathing #mindfulness #meditation #calming