What do you do when your anxiety makes sense?

When it’s warranted?

We went through a week full of anxiety lately when we had to deal with a possible COVID scare. It reminded me of a few things about dealing with stress.

A couple weekends ago we spent most the whole weekend with my partner’s brother building a custom cat bridge along the ceiling in our condo. It’s something I’ve been wanting to do for a while and it turned out AMAZING. (The cats love it, follow me on Facebook and Instagram for cute pics.)

It was a lot of hard work, but by the end of the weekend it was finished and we were overjoyed with what we had created. It was quite an accomplishment for all of us.

We weren’t the most rested going into that week, but we were feeling positive.

That is until midday Tuesday when my partner’s brother texts us that he’s sick with aches, chest pains, and a fever. During these times, that could mean anything.

We were immediately sent home from work. The next few days we were working from home waiting on his brother’s COVID test results. It was AGONIZING.

We discussed best case scenarios. We discussed worst case scenarios. We discussed probabilities.

But the worst part was that our anxiety had a purpose. A reason.

It wasn’t unwarranted, we had legitimate fears.

Our anxiety was there because we CARED. Not just about ourselves but about others around us as well. We didn’t want to make anyone sick, we didn’t want to let anyone down.

But there was nothing we could do, nothing but wait. That’s the worst part, you want to do something ABOUT the situation but you can’t.

So the anxiety comes in waves. One minute you’re feeling fine, the next you’re a nervous wreck. And there’s not much you can do to stop it.

But there were a few things that helped us ride out the storm. That’s what I wanted to share about today.

We are happy that in our case the results came back negative. It was just a regular cold/flu. I knew the whole time that there was a good chance this would be the case, but the problem with COVID is you NEVER know. Not until you get the results.

And waiting for them was miserable. When anxiety like that makes sense, you have to implement some of the below ideas to release stress and feel better. We sure did.

Here are some natural ways to treat anxiety, especially if you have a perfectly good reason to be worried and there’s not much you can do about it:

Exercise

To me, anxiety is like a poison you can feel taking over your body. And the best thing you can do when you’re feeling that physical tightness is to work it out! Whatever your favorite way to work up a sweat is, find a way to let that tense energy out. (When I’m stressed, my favorite way to get it out is by dancing!)

Games

When there’s nothing you can do about your situation except wait, it’s important to find lots of different things to distract yourself with. At times you may feel like dread is creeping in, and that’s the best time for a video, board, or card game, or some other puzzle to keep the mind busy with. Doing something you find fun and enjoyable will release happy brain chemicals to combat the nervous ones.

Make New Plans

When something throws me off my schedule, it can be really hard for me to stay on track. This is something I’ve been working on so one of the things I’ve been doing is keeping a simple to-do list along with my scheduled calendar. This way, if plans go south I can still easily look at what needs to be done, so I can keep my focus on achieving my goals no matter what is going on around me. If my plans do change, I try to reschedule my calendar as soon as possible so I have a new plan in place and I barely skip a beat.

Talking It Out

Venting to someone you trust is a good way to get frustrating emotions off your chest. Maybe there’s nothing you can DO right now but if your mind is racing with thoughts about your current situation then it can be helpful to get those things out of your head and into words, into space. Once you’ve formulated, spoken, and released a full thought to the universe, then it is easier to step back and determine whether that thought or feeling is truly serving you or whether you can let it go. It can be quite freeing just to say the things that are on your mind, get them off your chest, and then mentally you can move on.

Do Something Creative

Creating some kind of art is one of the best ways to get negative emotions out. It doesn’t have to be anything big or special. It could be a doodle, a poem, a makeup look. The key is that you’re channeling your energy towards a positive, creative outlet.

Do Something Spiritual

Whatever your favorite spiritual practice is, getting in touch with your soul and the universe helps calm the nerves of uncertainty. Prayer, meditation, and ritual help ground you in your roots. They remind you of who you are, and that this state of unknowing anxiety is passing.

Take Care Of Something

My animals are my saving grace in times of stress. Obviously, their snuggles are comforting. But my dog also forces me to get up and get outside, get some fresh air and go for a walk. Getting your body moving helps, but especially in the clean air. My cats keep me grounded in reality, if I forget to feed them or they run out of water, you best believe they’ll let me know. I can’t fully explain it but I was really grateful for my pets that whole week. The exchange of love is a powerful medicine to anxiety of all kinds.