the theme for this year’s mental health awareness week is anxiety!

We all experience anxiety from time to time, but sometimes it can get out of control and become a mental health problem.

Lots of things can make us feel anxious; upcoming exams, relationships, starting a new job (or losing one) and big life events to name just a few. We can also experience feelings of anxiety when it comes to things like money, and not being able to meet our basic needs - like heating our homes and buying food.

Did you know, anxiety is one of the most common mental health problems we can experience. According to the Mental Health Foundation:

“In a recent mental health survey we carried out around stress, anxiety and hopelessness over personal finances, a quarter of adults said they felt so anxious that it stopped them from doing the things they want to do some or all of the time. Six in ten adults feel this way, at least some of the time. On a positive note, anxiety can be made easier to manage.”

If we don’t know how to cope with our feelings of anxiety, they can get out of control and stop us from doing the things we want or need to do. The more often we feel anxious, and the longer we feel it for, the more of a problem it can become. Dealing with anxiety can be hard, but here are some tips to help try to manage those messy, scary feelings:

1. Focus on your breathing - the 4-7-8 breathing technique can help you control anxious thoughts, close your mouth and breathe in through your nose, counting to 4 in your head, hold your breath and count for 7, then breathe out through your mouth, making a whoosh sound while counting to 8. Repeat for 4 cycles.

2. Get moving - exercise is a good way of dealing with anxiety. Go for a run or a swim, but it doesn’t have to be vigorous; try some gentle stretches or yoga - anything that requires a little bit of concentration to take your mind away from your thoughts.

3. Keep a diary - It is important not to ignore your worries. Try keeping a record of what’s happening in your life and how it is affecting you, this might help you figure out what is triggering your anxiety. Having a designated ‘worry time’ where you write down all your anxious thoughts can help you manage your thoughts too.

4. Challenge your thoughts - anxiety can lead us to overthink things massively - this is called ‘rumination’ and is not helpful. If you catch yourself ruminating - write down the thought, and then try to write down something to challenge it. Is what you’re thinking realistic? Challenging your thoughts can stop you from being overwhelmed by them.

5. Get support for money worries - money worries are a common cause for anxiety. If you’re worried about not being able to pay your bills, or feel like you are drowning in debt, seek help! Make sure you are claiming all the government supports you are entitled to, and visit your local Citizens Advice Centre to get all the help possible.

6. Spend time in nature - we know this has a positive effect on our mental health, it can help us to feel calmer and less stressed. If you can go for a walk in the woods or meadows for an hour or longer, you can really immerse yourself in nature. Don’t worry if you are too busy for this - tending some flowers on your windowsill can still give you your nature fix!

7. Connect with people and talk about how you feel - anxiety can feel very lonely. Talking to people about it can help! Spend time with friends or meet people through local activities - sometimes just saying what is worrying you out loud to somebody can take away it’s power over you.

8. Try to get some quality sleep or rest - this can be hard when your head is full of worries, but there are things that can help. If your thoughts keep you awake, write them down in your diary, if this doesn’t help, get us and have a drink (nothing with caffeine) and wait until you feel more tired to try to go back to bed.

9. Try to eat a healthy diet - anxiety can make you want to reach to the snack cupboard or for an alcoholic beverage, while these things are okay in moderation - it is important that we don’t turn to unhealthy food and drink as a way to cope. this will only make things worse in the long term. It’s equally important that we don’t turn to smoking or recreational drug use.

10. Contact your GP - if you’ve tried all of the above, and your anxiety is still through the roof, you can contact us and we can offer you support and point you in the direction of expert care, for example: - SilverCloud is an online cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) programme which allows you to complete therapy in your own time and at your own pace. It offers secure and immediate access to a range of mental health and wellbeing programmes which you work through, using your computer, tablet, or mobile phone. There is a SilverCloud module called Space From Anxiety, that the GP may refer you to.

Remember, you are not alone! Every one of us has felt anxiety at some point or another, and help is always available!