Everyone gets anxious, but it doesn't have to take over your actions.

Some thoughts and strategies after the Presidential Election.

For people with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD), it can feel like their mind and reactions are playing tricks on them. People with OCD get in a stuck pattern after they are triggered, overestimate the threat of the trigger, and then engage in avoidance or compulsions to try to get rid of their distress. 

Everywhere you look, you’re virtually bombarded by info about the 2016 election… especially as primary season has picked up in the past few weeks. All of the insulting soundbites, memes, yelling, and division can really increase fear and anxiety… and there are still eight months to go.

Does it feel like the pace of the world has ratcheted up a notch recently? Between the end of the semester, the shortening of daytime, added family events, the preparations for holidays, and the upcoming end of the calendar year, it can be easy to get pulled into more anxiety

Our ability to produce so many thoughts is amazing...or frustrating...or exhausting, depending on the moment and the tone or pattern of those thoughts. Learning to moderate flow of thoughts is a common goal and concern for people with whom I work. To be able to shift our thoughts is incredibly powerful and not a quick or one-time accomplishment.

Breathing is one of the simplest ways to come into the present moment and connect to the body. Breathing increases regulation when you are pulled into experiences of the past or are spiraling into worries about the future. It is also a way to focus the mind, even if is it only briefly. For these reasons, it is commonly recommended to spend time on breathing when one is anxious, angry, stressed, or overwhelmed.

Panic attacks feel horrible! When you have one, your mind and body are using all of the energy that would be needed to fight or get away from a huge threat, even though that threat is generally not present.