7 Ways to Conquer Anxiety

Unfortunately, there is no quick method of beating anxiety. Believe me, I wish there was, but, as with most things in life, it takes baby steps.

1. Breathe. A good chunk of the stuff that your brain is telling you is not true. Your freaked-out brain is just sending you a bunch of frantic signals. Your brain is kind of like the Internet, constantly evaluating and uploading new information. Well, when anxiety hits it's like your account has been hacked. The stuff that your brain is telling you is full of false information. You are not a failure, you are not a worthless scumbag, you do not deserve to be thrown into a fiery volcano of doom, etc, etc. Those thoughts are bad juju. Don't listen to them. Try going out with friends to give yourself a break from your brain.

2. Reevaluate. Ok, try to separate your "wants" from your "needs." Do you really need to have a job that you hate to buy all kinds of stuff that you don't need? This way of thinking. Changed. My. Life. I would much rather have a job that I loved than a time share in Cabo. Just figure out what you really want out of your life. Your version of success does not have to measure up to anyone else's. Each of us has unique talents an abilities, and we can all thrive in unique ways.

3. Don't Compare Yourself to Others. This is always going to be a hard thing for me. I find that sometimes I compare my success to the success of others. This is a bad road. You'll find yourself thinking "Why did that photo get so many likes? There isn't anything special about it." or "My blog post was way better. Why didn't it get more shares than hers?" This kind of thinking brews negativity. Check yo'self. Everyone is dealing with the same insecurities, even the people with 100k followers.

4. Remove. Sometimes there are just some unneeded stressors in your life. Sometimes it's a job, or a person, or a project. It's ok to let these things go. It really is. Dead weight is only going to drag you down.

5. Unplug. For me, social media can be a bit of trigger. It's really easy to compare myself to other people online. Plus, as a culture we have this itching desire to be plugged in all the time, like we're going to miss a bit of news that everyone will be talking about the next day. This habit of constantly refreshing is detrimental to just being in the moment. When you think about it, it's kind of weird that we, as a culture, are so obsessed with the lives of other strangers.

6. Take a Day Off. Some days you're just going to need a break. Make the most of it. Get as far away from work as possible. Run to the hills! On my days off, I like to do things that are as un-workish as possible. So, climbing, or kayaking, or just shutting off my phone and reading all day.

7. Reflect. Think about the memories and experiences that were really enjoyable to you. Years from now, those are the things that you are going to remember. Not this little bump in the road. Anxiety doesn't have any power unless you give it power.

Just remember, you are awesome, you are beautiful, and you are smart. You've got the power in this situation. Now go kick anxiety in the face.