What does it mean to feel anxious?
Anxiety is defined as a feeling of worry, nervousness, or unease about how things are going. It might manifest itself in not being able to sleep, feeling agitated, feeling sick or like there are butterflies having a party in your stomach.
We might feel anxious for a number of reasons, for example, when our plans get changed last minute, we lose someone we love, we feel pressure from school or work, or worrying about friends/family.
Here is a video that summarises what having anxiety might feel like – Click here.
What can I do when I feel this way?
Anxiety can be helped by a number of things, we will list them below for you to look through, some of them are easy to build into the everyday and some are little more challenging.
- Breathe – Seems like an obvious choice we know, but count to 10 and take a deep breath in between. You should be able to feel your whole body rise… and fall… as you breathe.
- Take time out – Stop whatever you’re doing and change activity. Do something you enjoy, like reading or watching TV. This allows our body to calm down and regulate itself.
- Eat well-balanced meals – Some foods and drinks high in caffeine can make us feel more anxious and so we should try to avoid them when we can. We probably don’t need to tell you that water, fruit and veggies are a good idea too…
- Sleep well – We love sleep! Sometimes, sleep does not love us though. We must try and finds ways to improve sleep. Such as, avoid using your phone before bed as the light from your phone tricks your brain into thinking it is still daytime. Or, try an an app like ‘Calm’, which includes sleep stories (not just for babies!) and meditation techniques to help induce sleepiness.
- Tidy – Tidying your room might sound like the worst idea right now, however, it can help you feel in control of something. The act of tidying the space your in can also act as a clean up for the mind.
- Talk to a friend – Keeping things bottled up never helps. Why not speak to a trusted friend about how you are feeling and this might give you more confidence to speak to a trusted adult.
Who might be able to help?
Despite trying hard to do things yourself, we always need more help sometimes, remember that this is okay, that it is normal, and it is brave to admit as such. See below for some useful links to further support:
- Speak to your GP, visit nhs.uk or phone 02033176670 to find out about free confidential support
- Kooth offers confidential online support for young people aged 11 to 18 at Kooth.com
- Anna Freud is also a great website, just head to the tab labelled ‘Young People’ for more guidance
- Togetherall is a community of members who talk openly about their worries, helping each other by sharing what’s troubling them in a safe and anonymous environment with trained guides.
- Whatever you’re going through Samaritans are there to listen – phone 116 123
- If you or someone you know is experiencing a mental health crisis, phone the 24-hour crisis line on 020 3317 6333
- The Vibe – Peer Support Group this is a space to meet with other like-minded individuals about the challenges you currently face. Sessions are free and weekly, just email Alex (Alexandra.perry@lbbd.gov.uk) or Grace: (grace.kihu@lbbd.gov.uk) who can offer further guidance and direct you to more support
- Young minds is a fantastic website full of useful information on a range of issues