A common worry from many new parents is that there is something wrong with them or they are not good enough. This is a struggle that many parents encounter and it can be challenged with reframing strategies—a skill a licensed therapist can help you with. 

Whether you’re concerned you’re not good enough (odds are that if you’re invested enough to be worried about being a good enough parent, you probably are one!), you’re feeling really stressed or anxious, or you’re wondering if you’re experiencing a postpartum mental illness, you’re in the right place. Support is available.  

Postpartum mental illness: What to look out for

Many new parents may experience hormonal changes that lead to mood swings before and after childbirth. According to the Anxiety & Depression Association of America (ADAA), 80% of new parents are affected by these “baby blues.” Usually, symptoms resolve within a couple of weeks. If not, you may be experiencing a postpartum mental health condition like postpartum depression.

Postpartum mental health conditions

Here are some postpartum mental conditions to be aware of:

• Postpartum depression 
• Postpartum obsessive-compulsive disorder
• Postpartum anxiety
• Postpartum post-traumatic stress disorder 
• Postpartum bipolar disorder

Ways to get postpartum mental health care

Consider these four ways to get postpartum mental health support. 

Therapy

Whether you’re experiencing a condition like postpartum anxiety or depression, or you’re simply feeling overwhelmed and need help, therapy is a good place to start. 

During therapy sessions, your therapist will listen to your concerns and work with you one-on-one to develop a treatment plan that will help you reach your goals. Over time, you can learn evidence-based skills and strategies that help you reframe thoughts, manage symptoms, and pursue more valued alternative behaviors. You can also put your skills into practice in your daily life and discuss any challenges you’re facing in weekly sessions and unlimited messaging. You’ll have support by your side every step of the way.

Psychiatry

If your symptoms are impacting your day-to-day life, you might also consider meeting with a psychiatric provider. Your psychiatric provider can work with you on a treatment plan, which may include medication, to help you feel better. At Brightside Health, our psychiatric providers use our PrecisionRx tool to analyze data and over 1,000 medication combinations to recommend the right medication for your needs—so you can start feeling like you again.

Psychiatric providers also monitor your treatment over time and can manage medication, refills, and dosage adjustments, if needed.

Self-care

Another key aspect to postpartum mental health care is self-care. When you become a parent, you may feel overwhelmed or think a lot about what your baby needs. However, it’s important to not forget about what you need. Practicing self-care daily—actions or habits that are for your wellness alone—can help you improve and protect your mental health. 

Whether it’s eating nutritious foods, taking a walk outside, enjoying a hobby, or prioritizing sleep, taking actions for your health can help you replenish your energy before you give to others. If you are co-parenting with a partner, you might consider working together to align schedules so you can both prioritize something for yourselves each day. You can learn more about self-care here.

Support network

Having people around you who support you is important throughout life and is especially crucial when you become a new parent. If there are friends, family members, or other people in your life offering to help you, lean on your support network and take them up on the offer. 

Whether it’s a listening ear, help with laundry, or assistance with grocery shopping, try to ask for what you need and name one helpful action others can do to support you when they offer help. If you’re looking for community support, you might consider joining a group for new parents or taking a class. You can view state-by-state resources here. 

Get started with the right treatment for you

No matter how you’re feeling, remember that you’re not alone. If you notice differences in your mental health postpartum, the best thing you can do is reach out for support. Mental health practitioners can work with you to find the combination of postpartum mental health care for your needs.

Get started today with a free assessment. 

The post 4 ways to get postpartum mental health help appeared first on Brightside.

Postpartum depression is a form of depression that affects new or expecting mothers. It’s relatively common, that one in seven mothers experiences postpartum depression. 

Postpartum depression symptoms include:

• Feeling hopeless, overwhelmed, guilty, or angry
• Crying a lot 
• Feeling empty or numb
• Feeling disconnected from your baby—not wanting to be around them or worried you will hurt them
• Having an unexplained physical illness like stomachaches, headaches, or nausea 
• Lacking energy or having trouble concentrating
• Having sleeping difficulties
• Isolating yourself or being unable to enjoy social situations or activities you once loved

If you think you may have postpartum depression, or think a loved one may be experiencing these signs, it’s important to talk to a mental health professional. Postpartum depression is treatable with therapy and/or medication. It’s also a good idea to talk to your partner or family member about how you’re feeling so they can support you. 

What causes postpartum depression?

According to womenshealth.gov, “Hormonal changes may trigger symptoms of postpartum depression. When you are pregnant, levels of the female hormones estrogen and progesterone are the highest they’ll ever be. In the first 24 hours after childbirth, hormone levels quickly drop back to normal, pre-pregnancy levels. Researchers think this sudden change in hormone levels may lead to depression.”

After childbirth, many women have mood swings, feel sad or anxious, lose their appetite, or experience trouble sleeping. These symptoms usually go away 3 to 5 days after they start. Postpartum depression is different—the symptoms last longer and are more severe. Typically, postpartum depression begins within the month after giving birth, but it can also start during pregnancy or up to a year after birth.

6 ways to take care of yourself with postpartum depression

If you’ve been diagnosed with postpartum depression (part of a larger category called peripartum depression), here are a few ways to take care of yourself. 

Stay on track with your treatment

Whether your care includes therapy and/or medication, it’s important to keep up with your appointments and treatment plan so you can feel better. At Brightside Health, our expert providers can support you every step of the way with video visits and unlimited messaging. You can also track how you’re feeling, view lessons, and practice reflections. 

Lean on others when they offer to help

Having a supportive group of people around you can be really helpful when you’re experiencing postpartum depression. If you feel comfortable, it’s a good idea to tell people you trust about what you’re going through. Try to accept others’ offers to help even if your first inclination is to politely decline or verbally agree to accept the help, only to not act on it later.  When someone offers to help, tell them, “Yes, I’d appreciate your help… taking care of the baby, picking up groceries, or helping with cleaning around the house.”

Practice self-care

As a mother, you’re often taking care of others’ needs. Try to remember to do things you enjoy for yourself too. Whether it’s taking a walk outside, keeping a journal, reading a book, or practicing some mindfulness exercises, see if you can do something for yourself every day. Remember, this also includes rest—allow the other parent, friends, or family to help care for the baby outside of your earshot so you can get some uninterrupted rest. 

Rework negative self-talk

When you’re experiencing postpartum depression, you might feel guilty or ashamed. You might even think difficult thoughts such as, “I’m bad at this” or “I’m not a good mother.” Know that just because you’re thinking those thoughts doesn’t mean they’re true. Our minds can be skilled at tricking us. If you catch yourself thinking negative thoughts about yourself, there are a few ways you can rework them:

• Write down what you’re thinking and try to challenge it. Consider the evidence that’s for or against your thought. Sometimes, seeing thoughts on paper can help you look at them with a fresh perspective.
• Talk to a mental health provider or to a loved one. Tell them about what you’re thinking or feeling and they can help you think about the roots of the negative thought. 
• Consider adding to your thought. You could say “I’m feeling like I’m bad at this, but I’m actually trying my best” or “I’m feeling like I’m not a good mother, but I actually took great care of my baby yesterday and the pediatrician said they’re healthy.” 

A therapist can spend time working with you weekly on skills like challenging negative thoughts to help you overcome postpartum depression.

Spend time with your baby

Postpartum depression can make you feel disconnected from your baby. Try to spend time bonding with your baby by trying skin-on-skin contact or doing one of your preferred activities with them safely tucked away in a sling on your chest. If you feel overwhelmed, let a partner or loved one follow through on the help they may have already offered but was previously politely declined. 

Make small goals

When you’re experiencing postpartum depression, things that were once small tasks for you can feel large and insurmountable. Know that you won’t always feel this way. If you can, try to make a small goal for yourself like taking a shower or emptying the dishwasher. Your therapist can also help with goal-setting. Small goals lead to small wins which can help inspire the motivation needed to take on larger tasks that previously felt impossible.

Takeaways about postpartum depression & self-care

Being a new mother involves a lot of changes. Be kind to yourself during this process and remind yourself that things will get better. Don’t hesitate to ask for help or talk about how you’re feeling—your health matters and you’re doing a good job.

Most importantly, know that postpartum depression is treatable with mental health care. At Brightside, 86% of members experience significant improvement and 71% achieve remission from their symptoms altogether in 12 weeks. Start getting quality care for postpartum depression today with a free assessment. 

The post Postpartum depression: 6 ways to take care of yourself appeared first on Brightside.

The decisions of when to come out, how to come out, and to whom to come out to are ones that only you can make. You can come out any way that feels right to you, even by sending a text message if that makes you more comfortable. There is no right or wrong way. Everyone’s journey is their own.

Even so (and this is our most important message in this blog post) it is vital that you know that you are not alone. You have support. You have help from mental health professionals and others. We’ll provide some links below.

When it comes to coming out, you can do things according to your own timeline. Nobody should force anyone else, or pressure anyone else, out of the closet. We want to provide you with some facts and information that you can use to consider your options. 

Psychological effects of staying in the closet

Generally speaking, being in the closet involves keeping a massive secret from the world. And keeping a secret can be incredibly stressful. Hiding parts of yourself can result in decreased cognitive capacity in many areas of your life. 

Many LGBTQIA+ individuals find that hiding their sexual orientation from the world makes them less effective across all domains of their lives. They spend significant amounts of time worrying about slipping up or revealing too much or feeling anxious about how their loved ones will react.

According to Dr. Marie Atallah, “Members of the LGBTQI+ community are often tasked with constantly appraising their situation and adapting to how much they can safely reveal of themselves. While this can be seen as an adaptive process, it places a great deal of mental and emotional strain on the individual.”

When this strain is also coupled with the pressures of keeping that part of who an individual is secret, it can lead to dissociation. As the Psychiatric Times puts it, clinical presentations “may lie somewhere in severity between selective inattention—most commonly seen in the case of self-aware patients thinking about “the possibility” that they might be gay–to more severe dissociation-—in which any hint of same-sex feelings resides totally out of conscious awareness.”

In addition to dissociation, The Psychiatric Times says, people who have not come out might also experience:

• Depression
• Anger
• Anxiety
• Fear
• Stress
• Thoughts of suicide

This is why researchers from the University of Montreal declared that “Coming out is no longer a matter of popular debate but a matter of public health.”

What happens when you come out?

We don’t wish to imply that coming out will automatically solve all of an individual’s mental health concerns. When someone comes out, there are a range of reactions and experiences that depend greatly on factors like:

• Cultural background
• Religious background
• Racial identity
• Geographic location
• Age
• Gender 

Within each step of the process of coming out, an individual needs support, love, and compassion.

While every coming out journey is unique, it often involves some or all of these experiences:

• Gradual testing of waters to see how people respond
• Increased disclosure to those who respond favorably initially
• Some rejection as the pool of people who know widens
• Increased support and validation from those who will become the strongest allies and advocates
• Opportunity and willingness to support others in their own coming out process

Even with support, many LGBTQIA+ people feel considerable anxiety after coming out. Others experience depression and other mental health challenges. 

As we have said in our blog, “Identifying as LGBTQIA+ does not directly contribute to depression and anxiety. However, due to contextual factors such as discrimination, rejection from peer groups, and societal stigma, LGBTQIA+ individuals are faced with an additional emotional burden.” 

Being surrounded by a network of people who are promoting acceptance, progressing policy, and dispelling stigma can help. For LGBTQIA+ people with symptoms of anxiety, depression, or other conditions, professional mental health care can make a huge difference.

What are the benefits of coming out?

Most LGBTQIA+ people who have come out report that coming out has made a significant positive impact on their lives. 

The previously mentioned study from the University of Montreal found that people who have chosen to be open about their sexual orientation tended to have less chronic stress and fewer symptoms of depression than those who remained in the closet. There is good evidence, too, that coming out has a positive impact on anxiety as well. 

Coming out allows for closer relationships with those with whom you are vulnerable and who respond with affirmation and care. Sharing information about your authentic self with a close friend or supportive family member provides opportunities to validate and deepen the connection.

Embracing your identity can also allow new networking opportunities to connect with other LGBTQIA+ identified people. There is a particular power in being surrounded by people who have common experiences and can offer affirmation. Having a network of friends who have lived through what you are experiencing can help your self-esteem and can be a big mental health benefit of coming out.

Another thing that can benefit your mental health after coming out is that it can facilitate the development of romantic relationships. Embracing yourself can make it easier to find and foster those connections.

Risks of coming out 

As you can see, there are many mental health benefits from coming out. However, there are also some associated costs and risks to be aware of. You may want to consider and prepare for them in advance. 

Risks of coming out include:

• Some invalidation by non-affirming people 
• Some rejection, possibly even by those who were close family members or friends
• Confirmation of worry that you would get hurt during the process 

If these risks are realized, there are ways you can overcome them. 

Here are a few tips on how to deal with the difficult consequences of coming out:

• Rejection and invalidation

Expecting 100% of the people in our lives to support us is unrealistic, and this can be true for many areas of life. 

Here’s something to consider: If someone is unwilling to support you, that is evidence that this is a person you need to draw a boundary with and keep at a distance. Sometimes, if this person was a previously close family member or friend, that can be really sad. Know that you can choose to grieve that relationship. The benefit is that you both learned who that person truly is and you now have the opportunity to invest time and emotional energy in people who are affirming. 

• Confirmation of worry that you would get hurt

When worries become true, it can be painful and make us want to shut down. Try to remind yourself that pain is a part of life and suffering only arises when we try to avoid unavoidable pain. If you want to live an authentic life, there are costs associated with that. 

Try asking yourself: Is the value of an authentic life worth the risk of pain along the way? You might find yourself saying yes. 

Resources for support 

Being open about who you are can have a positive impact on your self-esteem and self-confidence. While you may encounter hurtful people, you will also undoubtedly find many who love, support, and respect you for who you truly are. You will have a network of people supporting you.

Here are some resources you can turn to for support on your journey: 

The Trevor Project: Text START to 678-678 or call 866.488.7386 for free anytime 24/7 to speak to a Trevor counselor who is understanding of LGBTQ issues and won’t judge you. Your conversation will be anonymous and you can share as much or as little as you like.

Brightside Health: Our licensed therapists can help you cope and deal with whatever you’re going through. With unlimited messaging, virtual therapy sessions, and video lessons, you can overcome anxiety, depression, and other mental health challenges: 86% of Brightside members feel better within 12 weeks. 

Start with a free assessment

The post Coming out and mental health appeared first on Brightside.

If your doctor has already diagnosed your chest pain as being anxiety-related, the good news is that there are some things you can do, even while the chest pain is happening, to remedy the anxiety and relieve your chest pain.

Before we look at some home remedies for anxiety, let’s take a look at anxiety-caused chest pain so you can better understand it, and see how to recognize its symptoms. 

What are the symptoms of anxiety-related chest pain?

Chest pain is a sign that should be taken seriously and evaluated. When in doubt, seeking medical attention is always recommended. However, in many cases, anxiety-related chest pain can be treated at home.

Part of what makes it complicated, and sometimes hard to identify as being caused by anxiety, is that, anxiety-related chest pain can be a bit different for everyone who experiences it. As we explain in our blog, “It can sometimes be difficult to know whether your symptoms are being caused by your anxiety, or if they are being caused by another medical problem altogether.” 

Healthline goes on to list the ways that anxiety-caused chest pain is described by those who experience it. These descriptions include:

• Sharp, shooting pain
• Persistent chest aching
• An unusual muscle twitch or spasm in your chest
• Burning, numbness, or a dull ache
• Stabbing pressure
• Chest tension or tightness

And, to reiterate what we said above, a particular challenge of anxiety-related chest pain is that it has the ability to induce more anxiety. Chest pain can be alarming and worrying since it feels like something terrible may be happening — and this isn’t likely to reduce whatever anxiety you may be feeling. But it can also help to know that:

• “An estimated 25 to 50 percent of patients who come to the emergency department with low-risk chest pain (chest pain not related to a heart attack) experience moderate to severe anxiety,” according to Healthline.
• “Chest pain is present in between about 20% to 70% of panic attacks,” according to News-Medical.Net.

This means that anxiety-related chest pain is pretty common. It also means that there are likely home remedies for anxiety that will help your chest pain.

Home remedies for anxiety-related chest pain

One of the best home remedies for chest pain is to control the anxiety that’s causing it. So let’s step back from chest pain and talk more generally about home remedies for anxiety attacks. 

Practice deep breathing

One of the first things you may try when experiencing anxiety is to slow and deepen your breathing. An anxiety attack, also known as a panic attack, can cause you to breathe shallowly and more quickly than usual. As Medical News Today explains, “Rapid breathing can lead to low carbon dioxide levels in the blood, causing lightheadedness and tingling in the extremities.” This may cause you to feel chest pain. On our blog, we provide a few thoughts on calming anxiety. Here is an example of a deep breathing exercise that may help:

Whereas breathing from your chest results in shallow breaths that may increase anxiety, breathing with the focus on your belly may help you take deeper breaths. It can help to place one hand on your heart and the other hand on your belly during breathing exercises so that you can more easily notice whether your chest or your belly is rising and falling with each breath.

Mindfulness exercises 

After you are done slowing your breathing, or even while you are doing so, you may try any number of mindfulness exercises. If you are new to this idea, here are a couple of at-home techniques that may remedy your anxiety:

Take stock of the situation

It can often help to step back and observe what you are feeling. Sit with your emotions to see if you can figure out what may be causing you to feel anxious. Try not to judge your thoughts or feelings—accept them as they are.

Picture a place you love

Another widely accepted mindfulness technique that may help you remedy your anxiety at home is to try to picture a place that makes you happy while slowing and deepening your breath. This could be somewhere you’ve visited or somewhere you’d like to visit. Think about the details clearly: What color is the grass? Is there water? Is it warm or cool? What does it smell like? What sounds can you hear there? This can help calm you down.

Engage your five senses

A popular method for reducing anxiety is the 5-4-3-2-1 exercise. Look around you and focus on:

• 5 things you can see
• 4 things you feel 
• 3 things you hear
• 2 things you smell 
• 1 thing you taste 

This technique can help ground you in the present moment.

Be proactive about your physical health

While this may not help in the middle of an anxiety episode, being proactive about your physical health is a great home remedy for stress and anxiety. Take good care of your body. Drink lots of water. Maintain your personal hygiene. Get regular exercise and eat as healthy as you can. If you’re a caregiver, remember to take care of yourself too. 

See a mental health provider

If you need support for relieving chest pain caused by anxiety, try talking with a mental health provider. They are licensed professionals who will be able to recommend more ways to help you feel better. 

At Brightside, you can get a personalized treatment plan online and start feeling like yourself again with medication, therapy, or both.

Take our free assessment today.

The post How to relieve anxiety-caused chest pain appeared first on Brightside.

Moving homes, reading the news, giving a presentation, starting a new job, or having a baby are just a few examples of times when you’re likely to experience stress. Sometimes, stress can be beneficial as it helps you prepare for big changes or motivates you to meet a deadline. There is an optimal level of stress according to the Yerkes-Dodson law—too little and we aren’t motivated enough to prepare, too much and anxiety can affect our performance.

When stress does get out of hand, it can negatively impact our physical and mental health. It may affect our sleep or lead to burnout, acute stress disorder, anxiety, and/or depression. According to the American Psychological Association, “Chronic stress, or a constant stress experienced over a prolonged period of time, can contribute to long-term problems for heart and blood vessels. The consistent and ongoing increase in heart rate, and the elevated levels of stress hormones and of blood pressure, can take a toll on the body. This long-term ongoing stress can increase the risk for hypertension, heart attack, or stroke.”

So, while it’s safe to say stress is a part of life, there are things you can do to help manage your stress levels for better health. One important element of this involves self-awareness.  As Stress Resilient Mind explains:

Self-awareness is a prerequisite for choice and control. If your thoughts and feelings are operating outside of awareness, then they control you. If you want to control them, the first thing is to open up a window of awareness that is an opportunity to pause and consider, before choosing, deciding, and acting.

What is self-awareness?

Self-awareness is being aware of who you are—of your thoughts, feelings, and actions. Having self-awareness doesn’t mean you have to thoroughly understand every single emotion you have or justify every thought. Instead, being self-aware simply means you observe your internal and external experiences. 

Hogan explains three main components of self-awareness:

• Understanding our own strengths and opportunities for change and growth
• Understanding how our strengths and challenges relate to those of others
• Understanding how to adapt our behavior to increase our effectiveness

Why is self-awareness so important when we’re talking about stress? Because stress is a physical or mental response, it’s vital that we recognize what we’re experiencing and why. If you’re self-aware, you might realize that you’re not eating as healthy as you used to, you’re feeling anxious, or that your work has become more challenging and cut into your free time.

In this way, self-awareness can help reduce stress—if you first start to recognize the causes, you can then more effectively manage the stressor or response. 

Tips for building self-awareness

If you’re looking to boost your sense of self-awareness, you can:

• Keep an open mind. Try not to judge your thoughts or feelings.
• Note your strengths and weaknesses. If you’re having trouble, you could ask a trusted loved one for help.
• Practice being mindful. You can write down what you’re experiencing or try breathing exercises.
• Take time to reflect. Think about your actions and reflect on why you may have behaved in a certain way.

When you’re thinking about building self-awareness, it may be helpful to consider these buckets: thinking, feeling, doing, wanting, and sensing. 

Self-awareness is also important for emotional intelligence, which is the ability to identify and manage one’s own emotions as well as the emotions of others. As Psychology Today says, “The emotionally intelligent are highly conscious of their own emotional states, even negative ones—from frustration or sadness to something more subtle. They are able to identify and understand what they are feeling, and being able to name an emotion helps manage that emotion.”

Stress management is key to better health

Now that you have a better understanding of self-awareness, and emotional intelligence, let’s consider how that can help reduce stress. By being self-aware, you can start to notice your thoughts, emotions, and behaviors as signals or clues to your overall health. 

If you catch yourself feeling run down, exhausted, or irritable, you can pause and consider what may be the stressor and take action to resolve or manage it. Maybe you realized that reading the news so much is causing you stress and worry. As a result, you can consider actions to take that may give you more control over your life or help you enact your values: You might donate to a cause, limit yourself to watching the news once a day, or talk to a loved one about it but then do an activity you enjoy.

This is known as stress management. Therapists at Brightside Health can help you improve how you manage stress with various skills. 

Here are some stress management techniques to try yourself:

• Try to exercise, eat nutritious foods, and get enough sleep. What’s good for your physical health is also good for your mental health. 
• Avoid drinking a lot of caffeinated or alcoholic drinks. They can affect your mood and sleep.
• Practice relaxing techniques like visualization or meditation like yoga. You can start with just 5 minutes a day.
• Take a walk in nature. Getting outside can help you gain a fresh perspective. 
• Start a gratitude journal. Focusing on positive aspects of your life can help boost your mood if you’re feeling stressed or down.
• Pursue an activity you enjoy. Pick up a hobby you once loved as a child or try a new activity you’ve always wanted to learn.

Over time, you may learn to stress and worry less about things that are completely outside of your control. As far as the things within your control, you can take steps to manage the stressor with the techniques above. 

As our blog about stress and depression says, “Stress isn’t something that can be fixed overnight, but by taking small, consistent steps and sticking with it over time you can see impactful changes.”

Stress, anxiety, and depression

If you’re having trouble dealing with stress, it’s a good idea to talk to a mental health professional. Even if you’re self-aware and practicing management techniques, sometimes stress may be constant. In this case, you may be experiencing anxiety, depression, or another mental health condition. 

At Brightside, you can access care online with support every step of the way. Our therapists and psychiatric providers can develop a personalized treatment plan for you that includes therapy, medication, or both. 

Start a free assessment today

The post How self-awareness reduces stress appeared first on Brightside.

Whether it’s anxiety due to outside stressors, discomfort during social situations, or your anxiety seems to arise at random, there are relaxation techniques that can help you manage some of your symptoms and support your long-term well-being.

If you or a loved one are living with an anxiety disorder these techniques can also be helpful in managing your symptoms in addition to therapy and medication. There are even a few ways to get ahead of your anxiety when you feel like you are on the verge of a panic attack. 

Let’s talk about some tips and tricks that can help you get a better handle on your anxious thoughts and patterns.

Panic Attacks: What Are They and How to Cope With One

A panic disorder is a type of anxiety disorder that is characterized by panic attacks. Panic attacks are one of the most severe physical manifestations of anxiety, and they can last for up to several minutes. 

Panic attacks can resemble heart attacks in some, and it’s important to know the distinction between a heart attack and a panic attack to better understand when immediate medical attention is necessary. 

Common symptoms of panic attacks include:

• A sense of terror or impending death
• Feeling tearful
• Sweating
• Chills and hot flashes
• Difficulty breathing
• Nausea
• Headache
• Numbness or tingling
• Chest pain, increased heart rate, or heart palpitations
• Shortness of breath

Panic attacks can present differently in different people, so if you believe that you may be dealing with a panic disorder but your symptoms are not on the list above, it does not mean that your experiences are invalid.  

Long-term anxiety disorders such as panic disorders can even lead to chronic health conditions like heart disease and high blood pressure, making it even more important to harness the power of self-help techniques to help control your panic disorder in addition to therapy and medication.

How to Get Ahead of Panic Attacks: Stopping The Spiral

When you feel like your anxiety is getting out of control, there are a couple of things you can try which may help stop the spiral and calm your mind. 

When you start to feel a panic attack approaching, trying these mindfulness strategies may help:

• Deep breathing from your stomach rather than from your chest: Whereas breathing from your chest results in shallow breaths that may increase anxiety, breathing with the focus on your belly may help you take deeper breaths. It can help to place one hand on your heart and the other hand on your belly during breathing exercises so that you can more easily notice whether your chest or your belly is rising and falling with each breath.
• Get moving: Light exercise can help reduce anxiety in the moment, and exercise long-term can help stabilize and regulate your mood. This is because moving your body can help flush out stress chemicals, so trying yoga, going for a run, or opting for your favorite workout routine may be an effective way to curb a panic attack. 

However, if you’re experiencing trouble breathing or hyperventilation due to an incoming panic attack, prioritize catching your breath before attenting to boost your endorphins through exercise.

• Engage with your environment using your 5 sense: Observe your environment using all 5 of your senses to center yourself in the present moment. This grounding technique uses sight, sound, feel, touch, and taste to practice mindfulness in moments of stress. 

You can take a walk in nature noticing the smell of the trees, the colors of the leaves, and the crunch of twigs beneath your feet, or you can practice this technique at home while cooking, taking a walk around the city, or while spending time with loved ones. 

• Remind yourself that anxiety is temporary: Reminding yourself that your anxious and overwhelming feelings will not last forever may help calm your mind. Recognizing that you are having a panic attack and riding the wave instead of frantically attempting to stop it may help you feel better. 
• Practice self-compassion: Anxiety can convince you that something is wrong with you or that your inability to conquer your panic attacks means you are weak. Instead of harnessing this kind of self-talk, remind yourself that you are not your thoughts and that your thoughts are distress signals sent by your brain. Everyone has negative thoughts sometimes, and they will pass.

As you feel your panic attack starting to subside, try to take note of any things in your life that may be acting as triggers. Recognizing and identifying your panic attack triggers can help you prepare for future panic attacks, or it can act as a guide for lifestyle changes that may make a difference.

Additionally, taking note of any strategies that prove to be successful in easing your anxiety during panic attacks can help you remember where to turn and what to do next time you feel your anxiety getting out of control. 

General Coping Strategies For People With Anxiety

If you have an anxiety disorder, you may experience symptoms of your anxiety very frequently, not just when you are having a panic attack. 

Common symptoms of generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) include:

• Being unable to relax and feeling tense, irritable, or nervous
• Worrying immensely about the past or future
• Feeling tearful
• Being unable to sleep
• Hypervigilance
• Dry mouth
• Chest pain, increased heart rate, or heart palpitations
• Shortness of breath

The tips above for easing the symptoms of panic attacks can also help reduce the symptoms of generalized anxiety disorder and other forms of anxiety. However, additional lifestyle changes may help reduce longer term symptoms of anxiety. 

Coping strategies that can help when you are feeling particularly anxious or stressed include:

• Taking time to yourself and practicing self-care: Practicing yoga, listening to music, dancing, taking a bath, meditating, or turning to another hobby or activity that you enjoy can help put you in a positive mindset and may help clear your mind.
• Eating regular, well-balanced meals: Skipping meals or leaving gaps in your diet can aggravate symptoms of anxiety, so maintaining a regular meal schedule and striving to make each meal well-balanced may help you feel better.
• Making sure you get enough sleep: Sleep deprivation can aggravate your anxiety, too, and because sleep allows your body to relax, replenish, and repair itself, getting enough sleep is an important part of managing your anxiety. Developing proper sleep hygiene habits such as creating a regular sleeping schedule, unplugging from electronics before bed, and cultivating a relaxing bedtime routine can help improve the quality and duration of your rest.  
• Practicing acceptance of the fact that you cannot control everything: Putting your stress into perspective and asking yourself if things are really as bad as you think they are may help you relax, and reminding yourself that you cannot control stress and anxiety all the time may help you accept your feelings. Seeking out support groups can help you understand that you aren’t alone in your feelings of anxiety and that others are fighting this battle alongside you.  

Sometimes, however, these coping strategies may not be enough to help you feel better or in control, in which case speaking with a professional may be a good idea.

Getting Professional Help

While these mindfulness techniques can be a powerful tool when managing panic attacks and anxiety, you may also benefit from professional help. 

Brightside is here to support you in every step of your mental healthcare journey. We help you get the care you need from the comfort of your own home. 

With Brightside, all you need to do is fill out our free online assessment — this helps us better understand your individual needs and concerns. From there, we can match you with a provider who will work with you to come up with a treatment plan best fit for you. 

If your treatment plan involves medication, your provider will analyze over 100 unique data points and match you with the right medication for your individual needs. Your medication will then be delivered right to your door. We also offer evidence-based therapy which can be used on it’s own or in combination with medication.

Brightside helps you feel better with treatments that work.

The Bottom Line

Feelings of anxiety can be overwhelming, discouraging, and extremely tough to deal with alone. If you or a family member are dealing with symptoms of an anxiety disorder such as generalized anxiety disorder, social anxiety disorder, or panic disorder, there are many coping strategies available to you

Taking time for yourself and doing things that you enjoy, like hobbies, activities, or exercise, can help clear your head and put you in a more positive mindset. Additionally, maintaining proper nutrition and getting adequate sleep can help you manage your anxiety and help improve your overall wellness. 

Mindfulness techniques like observing your environment with all 5 of your senses, journaling, or practicing deep breathing may also be an effective way to help calm your anxiety.  

That said, sometimes coping strategies are not enough to help you feel better, in which case it can be extremely beneficial to turn to a professional. This is where Brightside comes in. Brightside can pair you with an expert, caring provider who will help you form a personalized treatment plan including medication, therapy or both–all from the comfort of home.

Sources:

What Is an Anxiety Attack and How Do You Stop One? | DMC

5 ways to stop an anxiety spiral | Mayo Clinic

ADAA Tips to Manage Anxiety and Stress | ADAA

The post How To Stop Feeling Anxious: Calming Anxiety appeared first on Brightside.

So, what should you do when a panic attack strikes? What if a panic attack happens when you are in public? How can you cope?

Fortunately, there are some tips, tricks, and techniques that may help you find some peace and comfort when you are going through a panic attack, and this is your guide to restoring some calm. Let’s get into it. 

How To Cope During a Panic Attack

Common symptoms associated with a panic attack can make it very difficult to think clearly, let alone try to cope and manage the attack. 

Physical symptoms of a panic attack include : 

• Palpitations, pounding heart, accelerated heart rate
• Sweating
• Trembling or shaking
• Sensations of shortness of breath or smothering
• Feelings of choking
• Chest pain or discomfort
• Nausea or abdominal distress
• Feeling dizzy, unsteady, light-headed, or faint
• Chills or heat sensations
• Numbness or tingling sensations
• Feelings of unreality or being detached from oneself
• Fear of losing control or “going crazy”
• Fear of dying

That said, it is possible to curb a panic attack, and practicing these techniques may make it easier for you to recall them in moments where you need them most. 

You can take control of your panic attack by:

Accepting the feeling, recognize your panic attack for what it is, and reassure yourself it will pass. 

For some people, a panic attack starts when you notice some kind of unwanted physical symptom: it could be a heart flutter, dizziness, or muscle tension. From here, you may misinterpret these symptoms as dangerous, and your fight-or-flight response gets triggered, thus inducing a panic attack. 

You can curb this impending panic attack by recognizing your initial symptoms for what they are- for example, tell yourself that a heart flutter is nothing more than a heart flutter. Additionally, remind yourself that panic attacks are brief and not long-lived.

From here, try mindfulness or grounding techniques — breathing techniques are especially helpful. 

Another important thing to remember for someone who is having a panic attack is to acknowledge that these symptoms are “just” a panic attack. They can repeat some statements to themselves like: “I’ve had panic attacks before, and I made it through those.” Or, “I’m not sick or having a medical emergency. These are classic symptoms of panic attacks that I’ve had before.” Or, “I can get through this. I’ve done it before, and I’ll do it again now.”

Pay attention to your breath and breathe mindfully. 

Shallowed or otherwise labored breathing is a very common symptom associated with a panic attack, which is why bringing your focus to your breath may help. 

Inhaling for a count of 4, holding your breath for a count of 7, and then exhaling and making a “whoosh” sound for a count of 8 can help you slow your breathing and get things under control. Repeat this as needed. 

Mindfully relax your muscles.

Panic attacks can cause every muscle in your body to become tense and stiff, so being conscious of this and working to relax each muscle individually may help you calm down. You can start by focusing on relaxing the muscles in your feet and ankles, then your legs and knees, and so on. Take a few moments to focus on each muscle group at a time before you move on to the next.

Think about your symptoms objectively. 

Taking on the position of an observer allows you to notice how you feel without intervening and trying to fight it off. Frantically attempting to fight the symptoms of a panic attack may make matters worse, so observing instead and rating your discomfort on a scale of 1-10 for each symptom may help you slowly start to relax. 

Try grounding techniques. 

Grounding yourself during a panic attack can help bring you back to reality and focus your mind on the present. You can practice grounding by using all of your senses to notice the things around you. One suggestion is to step outside if possible, especially if your panic attacks can be triggered by claustrophobia or social overstimulation, and use all of your senses to experience your surroundings. 

Pay close attention to what you can see, hear, smell, taste, and touch, and continue this process until you feel yourself start to let your guard back down. 

What colors and shapes do you see? What are the sounds? Birds chirping, cars honking, kids playing? How about the smells — fresh air, the bitterness of vehicle exhaust, flowers, or nearby food? Next, what sensations can you make yourself aware of? How do your feet feel on the ground, or where is your hand and what is it touching? Is there wind blowing on your face? Finally, do you taste anything? Can you still taste that soda you drank half an hour ago, or do you have a piece of gum you can chew? 

This can help you realize that there is no danger at hand, and your body may begin to relax. 

Implementing these strategies regularly whenever you feel anxious may help you remember to use them when a panic attack strikes. 

Prevention: Focus On Managing or Reducing Your Stress

With panic disorder, panic attacks often have no tangible triggers, but there is a connection between feelings of stress and the occurrence of panic attacks, so practicing self-care and adjusting some lifestyle habits can help. 

Here are a few ways that you can better manage the stress in your life:

• Avoiding or limiting alcohol or caffeine consumption
• Making sure to get enough sleep
• Eating regular, well-balanced meals 
• Getting plenty of exercise
• Relying on your support network — this could mean speaking with your friends, family, or other loved ones when you are feeling anxious. Confiding in someone you trust can help take the edge off, and may bring you comfort or at least can alert somebody so that they are prepared to help you if a panic attack happens.
• Practicing meditation or other mindfulness techniques

Taking good care of your overall health and wellbeing can help you more easily manage and cope with your stress or anxiety. 

A good rule of thumb is to make sure you are taking time to regularly practice self-care. Self-care means different things to different people, but generally, it entails doing things that you enjoy and taking some time to relax and let yourself recharge. By practicing daily healthy habits and self-care, you can reduce your symptoms of anxiety. Making sure you’re getting at least seven to eight hours of sleep per night, cutting down on alcohol and caffeine, taking a relaxing bath, or dedicating some time to your favorite hobby or passion are all great examples of self-care, and doing these things can help get you into a more calm and positive headspace.

Why It Might Help To Seek Out a Professional

Seeking professional help can be very beneficial, especially if you are struggling to gain control over your anxiety or panic attacks. 

While panic attacks can happen to anyone, it becomes panic disorder when you’ve had one or more panic attacks that are followed by one month or more of the following:

• Persistent concern about additional attacks
• Worry about the implications of the attack or its consequences
• A significant change in behavior related to the attacks

Additionally, the panic attacks shouldn’t be accounted for by another mental health condition, and they shouldn’t be caused by a physical health condition or are the effects of substances like drugs or alcohol. 

Speaking with a mental health professional may help you understand why your panic attacks happen, what your triggers are, and how you can work to overcome them, and a professional can also work with you to create a personalized treatment plan. 

At Brightside, we are devoted to offering you the anxiety care you deserve, and we work hard to craft a personalized treatment plan for you. 

Once you take our free online assessment, we will pair you with a psychiatric provider and therapist who will be there to help you and support you every step of the way, whether you are looking for medication, therapy, or some combination of the two. 

With science-backed approaches and evidence-based therapy, Brightside can get you the care you need right from the comfort of home. 

The Bottom Line

When a panic attack strikes, you may experience a variety of frightening physical symptoms including a racing heart, chest tightness or chest pain, trembling and shivering, difficulty breathing, and a feeling of impending doom or danger. 

Panic attacks can be very scary and overwhelming, but there are a few techniques that may help you calm yourself down when an attack happens out of nowhere. Mindful breathing, muscle relaxation, acceptance, and grounding practices are all great ways of relaxing your mind when you are overcome with panic, and methods of prevention and stress reduction may help reduce the frequency of your panic attacks. 

It can sometimes be hard to get a good handle on panic attacks on your own, and this is where professional help can come in handy. 

Brightside is here to help with anxiety care from the comfort of home.

Sources:

Panicking In Public? 5 Surprising Tips for Getting Through an Attack – Cleveland Clinic

How to Calm Yourself During a Panic Attack – LifeStance Health

The Key to Calm: 10 Relaxation Techniques for Panic Attacks – Dignity Health

Table 3.10, Panic Disorder and Agoraphobia Criteria Changes from DSM-IV to DSM-5 – Impact of the DSM-IV to DSM-5 Changes on the National Survey on Drug Use and Health | NCBI Bookshelf 

The post How To Stop a Panic Attack appeared first on Brightside.

Anxiety itself can be very hard to manage and get control over, and when panic attacks come into the picture, too, things can feel that much more overwhelming and draining. That said, there are several ways that you can try to manage a panic attack, and practicing certain coping techniques can help.

Certain methods of anxiety and stress reduction may also help prevent panic attacks from happening in the first place, or at least reduce the frequency and intensity. This is your ultimate guide to stopping panic attacks.

Want to speak 1:1 with a licensed expert about anxiety or panic? Start with a free assessment.

Want to speak 1:1 with an expert about your anxiety & depression?

Start with a free assessment

Why Do Panic Attacks Happen?

Before we talk about what you can do to stop a panic attack, it is important to talk about some of the basics. Understanding what a panic attack actually is and why it happens may help you more easily accept your struggles as they come.

Anxiety happens when you are under stress, feeling tension, having worrisome thoughts, or experiencing certain physical symptoms like heart palpitations, shortness of breath, or feelings of being detached from oneself.

The worries associated with anxiety can be about really anything, including school, work, friends, family, or relationships. While some degree of anxiety and worry is a normal part of everyday life, persistent symptoms may indicate an anxiety disorder.

More intense physical manifestations of anxiety are considered panic attacks, and an attack can last for several minutes or even several hours.

The specific symptoms that a person experiences during a panic attack can vary, and in fact, different people may experience entirely different symptoms. No two people are exactly the same, and panic attacks can manifest in many different ways.

What does an anxiety attack feel like?

Some common symptoms associated with a panic attack include:

• Heart palpitations
• Nausea
• Abdominal pain
• Sweating
• Chest pain or discomfort
• Trembling or shaking
• Feeling dizzy or lightheaded
• Sensations of shortness of breath
• Feelings of choking
• Feelings of being detached from oneself
• Fear of losing control
• Fear of dying

Panic attacks typically begin suddenly, without warning and they can strike at any time. You may have occasional panic attacks, or they may occur frequently. If you have recurring panic attacks and worry about future panic attacks, you may have panic disorder.

Panic attacks may come on suddenly and without warning at first, but over time, they’re usually triggered by certain situations.

For some people, a panic attack might not look like anything more than a moment of zoning out. Even in cases where symptoms are not physically apparent, anxiety could still be wreaking havoc internally.

Panic attacks can be draining and disheartening, and experiencing them regularly can certainly take a toll on your physical and mental well-being. There are several different strategies that can help you regain control over your anxiety, and may help you stop a panic attack in its tracks.

What to do when a panic attack strikes: 10 ways to cope

When you begin to feel a panic attack coming on, it may be scary, frustrating, or downright infuriating. Getting a handle on your anxiety can be tough.

These ten strategies, which you can use during an anxiety attack, may help you stop a panic attack in its tracks and even prevent them from happening in the future:

Get moving

Going for a walk, a run, or finding some other way to move your body may be a great way to clear your head and relax. Doing this outside is even better because exercising outdoors also provides access to higher levels of vitamin D from the sun, increases in revitalization, satisfaction, and positive engagement as well as decreases in tension, confusion, anger, and depression.

Listen to music or turn to one of your passions

Listening to music, or turning to another one of your favorite hobbies or passions, is another great way to distract your brain and calm yourself down. Doing something you love or enjoy can also help get you into a more relaxed and positive headspace.

Meditate

Meditating is a mindfulness practice that may help you get more in touch with your mind and body, and mindfulness, in general, may be a great way to increase self-awareness, imagination, creativity, patience, tolerance, sleep quality as well as decrease stress, negative emotions, resting heart rate, and blood pressure.

Focus on your breathing

When you feel anxious, pausing everything and taking a few moments to take some slow, deep breaths can help you calm your body down. 

Try taking a DEEP breath in through your nose. Breathe in as deeply as you can and as slowly as possible. Then exhale through your mouth just as slowly. Try breathing in and then out to a count of five, then repeat.

Stay connected

Anxiety can be isolating, and staying connected with friends, family, or other loved ones can help remind you that you have a support network of people who are here to help you get through the hard times.

Talk it out

Confiding vulnerable information with a trusted loved one about whatever is making you anxious can be a helpful way to process through your own reactions and consider fruitful next steps. When we keep things bottled up within ourselves, we may ruminate about what went wrong without actually making any progress on how to respond to the anxiety-provoking situation.

Try grounding techniques

Using your senses to ground yourself can bring you back to the present moment and get you out of your head. You can do this by engaging all of your senses—pay attention to your surroundings and mindfully notice the things that you can see, hear, smell, taste, and touch.

Maintain a regular meal schedule with well-balanced nutrition

Skipping meals or not eating well-rounded meals can aggravate symptoms of anxiety, so make sure you are properly nourishing your body throughout the day. The more we make purposeful decisions about what we consume, physically or otherwise, can help us make more value-guided choices.

Make sure to get enough sleep

Sleep hygiene is an important part of your overall health and well-being. While you are sleeping, your body works hard to replenish and restore itself. To help improve your sleep, create a relaxing routine before you go to bed. Perhaps, you read for a few minutes, meditate, or listen to calming music. Try to turn off all electronics at least 30 minutes before bedtime. 

Having a sleep routine and a regular schedule can help your body wind down for bed at an appropriate time and regulate your circadian rhythm. Removing bedtime distractions like phones or other “blue light” emitting devices can also facilitate a night of more restful sleep.

Turn to a professional

Anxiety can be unpredictable, discouraging, and frustrating, and it can also be extremely hard to manage on your own. That’s when it’s a good idea to seek help. When everyday anxiety becomes increasingly intense or difficult to manage, you may be experiencing an anxiety disorder and self-care techniques may not be enough to help you feel better. A licensed mental health professional can work with you to come up with a personalized treatment plan to help you feel better.

With Brightside Health, you can access care from the comfort of your home with evidence-based therapy and precision medication tailored to your needs.

The Bottom Line

Anxiety can entail frequent, intense worry, fear, and sometimes even physical symptoms that can be hard to control.

Panic attacks happen when anxiety and stress begin to pile up and eventually overwhelm your system, and a panic attack can bring along some pretty uncomfortable symptoms, including a fast heart rate, sweating, and tearfulness. Panic attacks can be discouraging and tough to manage, but certain coping strategies like mindfulness, relaxation techniques, exercise, and taking part in your favorite hobbies may help you calm yourself down.

If you feel overwhelmed or simply want someone to talk to, speak with a mental health professional who can help support you. Anxiety and panic attacks can be signs of an anxiety disorder, and a mental health professional can provide a diagnosis and treatment plan. This is where Brightside Health comes in.

With Brightside, you get matched with a mental health provider who is there to support you every step of the way, giving you the care you need right from the comfort of your home.

Start with a free assessment today.

Sources:

What Is an Anxiety Attack and How Do You Stop One? – Detroit Medical Center

Feeling anxious? Here are 10 things you can do to calm your fears – Indiana University Health

Anxiety & Panic Attacks: Symptoms & How To Stop a Panic Attack – University of Michigan

The post 10 Useful Ways To Stop an Anxiety Attack appeared first on Brightside.

A missed deadline. A bad grade. An argument with a friend. These are just a few of many different stressors that can easily make you feel self-critical. It’s easy to beat yourself up over every little thing, but this negative perception can have equally negative effects.

When people are self-critical about their short-term failures, they can become anxious about future goals, work performances, and social interactions. All of which can negatively affect their well-being. 

So, what do you do when you’re feeling like a failure? The first step is to acknowledge the why’s and underlying issues.

Why Do I Feel Like a Failure?

We’ve all made a mistake and talk ourselves down by our own inner voice. 

“How could I be so stupid?”

“I’m such a loser”

“I can’t do anything right.”

If any of those statements sound familiar, you may have a critical inner voice.

A critical inner voice is a series of negative thoughts and attitudes towards oneself. It’s those thoughts that discourage you from acting in your own best interest. They may stem from an isolated event, such as losing a job or messing up on a project. However, they may also stem from mental health conditions like depression or anxiety.

Why is Being Self-Critical Harmful?

If you constantly reprimand yourself with intrusive, negative, and hurtful thoughts, you may begin engaging in maladaptive behaviors. These can stop you from adapting to new or difficult circumstances, often leading to a self-destructive pattern.

One of the most common maladaptive behaviors is avoidance. For example, if you perform poorly on a test and make yourself feel angry and defeated, you may call in sick for the next one. While this seems like a logical way to relieve anxiety, this can actually cause a lot more stress down the road, as the repercussions of missing that test may be significant.

However, being continually self-critical may also lead to self-destructive behaviors such as self-injury, eating disorders, or substance abuse. Self-harmful behaviors can be difficult to understand, but they are typically used to stop negative emotions from intensifying and punish onesful for perceived badness. 

Drinking, using drugs, over-eating, or self-injuring oneself are dangerous ways to cope with feelings of failure.  It is important to help switch your perception and behaviors towards positivity. Overdrinking or eating, for example, are ways in which people “numb” or avoid coping with negative emotions such as anxiety and depression. Engaging in these avoidant coping strategies are unhealthy and are a sign that you need professional mental health treatment.

How To Stop Feeling Like a Failure

The first thing to know is that your feelings are valid. You should never be ashamed, embarrassed, or angry at yourself because of the way you feel. 

The emotional and physical toll that self-criticism can have on your body can be intense. Try using some of these simple techniques to remind yourself how amazing you really are.

Value Who You Are

Making mistakes is a part of life and everyone makes them. But those isolated instances are not representative of who you are as a whole. It’s important to focus on who you are rather than what you do.

Take some time to focus on the traits about yourself that make you feel like “you.” Think about the positive traits that have made you so attractive to other people. Maybe it’s your determination, sense of humor, glimmering smile, organization, or trustworthiness. Make a list on paper to physically see all of the things about yourself that make you stand out.

When you reflect on these traits, the chances are that you’ll want to exemplify and nurture them. Keep the list nearby for times when you’re feeling like a failure to remind yourself that you are anything but.

Practice an Attitude of Gratitude

Your perceptions can have a direct influence on your behaviors and outward persona. When you act negatively towards yourself, you may start to look at the world around you in a darker light as well. It may start to feel like nothing is going right, or you may start to feel hopeless.

Having an attitude of gratitude can help you focus on everything that you do have, allowing you to switch your perception. For example, instead of thinking about how a bad grade will ruin your school trajectory, switch the lens. 

Think about how you now know what to do to perform better next time around. You may also want to meet with your professor, which can help you build a stronger relationship that you wouldn’t have had otherwise.

Changing the perception is key to ensuring that you don’t fall into a spiral of self-critique. It will allow you to keep moving forward, improving your productivity and reducing your feelings of stress later on.

Try Exercising

When you’re feeling like a failure, it’s tough to shake those emotions. They can become inundating, causing you to focus on your stressors rather than your tasks at hand. A way to help knock those emotions is to get your mind off of them for a while.

Exercise is proven to be beneficial to your mental health because it can stimulate nerve connection, increase the availability of neurotransmitters, and release endorphins that enhance your sense of wellbeing. But on top of that, it will help distract you from the stressors that are causing you to feel like a failure in the first place.

Going for a brisk walk, jog, bike ride, or hike are healthy ways to improve your body inside out while also giving you some time to let your negative feelings subside. Chances are by the end of your routine, you’ll be feeling good as new.

Spend Some Time With Others

Humans are social creatures that feed off of the energy of one another. Surrounding yourself with a positive support system is a wonderful way to remind yourself of how amazing you really are.

When you can look around and see the people who genuinely love to be around you, it can help show that you are not a failure in any sense. Not to mention, social interaction can help take your mind off of your intrusive thoughts and let you feel a much needed reprieve for a little while.

Seek Professional Help

Sometimes, feeling like a failure has underlying causes beyond lifestyle habits like a lack of exercise or not spending enough time with others. 

Depression and anxiety are two mental health conditions that can lead to negative thinking patterns where an individual feels like they are a failure or that they’re not good enough. When this is the case, seeking professional help from a therapist can be beneficial — cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) in particular involves implementing strategies to fight negative thoughts. 

In Summary

Feeling like a failure is a common byproduct of having a critical inner voice. While beating yourself up over mistakes is normal, it’s important to diminish those feelings before they develop into self-destructive behaviors like avoidance or self-harm.

To reduce your intrusive thoughts, it’s important to value who you are rather than what you do. Furthermore, try practicing an attitude of gratitude to keep your eyes on everything that is most important to you. You can also try exercising for fast relief from these sensations, or maybe try spending some time with friends or family.

It’s important to note that these tips are just a few ways to try to alleviate your inner critical voice. If you experience feelings of hopelessness or guilt that are persistent and inundating, it may be a sign of something more serious, and it may be time to seek professional help.

Taking the step towards recovery is hard, but we’re here for you every step of the way. 

Click here to start your free assessment — we’ll recommend a personalized treatment recommendation and pair you with an expert provider to help address your symptoms and help you get back to feeling like you again.

Sources:

The Critical Inner Voice Explained – Psychalive

Maladaptive Behavior and Affect Regulation: A Functionalist Perspective – NCBI

Why Some People Harm Themselves – NAMI

The post What To Do When You’re Feeling Like a Failure appeared first on Brightside.

There are a couple of different reasons this could be happening, some more serious than others. One particularly serious cause is having an underlying mental health condition such as depression or anxiety. In depression, specifically, appetite and eating habit changes can occur as a symptom. Additionally, sometimes people cope with depression and/or anxiety through overeating — it helps them avoid the negative emotions. When they eat foods they enjoy, they get positive feelings, but that then subsides and they are back to feeling anxious or depressed. 

Here’s what you need to know about an increase in your appetite, and when it’s time to seek some help for it.

Want to speak 1:1 with an expert about your anxiety & depression?

Start with a free assessment

How Do I Know If I Have An Increased Appetite?

Sometimes it can be difficult to tell if you’ve been feeling hungrier than usual. A good way to figure this out is to track your food intake in a journal. You can do this by logging what you eat and at what time each day. If you get to the end of the week and see a subtle change in your usual diet, it might be time to consider the possibility that something is going on with your body. 

Causes of Increased Appetite

Here are some of the most common causes for increased appetite. Some of these causes are medical conditions that should be treated by a doctor, while others are lifestyle choices that can be more easily changed. If you feel like your appetite has increased dramatically, make sure to reach out to a professional who can get to the root of it. 

• Stress can sometimes cause your appetite to increase. When your cortisol increases, so does your craving for food. So if you frequently feel stressed, you might be tempted to frequently eat. Although sometimes people who feel a lot of stress forget to eat altogether.
• Depression is caused by an imbalance with the chemicals in your brain. Sometimes when these chemicals fluctuate, it can impact things like your energy level, digestion, and appetite — for some, they have an increased appetite, and for others, they completely lose their appetite. Depression also affects your mood, behavior, and sleep patterns, too.
• Avoidance is one explanation for eating more than usual, and it doesn’t even have to involve the actual physical feeling of being hungry. Overeating can be a tool that people use to avoid negative emotions. They “feed themselves” the positive mood or fleeting feelings of joy they may get from eating sweets or other foods that bring them happiness. 
• Women experiencing premenstrual symptoms can sometimes feel an increase in appetite. Typically, calorie intake is slightly higher for women in the luteal phase of their cycles. Progesterone, which increases after ovulation, is thought to affect hunger.  
• Pregnant women can also feel an increase in appetite during gestation. This is because the baby is growing, and as it grows, it needs more nourishment to survive. This is usually when the mother gains a bit of weight to meet the needs of the baby. 
• Bulimia is another reason for increased appetite. This type of eating disorder involves binge eating and purging. During this, your body gets used to living on a high carb diet and releases a lot of insulin to use the food. When the food is purged, your blood sugar drops and causes intense hunger pains. 
• Hyperthyroidism is a condition which affects your ability to regulate your metabolism. People with this condition often burn more energy while they are resting, which means your body needs more food to survive and maintain itself. 
• Diabetes is another condition that is extremely common. People with diabetes struggle to regulate their blood sugar level, causing hunger to occur at abnormal times. The other symptoms of diabetes are increased thirst, fatigue, and frequent urination. 
• Poor sleep — sleeping is extremely important for your body’s health. It’s required for the proper functioning of your brain and can help reduce your risk of chronic illness. Sleep affects your appetite because it regulates ghrelin, which is an appetite-stimulating hormone. If you lack sleep, you’ll have higher levels of ghrelin, causing you to feel hungrier. 
• Poor hydration could be another reason your appetite has increased. Water is filling and helps to reduce your appetite when you drink it before a meal. Sometimes thirst is mistaken for hunger, leading to overeating. 
• Eating while you’re distracted can lead to an increase in your overall appetite. People who eat while they’re doing other things are not aware of how much they are eating. This leads to eating too much food, causing your body to think that you need more food throughout the day. 
• Drinking too much alcohol has appetite-stimulating effects. Alcohol can inhibit the hormones that reduce your appetite, like leptin. People who drink alcohol often consume 10% more calories than people who don’t.

When To Seek Professional Help

Significant increases in appetite should be addressed with your medical provider. Sometimes changes in appetite are accompanied by other symptoms, which could mean that you have an underlying condition, whether that’s a physical condition like a hormone imbalance, or a mental health condition like depression or anxiety..

When you talk to your provider, they will want to do an exam and ask you some questions about your appetite. They might ask things like: 

• What is your exercise routine?
• What medications do you currently take?
• Are you currently on a diet?
• Do you find it’s been hard to get motivated for the day?
• Have you been worrying a lot about anything in particular?
• Have you been having more bad days than good in the past few weeks?

Depending on what your other symptoms are, your provider may want to run some tests like lab work to figure out if you have any imbalances. 

Treatment For Increased Appetite

Depending on the cause for your increased appetite, there are a number of solutions that you can pursue. Before taking anything over the counter, make sure you clear it with a provider first. They will be able to suggest the best treatment plan for you.  

If you already take medications, your change in appetite could be caused by them. Some doctors might suggest alternative medications or change your dosage to deal with your increased appetite. 

People who experience an increase in appetite due to anxiety, depression, or stress should look into seeking help from a mental health provider who can offer medication to help with symptoms. Additionally, if mental health is the source of your appetite changes, you may benefit from speaking to a licensed therapist. 

How Brightside Can Help

Brightside is a telehealth provider that specializes in anxiety and depression treatment. We offer personalized plans with evidence-based therapy and medication options that can help with symptoms and conditions related to increased appetite.

With Brightside, you receive ongoing online care from hand-selected providers who are experts in treating anxiety and depression. Since anxiety comes in many forms, we make sure that we specialize in the full-spectrum of related conditions like PTSD, social anxiety, and phobias. 

Brightside has affordable plans to help you start feeling better right away. On average, 85% of members feel better in 12 weeks after starting treatment. The membership includes your initial evaluation, regular check-ins with your psychiatric provider, unlimited daily messaging, and weekly video sessions with your therapist. 

The Takeaway

If you’re feeling an increase in your appetite, you don’t have to just sit and wonder where it’s coming from. There are ways to help you understand the root cause of your hunger, and it starts by seeking a little help.

Start with Brightside today to get started with treatment. 

Sources:

14 Reasons Why You’re Always Hungry – Healthline 

Increased Appetite: Symptoms, Signs, Causes & Treatment – MedicineNet

Why am I always hungry? 17 reasons for hunger even after eating – Medical News Today 

The post How Depression and Anxiety Can Cause Increased Appetite, and What You Can Do About It appeared first on Brightside.