Anxiety is a terrible feeling. Whether you’re feeling nervous about a speech you have to give, having trouble sleeping because of all the stressors of life haunting you before bed, or over-thinking your points made following an argument–chances are, anxiety has managed to affect your life in one way or another.
I, for one, have been coping with anxiety for a very long time. One day in college, I got up to leave Psychology class and suffered a massive panic attack. I mean full-blown, hyperventilating, shakes, tears…the whole nine yards. While I had gone through the occasional ups-and-downs and suffered mild depression in high school, anxiety was something completely foreign to me. I had no idea what was going on! So that day at Towson, my best friend took me to the health center to figure it out.
Eight years later, here I am: a victim of the debilitating disorder that sometimes leaves me not even wanting to get out of bed. It is a tough thing to deal with, but it’s certainly something you learn to control over time. There are different renditions of anxiety, different symptoms. Often, it is hard to identify. People refer to it as “nerves” or “stress.” But at the end of the day, the way you choose to deal with these external factors determines your overall well-being and control you have over your life.
Outsmart Anxiety is a blog based on overcoming the everyday strains of life in a healthy, positive way. Author Stephen Joseph says, “I know from bitter personal experience, the terrible loneliness that can be felt by those suffering from anxiety disorders and the confusion about why it has to happen to them. Anxiety is also highly destructive to one’s self confidence and self-esteem… I know first-hand the terror that anxiety and panic attacks inflict on the sufferer and how it can destroy lives, careers, relationships, families and hopes. I want to help people like me, in whatever way I possibly can, to overcome their mental anguish and to lead as normal a life as possible.”
There are plenty of self-help websites out there, plenty of anxiety-based sites as well. But, what I find fascinating about this site is that Joseph’s advice and tips are based on personal experience. He shares his entire story of living with anxiety with his readers, and how he has managed to “outsmart” it in order to lead a life more fulfilling.
From suggestions, to real-life experiences, to posing questions of ourselves, and overcoming fears, this site offers the everyday anxiety sufferer plenty of tips to get you on your way to a healthier lifestyle. Anxiety is an external factor that we often let take control; and it is simply a “mind over matter” situation in which YOU must control your thoughts. Sometimes, we get stuck in the mentality that we have had a run of bad luck, or we have just been dealt a shitty hand of cards. But our thoughts create our reality, and therefore, shifting gears from negative thoughts to positive ones can make all the difference in the world.
So, next time you start feeling sorry for yourself, take a look in the mirror and tell yourself that you are strong enough to overcome your situation; and the greatest way to change any outcome from bad to better is a shift in your attitude.