Five Minute tips for better mental health, less anxiety, happier family, better marriage and more.
Flinder Ranges, SA
I’m not much good at writing blogs, but great ideas come across my desk every day, so for the time being, I am going to send a blog out every week or so with a quick compilation of the helpful things I hear, new, or not so new. There will be repetition. If something is repeated, it will be something I think is especially useful. They will take less then 5 minutes to read and they will change your life. But overwhelming you with advice is not the plan, so I won’t send more than about 5mins worth at a time.
Today - Basic tips for coping with Anxiety using Self Compassion
- if you would like more help with this, please send me an email with your specific question and I would be happy to answer. These tips are really brief, can be done in any order, and can be done individually if you choose. (Todays tips come out of the science of Compassion Focussed Therapy and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy)
What can you do when you start to feel anxious or overwhelmed with stress, sadness, fear, anger etc
Name your feeling - say it outloud - “I feel really ….”
Suspend any judgement. Simply acknowledge in yourself that this is a reasonable way to feel under your circumstances, and that many people in your situation feel this way at times. (we call this normalising).
Mentally scan your body for the physical outworking of that stress (eg headache, heart racing, stomach pain, etc etc)
Slow and deepen your breathing and think about the air flowing in and out of your lungs. Focus on your breath for a few minutes if you like (Click for a helpful breath control)
Gently place your hand on that part of your body and feel the warmth of your hand flowing into the pain. If you can, offer yourself some kindness and compassion for the suffering you are experiencing. *
There are hundreds more but that’s enough for now. I’ll add more to each blog.
*This audio is designed to help you access your own self compassion- let me know what you think of it.
Plus - this weeks favourite Instagram resource
Kristen Neff - Self Compassion
