Being a mum of a child with anaphylaxis and other illnesses comes with a boat load of anxiety and stress. Sometimes I run away with my thoughts and end up in a panic attack when what I have thought of hasn't even happened. I try lots of things to help me get out of this cycle but it takes work every single day. I try to practice being mindful, this doesn't make these thoughts stop but helps me to realise it is a mental event, its in my head, I mean sure there's always the possibility that our worst fears can come true but more times than not we forget the possibility that they also might not come true!
I can be in the supermarket and see packets of peanuts and that's it my mind goes into overdrive, especially if I have Jasmine in tow, what if someone opens the packet? what if the packet has split and some have fallen out? what if Jasmine has an anaphylactic shock? these are some of the things that start spinning around in my head and quite easily spiral out of control to where I panic and leave the store.
In these situations I have to navigate my thoughts and realise they are just that - thoughts! Here are some of the ways I am able to help myself through these episodes
I start by telling myself this thought is Anxiety
I will start to count to ten slowly breathing in through my nose and out through my mouth
I will pay attention to the people around me, look at their shoes or hair
I will focus on my feet standing on the floor and the sounds around me
Notice the feeling in your hands when you pick something up, what does it feel like, what does it look like
Bring your mind to the present moment and keep breathing, you should start to feel calm and able to carry on with your day
It is very easy to get trapped in our thoughts and start our days off this way, to change this every morning when I wake up I try to remember to be thankful for a new day, I will look out of the window at the world and just take it in and be thankful. Small changes like this have really helped me and I hope it can help you too :)
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