It’s no secret that I’ve dealt with anxiety quite a bit as an adult. I’ve been to therapy many times starting in college, and I have lots of creative practices to help reduce my stress.
Still, some recent exercises I’ve learned in this past year have helped me more than anything else, and I want to share one of them with you. I’ve never mentioned it before, but I’ve had periods of nocturnal panic attacks, aka waking up at night in the middle of a panic attack, and I think this exercise is what’s helped those to (knock on wood) disappear. (I am NOT a medical professional and this is NOT medical advice, just me sharing something that’s helped me. Professional help is the best; if you need it, go get it!)
The Journaling Exercise That Reduced My Anxiety
One of my very favorite podcasts is The Gathering Room hosted by Martha Beck. in one episode, she describes the act of observing your fear or anxiety as if you were studying someone or something, rather than getting completely sucked into it.
For example, if you find yourself suddenly anxious, it’s likely because your thoughts have started spinning out into the future about what could go wrong. If you don’t catch this and continue to let them spin, your anxiety will continue and/or get worse. However, if you step away from the non stop negative thought machine (aka the mind) by observing the physical sensations in your body, you’re putting a stop to that pattern.
Here’s a step by step breakdown
Step One: Grab your journal
Art journal, regular old journal, piece of computer paper, whatever works for ya!
Step Two: Act like a scientist
You’re going to observe yourself and be detached, like a scientist studying some frog eggs. You’re going to describe exactly what’s going on in your body, but as a watcher.
Step Three: Notice and write down everything
This is the meat of the exercise: Journal everything that’s happening to you that’s anxiety-related.
Here’s what you might write:
“My heart is beating really, really hard. I notice my hands are clammy. My jaw is clenched. I have an uncomfortable feeling in my stomach. I feel some prickles of sweat on my upper back.”
Step Four: Keep observing until your anxiety goes down
You’ll probably notice that as you name the physical things happening to your body that they actually recede a bit. It’s as if by being observed and paid attention to these sensations have permission to ebb.
Seriously, it’s almost magical the way the physical feelings of anxiety in your body start to dissipate as you clearly and concisely observe them. Try it!
{It’s true that if you are truly panicked, observing and staying in it can feel very, very difficult. And If you’re experiencing a true medical emergency, get help!)
Step Five: Repeat as needed
Anxiety isn’t usually a one time thing, so try this each time you notice yourself feeling that stress creep up into your body.
How my life has changed
This journaling exercise for anxiety has really, really helped me, despite its simplicity.
One therapist I saw did tell me to record all of my panic attack symptoms, but somehow the piece about observing myself in the moment, without judgment, in a detached state (like a scientist studying a subject) didn’t enter into the equation.
Once I started being in the moment with the physical sensations in my body, things changed for me. I was able to stay in the moment and observe and record the physical things happening to my body during a panic attack, and it subsided quite quickly. I had one or two more panic attacks that I treated in the same way, and I haven’t had one since.
Am I completely done having panic attacks? I don’t know, but I don’t feel frightened of them because I finally feel I have the tools to deal with them. I also still experience stress (of course!) and sometimes anxiety, too. However, I now have several tools, including this one, that help me to separate from it and allow myself to move on.
Your journaling practice can start today!
If you’re interested in reducing stress and anxiety through creativity, try this zentangle exercise.