Anxiety varies from person to person. It arises in different forms and can be triggered in various ways.
For me, my anxiety is an underlying tone in my everyday life. It causes me to be stressed over any situation and overthink every decision I make, which I’m sure a lot of people can relate to.
A lot of the time, it’s hard for me to enjoy things because I’m too busy worrying and being anxious about it – and it really sucks the fun out of things sometimes, let me tell you.
You may be reading this and thinking, “That’s not anxiety. That’s not what mine is like,” which is totally justified. All of us are different and everyone has the right to believe and feel whatever they choose.
Now, the hard part: When I’m in my comfort zone with the people I’m comfortable with, like my closest friends and family, my anxiety subsides and I feel at ease. But at school, away from home, I’m obviously not in that comfort zone all the time; which is good because as a journalist, I need to be comfortable with being uncomfortable
Something as big as moving out of your childhood home is very difficult and uncomfortable for some – myself included. I was anxious and nervous about how I was going to adjust to my surroundings without my family around.
During the first few months of school, I wasn’t sleeping, as I was in a constant state of panic due to the fact that I was in a new, unfamiliar environment and I didn’t know what to do. Being in second-year now and looking back on those first few months, I’m so happy with how far I’ve come. I now live in an apartment with one of my best friends and am finally sleeping through the night. I feel like I have a new comfort zone away from home. It definitely took me time to get here and it certainly wasn’t easy.
At the beginning of first-year, I didn’t do anything – literally nothing at all. I wasn’t on any teams, in any clubs, I didn’t even go out with friends – and that was the worst thing I could have possibly done.
Every day, I would come back from class and not know what to do. I was just left sitting in my dull, boring room alone with my thoughts, which has proven to be dangerous for me. I called my mother when I was really upset and she told me that I needed to start doing things for me. “Keep yourself busy,” she would say, so I finally got off my butt and started going to the gym, and that is my first piece of advice for you:
Channel your energy into something positive.
When you’re feeling anxious, nervous or uneasy, take some deep breaths and think of something to do – anything that will clear your mind and benefit you in the future, whether that’s going to the gym and getting your heart rate up, picking up a new hobby, or even just going on a walk. Sitting alone in your room is definitely not where you want to be when you’re feeling like this.
I turned to the gym because I used to love working out when I was at home, so I thought why not keep it up at school? The gym was the perfect pastime for me. Rather than sitting in my room alone everyday, I found comfort in the gym. People were always around and I could listen to my music and be at my own pace. The gym also helped me feel accomplished at the end of the day. It made me feel like I actually did something productive, which helped me feel more at peace with myself.
Transfer your energy into something positive! You can never go wrong, I promise. If you like singing, find somewhere in your residence that lets you do that; if it’s dancing, go find a studio! The possibilities are endless.
Stay in tune with your creative genius.
Cooking is something I’m sure some of you guys are afraid of doing on your own, and trust me, I was too. One time, I was making Sidekicks’ Mexican rice and got scared, so I dumped the water down the drain, put the rice in the garbage and made a bagel instead – I kid you not! But cooking is definitely a hobby you could pick up. You can be creative with it, research and find new recipes and perfect a new skill in the process!
Cooking and writing are activities that play off your creativity. Your creative genius is definitely something that suffers when you’re struggling with anxiety, especially when you’re away from home. I lost that innovation for a while, and it definitely took a toll on my mental health, but luckily I had friends that got me back on the right track creatively.
Stay in touch with home.
Home is a safe place for a lot of people. Staying in touch with it is something that really helped me get through those tough times. A voice from home can really help ease your mind and make you feel better. Whenever I was feeling panicked, a call home would make me cry more, but it made me feel at ease.
It may not work for everyone, so try thinking of where you feel the most comfortable and find a way to contact that part of you, whether it’s home or a friend’s house – whatever it is, find it! For international students out there, I’m sure it’s even harder knowing your family is millions of miles away, but look at you: sitting in your dorm or your classroom, reading this article, living your life! Moving away was the first and hardest step, but you did that. A piece of home is often reassuring – maybe find a restaurant that has your favourite food from home or find a park around school that reminds you of the one by your house. A piece of home will often ease your anxiety, but if it doesn’t, then don’t stress. Attempt another strategy: decorate your room, clean, improvise a dance, move your body, etc.
I want to quickly address an issue I’ve seen on social media. Anxiety, as I said earlier on, varies from person to person. Just because someone doesn’t have the same triggers and symptoms, doesn’t mean that they don’t have it. Others show it and go about it in different ways, and our generation needs to start accepting that. Suffering from something you wish you could control but can’t is hard enough as it is. Telling others “you literally don’t have anxiety,” or “that’s not what anxiety is,” does not help the situation. Be mindful, be respectful and let people feel for themselves.
No matter how you feel or what you’re going through right now, there is no doubt in my mind that you are going to get through this. Anxiety is often something that plagues your everyday life, but we can stop that starting now. It’s obviously something that isn’t instant (trust me, I was there), but we can start working on it. Everyone’s different and will move at their own pace. Find your pace, get into a positive pattern and start the process.