Hi everyone, and welcome to Healing the Anxious Mind! I am so very glad you're here!
My name is Carly, and I am a mental health advocate, future Ob/Gyn and someone who used to experience chronic and daily anxiety.
Today I wanted to share a little bit about my journey with anxiety and how I began healing.
Where it all started...
Early in 2019, I was invincible (or so I thought). I was doing everything for everyone, except myself. I was in the midst of pursuing medicine which included running a small business, volunteering at multiple places, working other part time jobs and doing research. Everything I did was to get to where I wanted to go, EXCEPT I forgot about what I needed to keep going. One night when I was teaching on my computer, a wave of panic rushed through my body. I went from being on top of the world to feeling completely numb. My heart was racing, I felt like a couldn't breathe, my mouth was so dry it felt like it was the desert, and I was sweating profusely. I had a degree in human physiology, yet I couldn't explain everything that was happening to me. They taught us a lot in my program, but the one thing that never came up until this point for me was mental health..
After this event, I spent months feeling like I was running from a bear non stop. I would try to suppress any thought or bodily sensation because I was too scared to face it. I was miserable, and my thoughts began to convince me I was going to be like this forever, and then things started to shift...
How I began to heal...
I wish I could tell you I found the quick fix and everything was fine. Because thats what I wanted DESPERATELY, but thats not how it works. I took a leap and started going to Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). I started working through and challenging the thoughts I was facing. I started practicing grounding and mindfulness to calm my mind when I felt the anxiety starting to rise, but I was STILL experiencing high levels of anxiety every day.
The real changes started a few months later when I began doing acupuncture and continuing my own research. I loved to read, so I gravitated toward books that may be able to help me. Then I found Panicking about Panic by Joshua Fletcher (linking the book here if you want to check it out, also not sponsored, I just want to share what I found helpful). It started to make sense as I began to recognize everything I was feeling was simply 'anxiety' it helped to lump all of the symptoms and thoughts into one common word, Anxiety. From there I continued to read and learn. I continued to work through and challenge my thoughts, and recognized the lifestyle factors that played a role in my experience with anxiety.
As I continued to work on this, I discovered the work of Dr Kirstin Neff on self compassion. I was never particularly keen on being kind to myself, I often used judgement as a motivator to keep going. It was an extremely uncomfortable process at first, but got a little easier day by day. I started to recognize how kindness in those moments of struggle helps to dissipate that cycle of judgement and anxiety I was living.
Through all of this work I continued healing and Healing the Anxious Mind was created! I wanted to share what I learned with others. I wanted to connect with people who also struggled and remind us all that we were not alone.
Today, things aren't perfect, but they are SO much better. A few years ago I didnt think healing was possible, and today Im here telling you, IT IS!
It will take time, it will take dedication, but it is SO worth it.
Excited to continue sharing what has been helpful for me along the way of healing!
Sending love,
Carly
If this post resonated with you and you would like more support with healing from anxiety, check out my instagram @healingtheanxiousmind for daily posts on anxiety support and education.
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