This website is for anyone struggling with severe anxiety and panic attacks. No matter how bad you feel right now, I promise you there is light at the end of the tunnel.
This guide is and always will be 100% free – this is my gift from the other side of anxiety to help you get better. Anxiety derailed my life, my world was a nightmare and every waking minute was hell on earth. As hard as it may be to believe for you right now, I look back at my 2 year-long bout with anxiety and count it as a gift. Anxiety made me more empathetic, kinder and more appreciative. It’s my hope that when you get to the otherside you will be an improved version of yourself too.
When we’re faced with chronic anxiety we long for the person we used to be before panic took over our lives. While looking back at the past can bring positive memories, it is more important to look to the future and build back stronger. If you have been suffering with anxiety for a substantial amount of time it will have changed you, but that is okay. As humans we change and evolve regularly and this bout of anxiety was just a bleak chapter in your story.
One thing I have noticed with anxiety sufferers is that they live either in the past or in the future, but never in the present. Instead of addressing current problems, they focus on how they used to feel or worry about their future.
The first step to recovery is letting go of any preconceived notions about yourself and your past. Recovery is about building, not looking back and in this guide I will talk about what helped me get to the place I am today.
Before I guide you through my steps to recovery, I am going to tell you about my story and about how I reached my lowest points.
“I don’t want to die but I can’t live like this anymore.”
Slumped in a bed months into severe anxiety and depersonalisation, I had reached a point I didn’t think would exist for me. For a period of time I felt the overwhelming urge to end my life. My whole world was falling apart and I didn’t know what to do.
My anxiety began with a pain in my neck. A gnawing pain became a constant annoyance. As a competitive martial artist injuries have been a regular issue, but this was different. I remember being in training and being hit with a wave of vertigo. I felt like a sailor at sea in gale force winds, my world was quite literally spinning.
I excused myself from the mat and made my way home, the feelings of vertigo temporarily went away, but the neck ache continued.
Days went by and my neck ache remained, one night after returning from training I was lying on the bed and reading the news. Out of the blue I was struck with palpitations… I had experienced a few panic attacks in my teens, over a decade earlier, but this was something else…. I was sure something was very wrong. I took myself to the bathroom, I was shaking, sweating and my heart (and mind) were racing. In that moment my life changed, panic took over.
I went straight to the Emergency Room and explained my issues. Immediately the doctors diagnosed me with severe vertigo from my neck issue and explained that my high heart rate could have been brought on by that… if you’re reading this article I’m sure you can see where this is going, the heart rate wasn’t being caused by vertigo but it would take a while for me the realise that.
The next few weeks were a blur, I couldn’t leave my bed after a few days and these bouts of high heart rate were becoming more regular. My bedroom was spinning and I was convinced I had a brain tumour or something equally as sinister.
I presented at the Emergency Room on numerous occasions. I went from competing in a combat sports competition to crying in an ER toilet within 3 weeks. No doctors could help me and they were dismissive.
Finally after weeks of hospital appointments and ER visits, one doctor sat me down and asked me if I thought it could be anxiety. I was so upset that the doctor wasn’t taking my suffering seriously “anxiety isn’t this bad, something is really wrong with me!” I snarled back at the doctor before returning home dejected.
Days went by and I had a dawning realisation that maybe the doctor was right and eventually I came to terms with the diagnosis. I thought a label would help me, but things just got worse. I had a number of “oh my god I’m actually dying” panic attacks and eventually I had to leave the city I lived in and move in with my girlfriend and her family.
The next 6 months were the worst of my life. The panic attacks became less frequent but they were replaced by 24 hour constant anxiety – at one point my left leg twitched for 7 days straight.
The thing about the brain is it has some unusual protection mechanisms. After this severe constant anxiety happened for weeks, it was as if I had burnt myself out, I had no more anxiousness left to burn and that void was replaced with crippling depersonalisation. I felt completely otherworldly. I felt like there was a pane of glass between me and everyone else in the world, I knew that I was alone and no matter how much I tried to explain to people they just couldn’t quite understand how I was feeling.
If you’re reading this I’m sure you know how hard it is to suffer with anxiety and how isolated you feel while you’re going through this. Even with loved ones supporting you, it is hard for them to truly empathise unless they have felt the abnormality of severe anxiety.
My anxiety continued for a further year before I began my comeback story and in this guide I am going to give you practical advice that will set you free. During my illness I read every major book in the anxiety niche and while I benefited from some I always felt uncomfortable that people were putting recovery behind a paywall so I vowed to share my steps to recovery for free and now that I have been anxiety free for a long period of time I am ready.
“It came out of the blue”
In my first conversation with most severe anxiety sufferers they tell me their anxiety came on out of nowhere. Within a few calls, it usually becomes very clear to both the sufferer and me that there were obvious causes to their issues and in the section I will break down the 3 most common causes I see.
If you don’t see your story featuring any of these 3 causes don’t worry. While knowing the cause is nice, the reality is it doesn’t affect the recovery prognosis whatsoever. Even if you never find out your “why” I am confident you can make a full and lasting recovery.
I am not a doctor – I can’t say this enough, I have no medical training and I have no plans to obtain it (I have no interest in paying any more money to colleges). If you feel like you have a medical issue that could be causing your issues please see a doctor and get a good check-up. If your doctor suggests you have anxiety and you don’t believe him, then go get a second opinion, but after that just accept the diagnosis.
Interestingly, I have met a lot of people who I believe have had their anxiety brought on by medical issues. One man I helped had a serious illness months before his breakdown. Another suffered with hormonal dysfunction and I have even seen anxiety brought on months after joint and bone injuries.
The reasons why physical issues can cause mental issues aren’t quite clear cut. French philosopher Descartes once wrote about dualism and the separation of mind and body, but as we’ve learnt more about the inner workings of humans we have realised that the body and mind are one and that issues with the body can affect the brain.
There are theories about illnesses causing inflammation that can lead to mental issues and while there is some voracity to those claims, I also believe the routine change caused by illness/injury and the fatigue involved in the recovery process can also create the perfect breeding ground for anxiety.
If you have had an acute injury, chronic illness or even an adverse drug reaction, these are all potential causes of your severe anxiety problem. As I mentioned earlier, no matter the cause, the path to recovery remains the same. You can and will get better.
I am not going to sugarcoat this: there is a chance that your own dumb behaviour could have brought on your anxiety.
When I first became anxious I thought there were no causes, I was a victim and woe was me. I have since realised that I was a big reason that I had a breakdown. I ignored all the signals my body was giving me that something was wrong and even worse than that, I engaged in behaviour that I knew wasn’t good for me.
The day I had my life changing(ruining?) panic attack I had consumed 2 monster energy drinks and two Starbucks coffees. Was I a moron? Yes, yes I was. I had been suffering from fatigue for months, a sign from my body that I needed a rest, but instead of resting I self medicated with stimulants for months until it culminated with the end-of-days nervous breakdown.
This stupid behaviour wasn’t a uniquely “me” thing, it is something I’ve seen in a lot of people I have helped. I have dealt with people who have eaten nothing but takeout and junk food which has left them malnourished and emotionally blunted. Binge eating is a common occurrence in anxious people and in people on the verge of a breakdown. Using food to cope with your emotions is a sure fire signal that the sh*t is about to hit the fan.
Another common lifestyle issue that can lead to anxiety is drinking alcohol. I knew a woman who used to drink a bottle of wine every night and couldn’t understand why she didn’t feel good. Problem drinking is usually used as a way to distract yourself from other issues, but even if you’re not a problem drinker, regular binge drinking can create the environment for anxiety to thrive.
It pains me to have to write this because it should be obvious, but I once dealt with a guy who had crippling anxiety and he swore blind that he lived a healthy lifestyle and had no idea what was causing his problems. I had numerous calls with this guy and I was stumped, he was following my plan and seeing no results whatsoever and finally let slip that on weekends he liked to take cocaine…. My mind was blown that he didn’t mention this sooner, not only did he take cocaine, he did it while on antidepressants which is a recipe for disaster. Thankfully once he stopped partaking in his special weekend supplement, he soon saw symptom resolution. I advise you to stop all recreational drug use until you’re in recovery from anxiety and yes, this does include weed.
This section is difficult to write about as I don’t know your own personal circumstances. I want to relay a leading cause of anxiety, but I don’t have an easy solution for it – as I mentioned the cause of your anxiety won’t necessarily hinder your recovery so don’t worry, just use this section to identify if any of the below problems could be contributing to your anxiety.
One of the most common causes I see is unhappy relationships. As I alluded to earlier, anxiety is usually a sign your body is trying to tell you it isn’t happy and that it needs change. I once helped someone who was unfulfilled in her marriage, her husband didn’t appreciate her and she didn’t feel loved. She felt isolated from her friends and family, stuck in a loveless marriage and eventually one day she started having panic attacks. Another person I worked with had their partner cheat on them and then a few months later had a breakdown. Often these issues don’t manifest immediately after an incident, sometimes they take months or years to come to the surface.
While I’m not suggesting you leave your spouse, be open to the possibility that your relationship could be impacting you negatively and perhaps you might need to both work together to create an environment that supports your recovery. I personally didn’t realise my relationship had severe issues until my breakdown but during my journey we addressed them and years later we are happier than ever.
I don’t claim to be an expert in the more complex mental issues like personality disorders like BPD or PTSD and CPTSD, but during my initial breakdown I was actually diagnosed with PTSD and it recovered alongside my anxiety. PTSD and other types of trauma can definitely be contributing factors to your anxiety, but you can and will recover from anxiety. Other issues can be treated in conjunction with this plan by your mental health professional.
If you haven’t resonated with anything in this section then please don’t worry. As I have mentioned, while the cause may answer your “why” , you don’t need to know why you have anxiety to recover from it.
Before we get into curing severe anxiety, I want to give you a brief overview of what the two major symptoms of severe anxiety are and why you feel them.
While there are some very common symptoms like palpitations or depersonalisation, there are also uncommon symptoms and maybe there are some of your symptoms that I won’t directly cover in this section. I want you to know that anxiety can cause the most bizarre sensations imaginable and even if I don’t touch upon your symptoms, it’s very likely that you and your anxiety are uniquely weird. Congratulations on being a weirdo – welcome to the club.
Before I dig into describing the symptom below, I’ll share one of my weird and random symptoms. I mentioned early about my leg muscle twitching for a week, but as annoying as that was, my eyelid decided it wanted to outdo my leg and twitched for about 3 months straight. Nothing is quite the look like walking around as an anxious mess with a twitchy eyelid, but I digress.
Here is what your symptom is and why you’re feeling it.
One of the most common and misunderstood symptoms of anxiety are heart palpitations and increased heart rate. During my bout of anxiety my resting heart rate was about 20 beats per minute about its normal rate and during acute panic attacks my heart rate hit 150+ on numerous occasions. One particularly fun bout of palpitations came when I had a panic attack during a run! I was really worried about my heart rate until I truly began to understand what palpitations are and how anxiety causes them.
To understand anxiety in general, we must understand the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems.
The parasympathetic is the calm part of the autonomic nervous system – you may have heard of the term “fight or flight” well, the parasympathetic nervous system deals with the opposite side of the anxious spectrum and is known for its role of helping you “rest and digest”.
While rest and digest sounds pretty cool, the real roles of the PNS are a little less glamorous instead of just being the resting and digesting, the PNS is also the driving force behind salivating and defecating. One fun thing the PNS does do is it helps to lower your heart rate and in anxiety sufferers we find that the PNS is being out performed by its sister, the sympathetic nervous system.
The sympathetic nervous system is equal parts awesome and terrifying. Its power can do amazing things but it can also cause horrible issues when it gets too trigger happy and if you’re reading this article it’s likely that the SNS is wreaking havoc on your life.
The SNS is known for the “fight or flight” response, but that phrase is outdated; it is now more commonly known as “fight, flight or freeze” as some people freeze in the face of anxiety rather than fleeing.
Before I break down how the SNS causes heart sensations let’s look at exactly how it influences the entire body. While this section may be very heavy on the theory behind the biological causes of anxiety, I promise you that the explanations of other symptom causes should be less jargon heavy.
So what does the SNS do? :
In short, the SNS basically does everything as well as orchestrating the “fight,flight or freeze” response, fibres from the SNS influence parts of almost every organ system and provide biological regulation over diverse body processes including pupil diameter, gut motility and heart rate. One of the most important and kickass parts of the SNS is its role in preparing you for physical activity. The SNS gets your muscles firing, your lungs ready and your heart pounding to make you ready to run, lift or fight.
As cool as the SNS is, it’s a little bit dumb. The SNS is the loveable hero who is a bit of a moron, think Harry Potter or Frodo Baggins – the SNS is out there doing dumb stuff while you yell at it but it never listens.
I say this because while the SNS prepares you for physical activity, sometimes it sends the signal to fire up the engines without there being any need and that’s why during a panic attack your heart begins to race. Not only does it prepare your heart for work, it also makes your pupils dilate and your hearing to become hyper aware.
The SNS can misinterpret anxiety to be a real threat and in turn signal the stimulation of the adrenal glands, which releases the catecholamines epinephrine (adrenaline) and norepinephrine (noradrenaline). These neurotransmitters and the associated hormonal changes cause you to feel these surging emotions and in the case of palpitations, they directly increase your heart rate which in turn makes you feel as though you’re going to have a heart attack or stroke.
As scary as these sensations are, you can see above how they are just simple physical expressions of a trigger happy nervous system.
While I know the knowledge of why your heart is racing isn’t going to stop you being afraid during a panic attack, I want you to know you are safe and the heart is quite literally built for this.
If you’re worried please do see a cardiologist.
In a later chapter I will show you ways to ease your overall anxiety levels, increase the power of your parasympathetic nervous system and help you feel comfortable in your own body.
I could write a book on depersonalisation – in fact a few people have and there is a reason why so many people want to read about this subject: it is by some distance the most bizarre, scary and debilitating symptom of severe anxiety.
Depersonalisation tends to be slightly different for everyone so describing it succinctly can be difficult. If you have ever had depersonalisation you’ll know it, it’s intrusive and it’s unrelenting.
In my experience depersonalisation felt like the way I experienced the world was suddenly altered; I was hyper aware of everything (myself included), everything felt different, looked distorted and I struggled processing lights and sounds like normal. I felt detached from everything, my environment, my family and my friends. Worst of all whenever I tried to explain how I felt no one could relate to me. I thought I was on the verge of losing my mind, but thankfully a strong sign you aren’t losing your mind is that you’re worried about losing your mind. People who “go crazy” don’t usually even realise they are unwell, with depersonalsation you are painfully aware that something is wrong with you.
“How long does depersonalisation last?”
One of the most common things people query with me is how long will their depersonalisation last. People don’t even care what has caused it, they just want to get rid of it. The bad news is depersonalisation can last a longtime if it isn’t treated correctly, but the good news is I have a foolproof way to get over it and I’ll discuss that later.
Before we get into how to get over depersonalisation let’s unpack the mechanism that causes it. Full warning: there hasn’t been definitive proof of what causes DPDR or the biological mechanism behind it. I have my theories and to me the most logical reason depersonalisation manifests is as a defence mechanism during times of extreme stress.
As I discussed earlier, anxiety’s primary function is to protect yourself from physical injury, it’s my belief that depersonalisation’s job is to protect you from mental trauma. Depersonalisation is extremely common in the victims of violent injuries, abuse and illness. There are a number of people who have postulated that depersonalisation might be an evolutionary tool to stop your brain converting traumatic experiences into long term memories. Think of depersonalisation as a really uncomfortable cognitive filter.
I believe that depersonalisation’s biological mechanism is rooted in an extremely high concentration of stress hormones. These hormones take a long time to metabolise so once depersonalisation kicks in, it tends not to resolve immediately like acute anxiety symptoms. Frustratingly to an anxiously sensitive person, the feeling of depersonalisation is so stressful in its own right that it makes you panic, which increases your stress hormones further leading you to be caught in a neverending anxious loop.
Depersonalisation was the worst experience of my life. In the end I realised the way out of depersonalisaton was lowering my overall levels of anxiety and allowing my stress hormones to lower over time. I will explain how I got better later in this guide. If you have depersonalisation I promise you that you can get out of this and you don’t need to buy any expensive guides or crazy treatments.
In the blog section I will periodically cover more symptoms. This website is a hobby on the side, so it might take me a while to get to every symptom but I will do my best.
Your journey through the depths of anxiety is almost over. I wish I could tell you that the path to freedom was some sort of exciting ancient herb or some cool new surgery, but the truth is we have had the answer to recovery for a long time and it is pretty straight forward:
Stop fighting your anxiety, accept your current reality, embrace the discomfort and actively engage with life again.
I know this sounds anticlimactic, but trust me there is more to it. Dr Claire Weekes was a pioneer in the world of anxiety and her key teaching was to ride the waves of anxiety. This teaching helped shape some of the greatest anxiety gurus out there (check out the resource tab for some additional reading) and it is the foundation of my treatment which worked for me and for many others.
I used a holistic approach which included multi facets which I will talk about in a later section, but the crux of recovery lies in taking a paradoxical approach to anxiety.
Before getting into the nitty gritty of severe constant anxiety, let’s tackle its more easily treatable sibling. Panic attacks are perhaps the most terrifying mental experience a human can face, but also one of the most easily cured.
When we have a panic attack every inch of our body tells us to run away from our anxiety, we pray that it stops, we do everything in our power to fight it, but the truth is the fighting intensifies the anxiety further.
By actively fighting a panic attack we actually send ourselves deeper into fight or flight. If you’re reading this, you most likely have had a panic attack and you know that over 30-90 mins a panic attack stops and that’s because our body can’t stay in constant panic mode. By fighting a panic attack, we’re reinforcing to our body that something is physically wrong, when we reinforce the panic our body gives us 100% power to flee a situation and this leads to stronger panic symptoms. By trying to avoid anxiety we increase our heart rate, breathing and dilate our pupils further. Our body goes into hyper drive.
We will get onto chronic severe anxiety in a moment, but if you suffer from panic attacks, I first want to give you an easy guide to stopping panic attacks in their tracks.
I bet when you feel a panic attack coming on you start to bargain with yourself, you think “not now” or “please not here, let me have it later” and I am sure every time you plead with panic not to show it turns up with a vengeance.
Panic thrives on fear…. I know that is a bit of an obvious statement, but let’s unpack that: why do panic attacks get stronger when you try to run away? As we know by now, anxiety is our body telling our mind that something is wrong by giving it uncomfortable physical symptoms. When we start to have a panic attack and try to run from it, we’re legitimising anxiety and telling it that “oh crap maybe something is actually wrong” this false feedback makes our body go into overdrive and make the symptoms even stronger which causes us to slip into intense panic.
Here’s my steps to get through a panic attack as pain free as possible:
When you feel the initial wave of panic don’t run from it, don’t bargain with it, just accept that you might feel uncomfortable and that you might have a panic attack. Don’t be afraid, you’ve already gotten through your worst ever panic attacks before, you know it can’t hurt you. Panic attacks are uncomfortable but not dangerous, let panic consume you if it wants because you can get through it.
If the panic starts to peak, demand more from it. Panic attacks are concentrated nervous energy, if it feels like you can’t take anymore demand anxiety to give you its best shot and run towards it with your arms wide open. You’ve fought against anxiety for so long, now its time to run right at it and show it that you aren’t afraid. “Oh my heart is beating fast? Is that the best you can do?! Show me more” challenging anxiety like this is really unusual but trust me it works.
After staring into the belly of anxiety your panic will likely start to drop, you will still feel very “out of it” but it will slowly subside. Now is the time to distract yourself, maybe phone a friend or play a game. Expect panic to come in waves but each time it does repeat the first two steps. I find to help get rid of all the excess energy I like to exercise or move around, but I know that isn’t for everyone and there have been panic attacks that have left me so exhausted that I couldn’t function. If you’re exhausted don’t worry, don’t put pressure on yourself.
Panic attacks only cause you issues as long as you fear them. The first part of severe anxiety that people recover from is panic attacks and this recovery is usually rapid and within a week or two. Once you no longer fear panic attacks they lose their power, once you understand that they can’t hurt you and accept them, they tend not to appear any more.
Since recovering from severe anxiety I have had two panic attacks, both were intense, but when I realised what was happening, I implemented my steps and they were done within minutes and caused no additional anxiety. Both panic attacks happened when I was overworked and fatigued and with the context of my anxiety recovery I was able to see that they were just my body telling me to slow down and to be honest I am actually glad they happened.
Now if I’m in an anxiety inducing situation I ask for a panic attack, I beg my brain to give me the biggest panic attack ever and every time I get no panic. I believe by asking for anxiety it short circuits the fight or flight response, after all if it was really a life or death situation would the logical part of my brain be asking the amygdala to give a panic attack?
These steps might seem difficult at times and sometimes you might have to fake it, but I promise you that the most powerful way to get over panic attacks is accepting, embracing and running towards them.
“Anxiety is an illness based upon control”
When we are anxious we feel like we have lost all control, we feel like we’re powerless and stuck on this never ending journey of despair. No matter how long you have felt like you are a passenger to anxiety there is a way to get it back and now it’s time to take the wheel and guide yourself to recovery.
The most common trap anxiety sufferers catch themselves in is the trap of avoidance. When anxiety starts to take over, we quickly begin to rely on safe places and safe people. A safe place is somewhere we want to retreat to when we feel anxious, for most people this is their home or their bedroom. Safe people are people we want to be around in case we get anxious these are usually significant others or family members, we know that if we’re anxious they can help us.
While on the surface safe places and safe people seem like good ways to reduce our anxiety, they really aren’t. By relying on a safe place, you’re making the association that every other place is dangerous and by relying on a safe person, you’re telling yourself that you can’t cope without that person. Neither of these things are true. You are as safe having an anxious episode on a busy commuter train as you are having an anxious episode in your own bed. Likewise, if you have high anxiety on your own or with your safe person the end result is the same, the anxiety will peak and pass.
Knowing that safe spaces and safe people don’t matter, what are the first steps I suggest you take to get over anxiety? I believe in exposure therapy especially for phobias, for severe anxiety it’s a little different, but I advocate for putting yourself in uncomfortable positions (I’m not talking about flying coach on a transatlantic flight), I’m talking about slowly doing things you have been avoiding.
Anxiety chasing is one of the most powerful ways to reduce anxiety – I’m not suggesting you drink 10 energy drinks and drive 100mph down a freeway, I’m suggesting starting to incorporate things you have been avoiding. If you have been gritting your teeth and suffering through work, going to the store or even leaving the house, I want you to start doing all these activities and doing them while accepting you might suffer for a brief period. The only way out of anxiety is through it. The people who don’t recover are the ones who spend years trying to minimise anxiety and run from it. The reality of the human condition is that we will go through stressful periods and we need to have the ability to navigate through them.
If right now you feel like you can’t do a single thing, I promise you that you can. I couldn’t even leave the house at one point and then within a few months I had recovered enough to go to Paris on holiday. A key part of recovery is compassion. You probably are annoyed with yourself, angry that you’ve ended up in this situation. It’s easy to beat yourself up but it doesn’t help you get better and it isn’t fair. From now on I want you to treat yourself as you would treat someone you love if they were going through severe anxiety, would you shout at them? Would you call them names? No you wouldn’t but for some reason we sometimes treat ourselves without compassion.
You should be treating yourself as you would treat a sick loved one. Diet, exercise and supplementation are big parts of my holistic protocol. I talk to so many anxious people who avoid eating or binge eat, perhaps they also drink a lot of alcohol to numb the anxiety and I know all these people would never subject someone they love to these behaviours. If your child/mother/friend had anxiety your first thing to do for them would be to tell them to make sure they’re eating proper meals, getting enough fresh air and avoiding booze, but when it’s ourselves we hit self destruct mode. While there are a lot of reasons why we do this we don’t need to unpack them to get better (sorry Freud), we just need to establish positive habits.
If right now you are suffering badly, the most simple things you can do to get on the road to recovery is shower everyday, maintain hygiene and some semblance of normality. Start eating regularly and a “healthy” diet while avoiding alcohol and caffeine for at least the first month of recovery.
On the subject of which diet is best for anxiety, there is so much dogma and its something I will tackle in blogs at a later date if I have time, but I subscribe to the keep it simple stupid philosophy. Now isn’t the time to go keto, vegan, carnivore or anything else. You want to eat a well balanced diet with fruit and vegetables. Don’t stress yourself any further by adding diet worries to the mix. Also I advise eating at a calorie maintenance / slight caloric surplus as your body needs all the energy it can get right now.
There are some supplements that I do recommend – like everything on this site, all my recommendations are personal, I don’t take any affiliate money or run ads unless otherwise clearly disclosed. I only suggest things that I personally found benefit from and as a word of caution always remember a lot of these “anxiety gurus” line their pockets with supplements they specially craft themselves which are more expensive and oftentimes less effective than generic versions.
When I first started out I only recommended supplements with a strong amount of research to show it worked, but over the years I have opened my mind a little. If someone swears by a supplement you haven’t heard about please do your own due diligence before trying it.
Before I get into what works, one thing that you’ll be recommended a lot that definitely doesn’t work is marijuana. I had so many people recommend me it but the research is strong and shows it makes anxiety worse so please do avoid it until your anxiety is under control.
The number 1 supplement I recommend is ashwagandha, ashwagandha has shown itself to be effective in the reduction of chronic stress in numerous studies. It takes a few weeks to feel the effects so give it some time, but I really do recommend it.
L-theanine is more short acting and can provide some immediate relief for the symptoms of anxiety. Like ashwagandha, there is a lot of promising research surrounding L-theanine. I will discuss dosage in my daily anxiety treatment plan below.
A good quality magnesium supplement is also a staple of any anxiety stack. Most people don’t get enough magnesium through diet and by supplementing it we can help to relax our muscles which are notoriously tight in anxiety sufferers.
Please don’t feel the need to put yourself into debt by taking a lot of supplements or following a special diet, the vast majority of people can recover just by using lifestyle based interventions.
As I finish writing this guide I’m currently injured and feeling sorry for myself. Injuries always remind me of just how amazing exercise is for the body and mind. I believe that there is a type of exercise out there for everyone to enjoy. You don’t have to powerlift, sprint or do MMA to reap the rewards of working out, try any activity and see what you enjoy because the benefits are clear to see.
Engaging in regular exercise has numerous mental benefits that have been scientifically proven. For starters, exercise stimulates the release of endorphins in the brain which naturally improves our mood, reducing feelings of anxiety and depression. In addition, it has been found that exercise can help us to better manage stress levels, making us more resilient to stressful situations. Another great mental benefit of exercise is that it helps to improve cognitive function and overall brain health, increasing our ability to concentrate and stay alert. Exercise has also been found to improve sleep quality which can contribute to a positive mood and general wellbeing. Ultimately, regular exercise not only promotes physical health, but also plays a crucial role in maintaining our mental health and wellbeing.
Hope is what will guide you through this period of anxiety. Knowing that no matter how bad you feel now that you can still get better is powerful. I am not the first person to overcome anxiety, a simple internet search will find you thousands of recovery stories and I hope one day you will email me and tell me all about yours.
The fact that you’re actively searching for ways to get better fills me with hope for you. The hardest part of recovery is finding the drive to get better and by making it to the end of my waffling article, you have shown an abundance of drive! Follow my steps and give it time. Everyone’s recovery timeline is different but consistency will get you there in the end.
I can’t reply to every email but please drop me a message if you found this helpful and please know that as I write this you are all in my thoughts.
This site is completely self funded. I don’t run ads or use affiliate links. If you found this guide helpful please consider donating via paypal.
We are all alone in this together.
Update – March 17th:
For the first time since launching this website I am happy to be able to take on some anxiety sufferers for one-on-one coaching. This will be a paid service and I will only be taking on 3 clients due to how time consuming coaching tends to be. If you can’t afford coaching please do not feel disheartened, I recovered without coaching and I promise you if you stick to the guide above you will still have a lot of success.
Update – April 3rd:
All coaching spots are now filled. If you want to be put on the waiting list for a future spot drop me an email.