Coping Strategies for Mental Wellness

Here are a few different coping tools you can use to self-soothe and ground yourself during high panic/anxiety episodes. Some of them may seem odd or silly but all of these things can be done anywhere which I find helpful. Some of these may work for you and some of them may not, and that’s okay, everyone uses different tools these are just some of the many options.

The 5 senses

• Vision: Find 5 things you can see and say them to yourself.
• Hearing: Find 4 things you can hear.
• Touch: Find 3 things you can touch.
• Smell: Find 2 things you can smell.
• Taste: Find one thing you can taste

This will tell your brain that there are other things to focus on and can give your body some

sensation other than the anxieties in your head.

I.M.P.R.O.V.E

• Imagery: Imagine things that bring you peace. Joyful settings where you control everything in that scene. A room where you do all the decorations and get to choose who/what you allow in the room.
• Meaning: Find a way to have peace, meaning, and value amid all the pain and anxiety. Remind yourself of the positives in the pain.
• Prayer: Open yourself up to the ideas and spiritual beliefs of the things around you. For some prayer is one of the most common tools for bringing peace, use it to your advantage.
• Relaxation: Meditate, do yoga, tea, a bath, or journal. Find something you can use to relax and do some breathwork. Remind yourself where you are and that you’re safe.
• One thing in the moment: Focus on one thing at a time. Sometimes multitasking can complicate how you view things. Cloud your judgement or cause you to burn out so you need to find a way to focus on one thing. Maybe you make to-do lists or reminders on your phone, set a time in the day where you focus on work, then a time for chores, a time for sleep and hold yourself accountable to the goals you set for that day.
• Vacation: Take a day off, practice self-care, breathe, find new coping methods. Do this on good days and bad, you do not need to be having a bad day to treat yourself. And some coping tools are easier to use effectively in the negative when you’ve already practiced them in the positive.
• – Encouragement: Hype yourself up, positive affirmations, and/or uplifting music. We often find ourselves repeating the negative so take five minutes and focus on repeating the positives to yourself and make this a habit in your day-to-day life. The best part is you can do this ANYWHERE! Elastic band
• – Find an elastic band or hair elastic to wear around your wrist, and in moments of anxiety or panic snap/twist the band on your wrist. This gives your brain and hands a safe sensation to focus on which can potentially take your mind off any issue at hand. This is a known substitute for self-harm. Ice
• Find an ice cube, cold water, or some snow and have it in your hands. Similar to the elastic band the cold melted water gives you a sensation to focus on, and with an ice cube you can fidget with it distracting your hands from other coping mechanisms or issues that may arise at the moment. Grounding with numbers
• Counting: Find something like cars, birds, people, etc, and count them as they pass by. Give yourself a goal to count or just keep counting. This not only gives you objects/people to focus on, but it also gives your mind something to do which can distract you or calm you down at the moment.

Coping is one of those things I have found get brushed under the rug unless specifically asked. I have found myself far too many times in a situation where I was wishing for more ways to cope because my tool box, though, it had some good ones, were missing pieces vital to survival in new situations. Breathing techniques are fantastic until you’re stuck in a cycle that you can’t break on your own. Then finding people, calling people or telling Siri a specific phrase that actions her to contact your emergency contact and let them know they need to call you. Because sometimes, hitting send or call is just too much in the moment. But having someone call you can be enough to break the cycle of doom.

It is highly recommend that you reach out to your primary medical provider and ask for ideas on different places to find coping strategies. Becuase not every strategy will work for every person in every situation. Fill your tool box my friends and hope you never have to use them.

And for the my peeps who are searching for something outside your inner circle of support. Know that God’s got you and you are safe in his arms.

You got this, I believe in you!