What to tell yourself when feeling down or anxious?

i was lacking a quality nite's sleep the last 3 nites, and that made me kinda tired during the later half of the day at work..and then all sorts of insecurities or worries, the past etc will try to bug my mind. things that would usually not bug me much when i'm feel ok/not tired...felt like on the verge of anxiety attack but it sorts of subside when the self talk is done.

finally decided to make a phonecall to my counsellor to share some of my feelings and worries. she gave some reassuring advice.

but sometimes when you are alone again, u are like on guard if those negative thots/emotions are going to give u anxiety again? i wld read some motivational articles on the net, earlier read on abt oprah winfrey who had a rough childhood and went thru a lot but is successful now. i enjoy reading inspiring stories like that. gives me some distraction from being too focus on myself when there' s a 'bigger picture'out there beyond myself...

prayers, listening to spa/relaxation music, breathing exercises, reading self affirmations are also some of things that helps...
altho if it comes, in the past, its like just hv to wait it out and ride it thru .... tho i hope with time and therapy it gets lesser and eventually goes away....

what do u do to inspire or pick urself up when you get into depressed/anxious mode?

Hi S.R. It sounds like you are doing a fantastic jpb of picking yourself up, when you hit a rough patch! The ability to do this can be the key to recovering, so keep up the good work!

I sometimes have to force myself to go and do the things that I know will get me out of the rut I'm in. Even though I don't want to at the time, I will go for a walk, or do some cleaning/rearranging around the house. I will go see friends, or have them over. I will play a game with my husband and daughter.

These things take so much energy that I sometimes just don't have, but once I get engaged in them, I am always glad that I did.

One other things I do is keep a gratiude checklist. I mentally run through this and give thanks for all of the good things (and there are so many!) in my life. It is hard to be in a funk, or even anxious when you are focused this way.

Thanks for sharing your ideas, and the reminder to always fight and never stay down!

Take care,
Scaredy Cat

well...mine is a little different..i have ocd (a form of anxiety), depression, anxiety...im lowering a dose of medicine and getting panic attacks, racing negative thoughts, rituals, ect.... i just keep telling myself what it is, and talk myself out of it, by making sense of it all in my head and just concentrating real hard on what it is...it is HARD WORK, but when you come out of it and you look back--you beat it!!!! that is an amazing feeling when you beat it:)