The Importance of Routines

Hello again, friends! I'm back with another post sharing with you ways that I have found help with my anxiety. Today I want to talk about the importance of routines. I am one who definitely NEEDS a routine. When I have too much unstructured time, I think too much and I start to become very anxious. While I do enjoy breaks away from work, they tend to also bring a lot of anxiety and worry into my life. Solution? Routine! 

I'm not saying that you should have every single minute of every day planned, but you should have some regular routines at specific times of day that you can look forward to and rely on. I have three times a day that I try to keep to a regular routine: morning, lunch time, and right before bed. These three routines help ground me throughout the day and give me time to reflect and rest. I try to stick to a pretty regular routine, even on the weekends. 

Daily, my morning routine includes prayer, scripture study, breakfast, taking my medication and other supplements, and then heading to work. When I don't have to work, I try to make sure I have things planned to do during the day so that I can look forward to that instead of worry about what might happen later on. Starting the day the same way helps me to feel more in control of my feelings and life. When I wake up too late to perform part of my routine, I do see a difference in my day.

My lunch time routine (especially at work) includes eating for at least 20 minutes while doing NOTHING. This gives my brain time to rest and focus to prepare for the afternoon at work, and gives me time to reflect on the rest of my day on the weekends. Taking a break in the middle of the day to just sit and be also helps me to remember that my peace of mind is important, because, as a teacher, my mood influences my students and others around me. I want to stay positive for them, which in turn helps me to feel positive about myself!

In the evening, I again read my scriptures, journal about the day and what I am grateful for, pray, and try to wind down with no TV or other device for at least 20 minutes before I go to bed. During the work week, putting away devices earlier helps me to reflect on what will need to happen either that evening or the next morning in order for me to be productive and feel in control.

Now, although I try very hard to stay on this routine, things happen. I get sick, my plans are derailed by other, more important tasks, or I choose to spend more down time than originally planned so that I can feel more calm. Luckily, my medication helps me take this in stride a lot better than I did before being on it.

So, my advice to those who have anxiety that makes them feel out of control? Begin a routine or set of routines. Stick with it! Although it will be difficult at first, the more you work at keeping things consistent, the easier it will be to roll with the punches when they inevitably come your way. 

That's all I have for you today, friends! Sorry for no print this week, but we have been recovering from a stomach bug and other sickness, which helped me reflect on the importance of a routine! ;) Until next time, I wish you all peace and harmony as you work to find balance!

Merry Christmas!

Wishing you and yours a peaceful Christmas and a wonderful New Year!

Anxiety T-Chart

Hello, friends! Welcome back this week for another post. This post is highlighting a tool, suggested to me by my therapist, that has really come in handy for myself as someone with anxiety and as a teacher. It's called an Anxiety T-Chart. 

The Anxiety T-Chart is pretty simple. On the left, you have the question, "How anxious am I?". On the right, you have the question, "How likely is it to happen?". The purpose of the chart is to help the user understand that, while bad things can and do sometimes happen, the likelihood of them occurring on a daily or regular basis is not as common as anxiety likes to make us think it is.

This simple chart can be used a few ways. First, you could print it, laminate it, then actually draw a bar to show the difference between the two columns. You could also use a finger to trace up to the number you feel, then back down to the number of likeliness. I have personally gotten to the point where I can just think about the chart in my head to help me calm down. I have created 2 versions that you can choose from, and these charts are also available in my Teachers Pay Teachers store as a freebie, should you use that site!

Child Version:

This is a FREE printable for you to use FOR PERSONAL USE ONLY.
Right click and save, then print as a 8" x 10" print.

Teen/Adult Version:

This is a FREE printable for you to use FOR PERSONAL USE ONLY.
Right click and save, then print as a 8" x 10" print.

I hope that these charts will come in handy for you or someone you love! They have been a game changer with specific students in my classroom, and a great way to foster independence with regards to managing emotions within children, teenagers, and adults! Drop me a comment below to let me know how you will use this tool--I love to hear new ideas! Until next time, sending prayers, love, and peaceful wishes to each of you!

#LightTheWorld 2018

Hello, friends! I know that this year's holiday initiative from the Church started last week, but I needed that week to once again remember my grandfather. Plus, service is always in season and is a focus of this year's #LightTheWorld!

Many of you will remember that last year, there was an act of service each day that was suggested. I LOVE how this year's initiative has been streamlined and can be more personal! Instead of daily service, each week has a focus. This helps me out, because it means I have more time to pray and prepare what I would like to do. If you're stuck and can't think of what to do, you can download a calendar with ideas for each week! Here are the weekly focuses:

Week One: Light the World

Source

Find a way to help someone/somewhere in the world.

Week Two: Light Your Community

Source

Look closer to home for a way to serve in your neighborhood.

Week Three: Light Your Family

Source

Find ways to serve those closest to you.

Week Four: Light Your Faith

Source

Reflect on how the challenge has strengthened your faith

and find other ways to continue to do so as you seek

the Savior now and always.

So, that's it! I just know that following this initiative will help me manage my anxiety, because it begins by helping me look away from myself (and my anxiety) and then allows me to reflect on how I can come closer to my Savior. Which brings me to this week's print, inspired by the words to the hymn "Nearer, Dear Savior, to Thee", written by Joseph L. Townsend. I sang this hymn last week, and it truly made me reflect on what I am doing to come nearer to my Savior and what my eternal goal is. I've made it in a variety of colors so you can choose which one matches your style best. :)

This is a FREE printable for you to use FOR PERSONAL USE ONLY.
Right click and save, then print as a 8" x 10" print. 

This is a FREE printable for you to use FOR PERSONAL USE ONLY.
Right click and save, then print as a 8" x 10" print. 

This is a FREE printable for you to use FOR PERSONAL USE ONLY.
Right click and save, then print as a 8" x 10" print. 

This is a FREE printable for you to use FOR PERSONAL USE ONLY.
Right click and save, then print as a 8" x 10" print. 

This is a FREE printable for you to use FOR PERSONAL USE ONLY.
Right click and save, then print as a 8" x 10" print. 

And that's this week's post! I hope you join those of us who are following the #LightTheWorld initiative this year! Each time I participate, it truly bring the spirit of Christmas, which is the spirit of Christ, into my life and home. Until next time, sending love, peace, and healing wishes!

The Importance of Service

If you read along, you will know that last Sunday my grandfather passed away. He was an amazing man, always serving those around him. Although he endured some unthinkable things during his life, he always found joy in helping those around him. His greatest misgiving about aging was that he could no longer perform all the service he had once been able to provide. His greatest desire was that he would be an instrument in the Lord's hands. He succeeded.

As I have thought about what brings joy during my difficult bouts of anxiety, I realize it is focusing on others and providing service. It hasn't always been big. Ok, it's rarely big. But when I serve, my focus changes and anxiety doesn't have as much room to grow because I am, for lack of a better word, distracted by service. Isn't that a wonderful way to be distracted?

I've contemplated a lot on how the Savior could endure everything He had to endure. I realize it was because EVERYTHING He did was an act of service. His focus was never on himself. It was on us, His brothers and sisters. When we focus our lives on helping others, I firmly believe that all the things that are impeding our way become less difficult to endure.

Now, this doesn't mean that focusing on service is going to just magically wave a wand over your anxiety or depression and make it disappear. But it can help you in difficult times. As I have continued to reflect on my journey with anxiety, I realize that it was service that led me to get the help I needed. Others, especially my husband and friend, Kim, served me in ways that I needed so that I could get help AND serve others around me. Their support and service allowed me to serve and then find help that would enable me to return to serving others without as much help needed. Hopefully that makes sense. At this point, I am literally just typing as I am thinking. ;)

If you are struggling to think about a way to serve, here is a list of simple things that I have found help brighten others' days and also bring joy to my own life:

1. Smile.
2. Send a thank you text/card.
3. Call someone to check in.
4. Make your spouse's favorite dinner/dessert.
5. Open the door for someone.
6. Give a hug.
7. Give a genuine compliment.
8. Pray for someone.
9. Take a treat to a friend.
10. Give a child a high-five.

Not all service has to be known to the person receiving it. Sometimes my favorite acts of service have been the ones performed in secrecy. I feel like doing this sometimes allows the recipient to feel the Lord's love more fully because they don't have to focus on thanking me. Just a thought. :)

 Here's this week's printable.

This is a FREE printable for you to use FOR PERSONAL USE ONLY.
Right click and save, then print as a 8" x 10" print.

So, here is my thought for the day, wrapped up and tied neatly in a box: When you serve, your anxiety and depressions might not disappear, but it will become more bearable. Go about doing good, friends. Until next time, sending love and peace to each of you!

Finding Our Worth

This morning, my grandfather passed away. I had this post scheduled before this occurred, but as I reread the post, I realized how much my grandfather loved his family and knew each member's worth. His desire was for all of us to be happy, productive, and to return to live together as families after this life. This post is dedicated to him and my other three grandparents, all of whom are together and engaged in their eternal work. Their love has inspired me to understand who I am and has given me strength to do very difficult things. With that, here is this week's post.

Anxiety is very good at attacking my feelings of self-worth. It tells me that I will never be good enough, that perfection is so important but always out of reach, that nobody will see any value in me or my actions. These are all false ideas, but hard to ignore at times. Yes, I pray and read my scriptures and understand that I am a child of God. But anxiety overwhelms me at times.

Even with medication, scripture study, and prayer, I struggle with self-doubt. Because I am aware of this issue, I have tried to look for ways to help me remember that I am a child of God, that He loves me, and that I have worth that is intrinsic. I feel it about others, especially my students, so why is it so hard to see in myself? Anxiety.

I came across a quote that I love that is a wonderful reminder that my worth never changes and that it came with me. I made it into this week's *FREE* print...

This is a FREE printable for you to use FOR PERSONAL USE ONLY.
Right click and save, then print as a 8" x 10" print.

So, how do you remember our worth? I would love to add ideas to my arsenal against anxious feelings of self-doubt! I hope you share with me below. Also, if you have any questions or topics you'd like to discuss, let me know and I will do my best to share my feelings about them! Until next time, sending peace, love, and hugs!

Gratitude Journaling

Hello, friends! I'm back today to share a tool that has helped me as I deal with my anxiety. I'm sure a lot of you have heard of this before, as have I, but I didn't realize how powerful it would actually be in my life. The tool is called a gratitude journal. 

What is it? It's a place where you write down things you are grateful for! Easy peasy! I use my phone to read my weekly scripture and journal within my scripture app. Some people choose to journal in a notebook. Some people keep a blog. Whatever you want to do, it will work. That's the beauty of this tool--it is completely personalize-able!

Why does it work? Part of the issue with anxiety is that is causes you to dwell on the negative. When you are purposeful about looking for the positive and try to focus on gratitude, you start to rewire your brain. I've been doing this every day for the past 3 1/2 months, and it has been paramount in helping me to change my mindset!

Here's this week's *FREE* print to go along with this idea.

This is a FREE printable for you to use FOR PERSONAL USE ONLY.
Right click and save, then print as a 8" x 10" print.

So, this week's challenge, which is PERFECT because Thursday is Thanksgiving, is to start some sort of gratitude journal. Make it simple. Make it do-able! I hope you share what happens here in the comments! Until next time, sending peace, love, and hugs to all!

Acknowledgement

I've been thinking a lot lately about the people who truly helped me along my journey with anxiety. The people who actually led me to get help were those who didn't try to change my point of view. Here is what I have realized:

• They accepted that there was something wrong, listened to me as I explained my feelings, and allowed me to feel what I was feeling.
• They offered help when asked, not in an unsolicited manner.
• They continued to invite me, even when I flaked out at the last moment, knowing the real reason behind my actions was anxiety and not something negative.
• They made me feel like I was lovable, the opposite of how so many others led me to feel.
• They were THERE when I needed them.
• They gave their TIME.

As I've thought about this, I came across a short video on grief that truly struck me. Because a lot of my anxiety is rooted in grief. Grief of never having children, grief over my failures, grief over my imperfection, grief of so many other losses. I hope you take a few moments to watch!

So, with that said and shared, I invite you to take time this week to ACKNOWLEDGE. Don't try to fix. It's OK for people to feel! Allow it, acknowledge it. This is how we learn to move forward, by accepting and moving on. Here's a *FREE* print to help you remember this principle:

This is a FREE printable for you to use FOR PERSONAL USE ONLY.
Right click and save, then print as a 10" x 8" print.

Thanks for stopping by today, friends! I hope to be back again soon with more insights and sharing. I appreciate your walk with me on my journey. Please feel free to share in the comments below topics you would like to discuss or questions you have! Until next time, sending peaceful wishes!

Why Don't You Get Help?

Well, I am back again, friends! Today I want to share with you why it took me SO LONG to get the help that I needed. I want to preface it with this: I am not going to judge myself or anyone else on their journey to find the help they need. Each of us struggles and each of us has to listen to God in order to find our path to help and recovery. I wouldn't change my journey because of all that I have learned, even if I do wish that I had sought professional help sooner. I don't know that I would have learned some of the things I did learn if I had gotten help sooner!

With that said, I will tell you why I didn't get help sooner. It's because for a very long time, I didn't realize that how I felt was not normal. I lived through all of childhood and adolescence with huge amounts of anxiety being told I would probably grow out of it by many people. So, I decided that once I got to college (the first time around), I had grown out of it! But I hadn't.

I also believed that if I relied on the Lord, He would take my issues away. I didn't have a clear understanding of what my mental health issues really were or what help I could truly receive. I felt that I should be able to overcome everything through prayer, etc. But, while prayer helps, I will still have trials and troubles that need attention from professionals.

So, what should you say to someone who is struggling to realize they need help? That you are there for them. Ask them what THEY think would help them. Only give suggestions about therapy and medication if you are asked. If the person mentions suicidal thoughts, talk to them about it. Talk to them about how they are feeling. Ask if they have a plan. If they do, explain to them that you feel that a professional should be contacted. Do all of this with LOVE, not as a way to control them. Many people dealing with mental health issues already feel controlled by their thoughts and issues. They need to feel loved.

Although I read the KJV of the Bible, I feel this translation of
1 Corinthians 16:14 is a better fit for this post.
This is a FREE printable for you to use FOR PERSONAL USE ONLY.
Right click and save, then print as an 8" x 10" print.

There were so many times I wish someone would have just been willing to talk to me and really hear how I was feeling. Mental health does not have to be a taboo, friends. We can help others realize that mental health issues effect each of us at one time or another and allow them to talk! This brings me to the end of this post because it's the perfect jumping off post for the topic I want to write about next--HOW I was helped by others into therapy and medication. Until then, I pray that peace and the love of Christ will guide your path!

Feels vs. Looks

One thing that is very apparent to me after looking back over the past few years is the difference in how I felt vs. how I acted, or what my behavior looked like to others. Being able to review this and ponder on it has helped me tremendously this year as I started to work with a new group of students and some new co-workers. It has taught me that you truly cannot judge a person by their actions unless you understand the “why" behind the behavior.

Today as I was pondering this, I came across a hymn that perfectly describes my struggles the last few years. It is titled "Where Can I Turn For Peace?" and the lyrics were written by Emma Lou Thayne. After singing it again this morning, I realize that my struggle with anxiety has also been a struggle to come closer to my Savior. Here are the lyrics:

Where can I turn for peace?

Where is my solace

When other sources cease to make me whole?

When with a wounded heart, anger, or malice,

I draw myself apart,

Searching my soul?

Where, when my aching grows,

Where, when I languish,

Where, in my need to know, where can I run?

Where is the quiet hand to calm my anguish?

Who, who can understand?

He, only One.

He answers privately,

Reaches my reaching

In my Gethsemane, Savior and Friend.

Gentle the peace he finds for my beseeching.

Constant he is and kind,

Love without end.

With all of this in mind, I thought I would share two lists: one about how my anxiety feels, and one about how others have perceived my behavior (including myself at times). I am hoping it can help someone who knows someone else with anxiety be a bit more gentle next time they interact with the person struggling to stay calm.

Anxiety FEELS Like:

Self-Judgement

No Confidence

Stupidity

Fear

Irrational Irritability

Heart Pounding

Difficulty Breathing

Racing Thoughts

Inability to Focus

Depression

Walls Closing In

You Can't Do Anything RIGHT

Nobody Cares or Loves You

You are Trapped

You Cannot Change

Anxiety LOOKS Like:

Judgement Towards Others

Social Withdrawl

Interesting Comments

Unkindness

Anger

Someone Who Doesn't Care

Hypochrondria

Not Listening

Someone Who Won't Help

Someone Who Doesn't Want to be Loved

Someone Who Doesn't Want to Change

Thank you for stopping by today! My words of advice to those suffering from anxiety or depression--please seek professional help! Doing so has changed my life and perspective. I will delve more deeply into that in future posts. For those of you who see someone that looks like the second list, please reach out in love and genuine concern. People suffering with mental difficulties DO need people, even if we push them away at times. Please make sure to keep everything told to you confidential unless the person suffering allows you to share. If they cannot trust you, it will be detrimental to their recovery. Until next time, prayers of peace to all of you!

Anxiety

Photo credit

Welcome to "A Higher Rock". The name of this blog is inspired by Psalm 61:2, which reads, "From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to a rock that is higher than I." Recently, I was formally diagnosed as having an anxiety disorder. The path to get to this diagnosis was long, exhausting, embarrassing at times, and also a huge blessing.

This blog has been created for me to share how this journey has shown me how the Lord has blessed me by putting people and situations in my way to enable me to get the help that I need. I hope that what I write will benefit those who also suffer from anxiety and other mental health disorders and help create a safe place where we can discuss the trials that come from them. Thank you for joining me on this journey!