What could make your anxiety worse

As we come to the end of Mental Health Awareness Week, I wanted to share 7 things that could be making your anxiety worse and what you could do to help yourself

1. TOO MUCH SUGAR & REFINED CARBS: Cakes, biscuits, white bread, sweets to name a few, can cause spikes and declines to our blood sugars. These rollercoasters exacerbate anxiety! So minimise or remove these foods from your diet.

2. NOT TAKING TIME OUT TO RECHARGE: Sensitive people and empaths have extremely reactive neurological systems that struggle to block out stimulation, causing you to be more prone to anxiousness & burnout. Make sure you take time out to recharge.

3. LACK OF BOUNDARIES: Lack of boundaries can lead to people pleasing & an inability to say no to people. Making everyone else happy is impossible, overwhelming & increases anxiety. Try to start slowly by introducing little boundaries into your life.

4. SEDENTARY LIFESTYLE & NOT MOVING YOUR BODY: Something as simple as going for a walk, a swim or yoga. Exercise encourages your brain to release serotonin, the happy hormone. In the morning is best when your cortisol (stress hormone) is higher, reducing morning anxiety.

5. TRYING TO DO EVERYTHING & NOT ASKING FOR HELP: Are you a perfectionist, like to be in control and worry about what others think. This can lead to overwhelm & an inability to ask for help. Explain to your loved ones how you feel, so you can start to ask for help in a way that makes you feel comfortable.

6. HORMONE IMBALANCE: Hormone imbalance can cause anger, low mood, anxiety, depression to name a few. Find someone that can check your hormone levels for you if you suspect or would like to eliminate this as the issue- this could be a Kinesiologist, Nutritionist, GP.

7. NOT EATING ENOUGH PROTEIN: Serotonin is our happy hormone, & tends to be low in people who have depression or anxiety. To make serotonin we need an amino acid called tryptophan found in protein. Also L-Tyrosine, found in protein is needed to keep our Dopamine levels up. Dopamine, a type of neurotransmitter plays a role in our mood and how we feel pleasure.

There is no ‘one’ size that fits all & there are so many other areas that I haven’t listed here. At least these are small easy steps that you can begin with.