From the Mind of AlphaBetsy

December, and the holidays therein, has always been the worst for me when it comes to my anxiety issues. (This includes a week long panic attack a couple of years ago.) I know the underlying causes of this for me personally, but it does not make the anxiety less, or help mitigate the issue. I am realizing, though, that many others also suffer from holiday anxiety. So I am going to share how I am making the holidays work for me this year. It may not work for everyone, but this is my approach, and at least it may help you come up with your own holiday survival plan. 1) Reward Board! - The lovely JoAnna Devoe of The Kickass Witch introduced me to the concept of the Reward Board, and I love it. The idea is that you set yourself daily goals for the month, and then set yourself a Reward if you are able to meet these goals. For me, as you can see below, I wanted to have a creative month. In that spirit I made goals to blog, make art, craft, write poetry, and to dance. Also I set a daily go...

There are days, weeks, months where nothing seems to go as planned. Those times when even simple things seem complex and impossible. At those times in my life I become silent in social media and on my blog because I feel like all I will do is complain, but I think in reality I am selling myself short. Maybe by sharing my crazy and how I am making it through I can help someone else make it through. Or not, but at least I will feel like I am getting everything out. I suffer from anxiety disorder and I am prone to panic attacks. I am completely un-medicated. This is more or less a personal choice. I hated the medications the doctor put me on. One made me feel off, and the warnings associated with it were harrowing. The other did help with the anxiety attacks, because it knocked me out cold within 5 minutes of taking it; technically it was incredibly effective if insanely impractical for regular use. I also have problems with picking, which is absolutely a form of self-mutilation. ...