Living your daily life with a mental condition is no easy feat, especially when it can affect the way you perform tasks and the way you perceive different things. It sometimes even gives you a different sense of normalcy, creating difficulty distinguishing between how you should and should not feel. But don’t get me wrong; it’s not hopeless.

Being a victim of this phenomena, I have developed several coping methods to maintain a level of sanity throughout my everyday life. Some of them may help you, too. Probably my favorite and most important coping method is music. Not just listening to music, but creating music through writing and production. This places me in a balanced state of mind, allowing me to escape and gain control of all of my racing thoughts. I enjoy listening to music that is highly relatable and has a solid message behind it. It makes me feel like I am not the only one going through a difficult situation and I don’t have to feel all alone in the world. When I write music, I try to convey all of my emotions in my lyrics and connect to my audience. It is a great way to vent and clear my head, if I do say so myself.

The strange thing about anxiety is that it can occur unexpectedly, at any given time. Once it occurs, however, it can seem impossible to control and it feels like it will never end. One of the coping methods I use for anxiety is to take some deep, deep breaths and go for a walk. Since my heart usually starts racing when I experience an anxiety attack, I have discovered that deep breathing helps to slow my pulse rate, and that taking a walk outside helps me clear my head and makes it easier for me to calm down. With these methods, I have been able to gain full control of my symptoms and live my life as if my mind is immaculate.

-Zachary