Stress, Anxiety, CBD, and Meditation
I never anticipated just how prevalent stress and anxiety would be as an adult, and I surely did not anticipate it being as difficult to overcome. Some humans are better equipped at facing their stressors and correcting the problem at hand, while others dwell in the stress, becoming consumed and feeling helpless.
I have been at the end of both spectrums, steadily creeping more towards the line of handling the stress and anxiety with a more positive mindset, but it’s sometimes too easy to creep backwards. Ideally, I would allow stressors to become motivators, giving me the push to tackle what it is that is making me feel that way, instead of crawling into bed.
The first step in dealing with stress and anxiety, in my opinion, is acknowledging it is there. Often times, we will try to act like we are okay and that whatever we are feeling will pass. It’s a simple technique that maybe works for a short period of time, but certainly not forever. Over the past couple of months, I have incorporated different tools for dealing with any daily life stress or anxiety that comes my way.
Now granted, I am someone who stresses or becomes anxious quite easily, but I am working on getting a better handle of that, and here are some things that have helped me:
CBD Oil
I got curious about CBD, also known as Cannabidiol, a couple of months ago when I found how irritable my stress and anxiety was making me. I was so easily bothered and I just wanted to relax my mind and body from its usual tense-self. I did some research on what the market considered to be some of the best oils available and based my choices off of that. There is a lot to consider when purchasing CBD oils, such as whether you want a broad or full spectrum experience, and how strong of a dose you’re looking for. I advise anyone to do their research before going to any store and buying an oil.
My first CBD oil was purchased through Green Roads CBD. I purchased their Apple Kiwi Bliss, 750mg broad spectrum oil, with a dosage of 25mg/ml. My second purchase, and go-to oil, was Virginia’s Finest CBD. I purchased their Calming, 1000mg full spectrum oil, with a dosage of 33.3 mg/ml. I purchased these two to compare the broad and full spectrum oils. I found that the full spectrum works best for me, but it may differ person to person.
I can say with full certainty that the CBD oil has helped me calm down and relax in high anxiety moments. As I said before, I would recommend doing your extensive research before deciding to try it out, and hopefully it helps you as well.
Meditation
I recently began my meditation journey using the Headspace app. I think it is a common belief that meditation is intimidating or tough to start, but with so many tools created today, meditation can be done by anyone! The great feature I found with Headspace is that you can try it free for two weeks before deciding if you want to subscribe monthly/yearly. I tried out the first set of their “basics” collection, which has ten guided audios, all before I even started my trial period. The guided meditation puts you at ease so you don’t feel as if you’re lost and trying to figure it out on your own.
The difference in how I mentally feel before, during, and after each session is incredible. Some days I would start my meditation session feeling distraught, but as soon as I began my breathing exercises I felt the calmness waving over me. It really does work when you sit there and focus, although it is okay, even expected, for your mind to wander when you’re starting out. If you think about it, our minds are constantly running and thinking different thoughts at once, causing ourselves to stress out and worry. Meditation helps slow things down mentally for us to think clearly. If you haven’t already, I highly suggest trying it out, as it may surprise you.
After providing you with what has helped me, please keep in mind you have to take my advice with a grain of salt. What works for me may not work for you, so always do your research and decide what is the best course for you.
So here is to bringing more peace into our lives, one day at a time.
Cheers!
