Self Care: When in danger or in doubt, run in circles, scream & shout. (First, drink water.)

With much love to Spider John Koerner and Spider Robinson, who gave me that line.

We're all going to get anxious and overwhelmed. We will be afraid. And that's totally okay. We're dealing with an unpredictable and unprecedented situation and most of us only have a limited sphere of influence. It's easy to feel helpless. But we're toolmakers and storytellers and sense-makers, like all humans. We have the ability to work the problem. We worked the problem and laid cables across oceans, put people into space, clawed our way to recognition of human rights and equality. We have to do it again. We will do it again. We know how to do it.

Not that our feelings actually recognize that. As far as our feelings care, we're all gonna die. Feelings are not very intelligent, and they don't respond well to reason. They can be extremely unhelpful. So we have to also hack our feelings.

Therefore: When mean reds (anger) and the cold blues (fear and depression) and the black (anxiety) hit... recognize that they've come for a visit, and then do the work.

These are the first ten steps. Go through these one by one, paying attention to what you're doing and how you're feeling while you do them. Be mindful. Be present.

1) have you had water? If not, go get a glass and drink water. Dehydration causes anxiety.
2) have you eaten healthful food with protein? If not, now's the time for an egg, some peanut butter, or some cheese. Get some complex carbs and/or vegetables in, too. Low blood sugar contributes to anxiety, too.
3) have you cleaned up? If not, it's a good time for a shower or local equivalent, to brush your teeth and comb your hair and put on fresh clothes. So does feeling grungy.
4) have you said something nice to someone today? Positive reinforcement is a feedback loop -- the more you do it, the more confident you become about your reality.
5) have you stretched your legs or local equivalent? A little movement -- stretching, a walk to the mailbox or the end of the block, some gentle dancing -- activates muscles and helps lower the blood levels of our stress hormones. If walking isn't possible, grab a couple cans of soup or beans and use them as makeshift dumbbells. If you've got a PT routine, run through it. Try to go outside, breathe air with different scents, see the sky. Even your front step or porch is okay.
6) have you cuddled with something or someone recently? Skin to skin or skin to fur contact reminds us that we're not alone. Borrow a friend or a friend's pet for a hug. It's not an imposition.
7) Have you moved to music? Put some music on and dance. Sing along. Loudly! Music works on different centers of your brain than speech or reading. When the music center is engaged, the speech and interior monologue have far less bandwidth to tell you horrible things. Start with one song. (This is the running in circles part.)
8) Have you sung recently? It doesn't matter how good you are. Whip out a favorite song, and sing along, at the top of your lungs. Pretend you're an 11 year old girl at a sleepover with a hair-brush for a microphone and belt it out. Singing requires deeper breaths and more controlled breathing. It's expressive without engaging the interior monologue, and shutting that little rat up helps calm anxiety. Give it one song, but sing to the cheap seats. (This is the scream and shout part.)
9) Has anything changed recently? New meds, new formula of meds? Different diet? Forgotten meds? Take stock of the past few days. If you've missed meds, take them. If you have a new scrip or you're on a generic and have a new bottle, this may just be an adjustment period. If you've been eating like a college student during finals, that might be part of the problem. Be aware of what you're doing and realize it's temporary.
10) How's sleep? If it's been sketchy, set an alarm for a half hour and take a brief nap or just rest. If night sleep is being elusive, it's time to talk to your doctor about a z drug (Ambien, Sonata, Lunesta) or a low dose of mirtazipine (an antihistamine that has antidepressive effects and promotes sleep at low doses.) You should NOT use a benzodiazepine (Xanax, Ativan, Klonopin) for sleep -- benzos make sleep worse and that makes anxiety and depression worse. They are rescue drugs, like an asthma inhaler. They are not long-term treatments.

Here's the whole list. http://www.popsugar.com.au/smart-living/Self-Care-Printable-39312165 I strongly suggest you keep a copy and when you're feeling anxious or overwhelmed or afraid, you go through the steps.

Self-care is not optional. It is a requirement of resistance. It is radical because it says you value yourself and your mind enough to 1) take care of yourself and 2) keep yourself as ready and able as possible to keep doing the work, and 3) that you value others enough to take responsibility for your own care to the extent you are able. If you cannot do it for yourself because it feels selfish, do it for the others who will have to carry you if you get too exhausted and demoralized to go on.

The opposition wants you demoralized, terrified, anxious and broken. They want you sick with grief and so frustrated you give up. They want you to go away and they don't care how. Don't give them what they want.

You're not alone. We are going to get through this together. It's going to be work, but we can do this and we are going to do it. Keep breathing. Keep working the next step. Step up when you can, and step back when you need to recharge. We're all doing that routine, so we always have a front line.