Gazette Weekly #3: Discussing Anxiety and Bookish Tête-à-tête

Welcome to the latest issue of Gazette Weekly a feature at The Bookish Context wherein I discuss my weekly shenanigans and the latest news including reading, blogging, life and more! Today I would like to share my struggle with Anxiety and a method by which I manage it, along with a much-awaited announcement.

Discussing Anxiety

As a new blogger, I realize that consistency and posting quality content as often as possible is the key to engage a larger audience. However, in the past few days even though I had several ideas planned for posts I was unable to find the focus to work on them without feeling overwhelmed.

You might ask (as many around me have) but aren’t you studying psychology shouldn’t you have better control over your own mental health? To that, I would like to say that I am a human being first and foremost and no matter my career choice, as an individual I am not impervious to having emotional needs. It is important for all of us to remember that no reason is too big or small in terms of qualifying as valid for causing you distress, this holds true no matter what others have to say.

When a project one is working on, is completed successfully, one would normally be overjoyed or at the very least satisfied. And here am I losing sleep in worry about what’s to come next!

I always anticipate the start of a new semester with both a feeling of eagerness to learn something new and being unnerved although I know there is no outwardly evident cause as such. When I received the results for the previous semester last month, it turned out to be my best score yet! I was initially thrilled because I always aim to improve in increments each term. I think it may be our education system, which is largely responsible for us being unable to relax and celebrate small wins, rather making us wary of the future.

From all my rambling, if you were wondering if I had a point, I am just getting there. My purpose of sharing the above was not exactly to focus on the problem rather provide a solution that might help anyone who finds themselves similarly overpowered by their thoughts. I do NOT claim that this method works for everyone but it has helped me on multiple occasions. Since mental health is deeply personal in the way that no two experiences are completely alike, I would like to emphasize that there is no one size fits all formula and this is NOT a professional’s opinion(as I am still a student) but rather my own as an individual with anxiety issues.

I don’t recall where I came across this technique but I have modified it to suit my needs. What you need to do is make a list of 100 (or however many, I usually go upto 30) items causing you to feel anxious currently. Break it down to the most minute of details (such as, I have to complete 5 questions for my homework or I have to prepare the ingredients for dinner).
Following this go over your list and categorize them into common themes (such as academics or household chores). Then once you have grouped the items, identify those that are out of your control (such as others’ opinions of you or the COVID preventing you from travelling) and make a conscious and intentional decision to LET IT GO!

After this, think of possible ways to tackle the remaining categories at hand, by assigning small steps to reach the desired outcome.
By using this method not only do I feel calmer but also have a clear understanding of how to actively work on the source of my worrisome thoughts.
Journalling lifts the burden somewhat, but I came to realize that although cathartic, it did not always aim towards actually finding a solution and just ended up being a rant, hence I prefer the above.

I hope that someone at least finds the long-winded explanation worthwhile!

Now coming to the exciting part of this post, an idea I was toying with recently inspired by Jo Linsdell’s wonderful post.

Announcing Bookish Tête-à-tête

The Bookish Context is proud to announce a new regular feature namely, Bookish Tête-à-tête! Each post is designed to present an interview with a blogger from the book community.

Apart from our mutual love for books, it’s the voice and unique expression of a content creator that makes us keep coming back for more. This is an endeavour to understand their creative processes, showcase their hard work and a chance to engage as fellow readers.

It’s so encouraging to discover such ready support from several bloggers who have shown their enthusiasm and graciously agreed to participate! This has been the highlight of the week for me so far. Stay tuned for more updates!

Currently Reading

For the Love of Friends is a contemporary romance featuring Lily Weiss a 32-year-old writer who ‘winds up a bridesmaid in five weddings in six weeks’, so far proving to be an entertaining read.

Linking up with: The Sunday Post is a blog news meme hosted @ Caffeinated Reviewer. It’s a chance to share a post to recap the past week on your blog and share news about what is coming up on your blog for the week ahead.
It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? is hosted @ The Book Date. It is a place to meet up and share what you have been, and are about to be reading over the week.
Sunday Salon hosted @ Readerbuzz is a place to link up and to share what we have been doing during the week.