One of the things I enjoy doing in my free time is watching cooking and recipe videos online. As I don't have any professional training, I tend to seek out videos of simple recipes that don't require any obscure ingredients to make.

When I am anxious, sometimes it is very difficult for me to do a lot of productive things. While I don’t necessarily think that’s a bad thing, as taking care of one’s mental health should always take priority, in hindsight, it can be easy to regret the time you had to take away from your passions to better look after yourself.

Quite likely, you are well aware that self-care is vital for mental health, physical health, overall wellbeing, and quality of life. If you live with anxiety, though, it's also quite likely that practicing self-care in any way feels not just difficult but almost wrong somehow. Anxiety loudly tells us that self-care may be fine in theory or is good for other people but that it isn't something you can do, should do, or even deserve to do. Anxiety is wrong. Read on to discover the effects of anxiety that get in the way of self-care and to pick up some tips for self-care despite anxiety.

By default, I describe myself as an overall positive person. Despite that, I don’t always see myself in the most positive light, and my mental health plays a part in that. Things have been unstable because of it, and I often wonder if I will have anything resembling a positive future with my mind being how it is.

Sometimes, stressful things can happen without the slightest hint of warning. Recently, I woke up to find that my laptop had just stopped working. I had used it the previous evening, and it seemed fine. But then, for whatever reason, the hard drive just died.

Working on anxiety is a difficult journey. Anxiety is an exhausting burden that disrupts life. For some people, it comes and goes. For others, it can last for a long time, sometimes years. Either way, it can seem to wreak a lifetime's worth of havoc. The good news is that anxiety isn't who you are. It's something you experience. This means that you can reduce it and minimize its effects on your life and wellbeing. Despite how hard it is, you've got what it takes to tackle it. Here's why and how.

One of the things I’ve done to relax, for literally as far back as I can remember, is rewatch movies that I consider to be favorites. There are a handful of movies that I’m guessing I’ve seen 100s of times because, for whatever reason, they make me feel relaxed when I watch them.

Beating anxiety involves intentionally doing the opposite of what anxiety is at its core. Anxiety isn't fun, it is almost devoid of positive purpose, and it robs us of passion for pursuing life. Therefore, cultivating passion, purpose, and fun despite anxiety can go far in beating anxiety.

One of the biggest benefits of modern technology is the ability to take a music collection, even one with tens of thousands of songs, with you at all times. Using iPods and, later, iPhones and iPads, I’ve had my music collection in my pocket for around 15 years.

Exercise and mindfulness are both widely accepted and research-supported ways to reduce anxiety. Combined, their anti-anxiety power skyrockets. When you exercise mindfully, anxiety takes a big hit. Read on to learn why and how to do it.