Hope & Healing For The Anxious Woman

Hope And Healing The Anxious Woman | https://www.hannahhepworth.com

The purpose of this post is to give hope to all the anxious women out there.  You are strong and you can overcome anything.  

Oh yeah and a little warning, this is a bit of a long post;)

About 6 years ago my trial of anxiety really began.  It seemed as though out of the blue I was suddenly stressed beyond belief.  All types of stressors in life were piling up on me and to be honest I was not handling them well at all.

I had 2 young children at that time, I couldn’t remember the last time I slept through the night and I was a total carb and sugar-aholic!  I didn’t exercise, I was too tired to.  I had recurring infections, I was sick for months and I felt like my body was breaking down. It was.

Then one morning I woke up and literally could not walk in a straight line.  I got up to turn on some cartoons for the kids so I could get some more sleep and I stumbled into the living room. This totally freaked me out as I sat upright in bed with the room spinning  just trying to sit as still as I could.

The intense dizziness subsided over the next couple days but my equilibrium never returned 100%. As the years went on, this was a major source of anxiety to me.  At times I couldn’t even drive because my body and my head were so off kilter.  Some days I felt pretty good, other days I just wanted to stay at home and stay away from people.  It was hard to be around others, I was always thinking about my balance, it was awful.

I also went through periods of insomnia.  I couldn’t sleep at all.  That just added to the stress.  Somehow I knew this wasn’t something that I was doomed to struggle with forever, but year after year I was beginning to feel like this would never let up.  My body became so used to being in a stressed state that I couldn’t really remember what it felt like to relax.  It was so hard.

I read a book by Dr. Mark Hyman, “The Ultramind Solution,” and it was so comforting.  It basically validated everything that I already believed in.  I was not permanently broken, this was a temporary ordeal and it could be healed.  I didn’t need to live with lifelong anxiety and the host of other symptoms going on in my body.

I’ve always believed in an integrative approach to health by looking at all facets and paying attention to all the underlying triggers.  Was it food, was it my lack of sleep, was it my lack of stress management, was it my lack of nutrients, were there other factors like my thinking that had gotten a bit messed up?  The answer is YES!  Yes to all of it.  Everything was out of whack.

I went gluten free for a while and that seemed to help but my annoying equilibrium problems were still there.  Yuck!  It drove me nuts.  It was so hard NOT to focus on.

Then I got pregnant with our third and it was a stressful pregnancy as he had to be born 4 hours away at another hospital.  Luckily he didn’t need to have surgery right away, that came 9 months later.  As if I didn’t have enough stress already.  We were poor students living in my in-laws basement apartment.

I struggled after he was born with some post partum depression.  Lack of sleep and all those hormones can really mess with you!

I pulled out of it about 6 months after he was born. We moved for a short time for my husbands work and when we came back to our basement apartment at Christmas I was more anxious and bummed out than ever!  There were so many factors to why I felt this way it’s not even worth explaining it all.

Really, what I think a lot of it boils down to is my thoughts about our situation were just so negative.  I could have saved myself so much stress if I had just realized it won’t always be like this.  Things will change and improve.

Please, take care of yourself and do what you can do each day to relax and have fun and think positive.

Sadly, I didn’t realize at the time just how powerful my thoughts were.  I continued to rise and sink.  I tried my best to live a normal life and take part in normal activities and not avoid events just because I didn’t feel up to it, although I did do a lot of that during those years.

I can honestly say that I’m about 75% over all of the junk (anxiety and equilibrium issues).  I’ve cleaned up my diet, taken supplements, made sleep more of a priority, worked on my attitude, picked up yoga, and a host of other things. Now when I do experience annoying feelings or symptoms I can take heart and know that like everything, “this too shall pass.”  It’s not permanent and I can accept it and MOVE ON. I am also not alone.

I could look back and think man, that stinks, I really felt like crap for years.  I had no energy to bring the kids places at times, I wasn’t a good enough housekeeper, I didn’t cook enough home cooked meals and I let my kids eat too many snacks and not enough real food.  I was too grouchy to my husband.  I avoided too many situations that could have been fun.  I wasn’t there for people that needed me.  I was a bear to live with.  I wasn’t fun.  I wasn’t pleasant.  I’ll never get those years back.  It actually makes my heart ache just writing this.

Instead, I say man, look at everything I persevered through.  I learned so much.  I must have read 100 books about health during that time.  I really should have my master’s degree in nutrition by now!:)  I’m stronger.  My kids are just fine.  My relationship with my husband is stronger.  I realize what is really important and what I truly want out of life now.  I’m so thankful that I went through that. I’ve realized that SO many other women struggle with stress and anxiety.  It’s a plague.  I need to learn all I can so I can help them!

Wow, just writing those positive words feels so much better.

I want every woman out there to know that you need to hold on.  You need to educate yourself.  You can pull through anything!  I have read and listened to so many stories of women who underwent such struggles and have come out on the other side stronger. More resilient.  They found answers.  They are warriors.  They didn’t give up.  You can’t either.

You can heal your body and your life.  I believe that.  I do NOT believe that we were intended to go through life feeling dull, depressed, stressed, and anxious.  That is not how we were designed.

We were designed to be happy and experience abundance in all areas of life.

How can I help you?  What is your biggest ache?  I am creating a program specifically to help women manage stress and heal anxiety.  What do YOU need? Comment below or email me at hannahhepworthcentral (at) gmail.com.

Believe it will all work out, because…it will.  You are worth it:)

With love,

Hannah

4 thoughts on “Hope & Healing For The Anxious Woman”

  1. Angela

    Dear Hannah,
    You are a truly inspiring girl!
    I came across your site by chance and smiled so much as I read your articles.
    I too had a similar journey spanning 15 years so I am so glad you have been able to find yourself sooner than I did.

    Keep up the excellent work by spreading your knowledge 😘

    Love and light Angela x

    1. Oh thanks so much Angela! That makes me so happy, what a sweet compliment. It’s amazing how many women have come forward and talked to me about having the same problem. I don’t want women to feel alone, and I want them to have hope that brighter skies are on the horizon!
      Have a WONDERFUL day,

      xo Hannah

  2. Sanika Jain

    Your posts were really helpful and positive. I’m battling anxiety too and hope to eventually heal myself and help other people with the same issues. Thank you so much. Sending you good wishes from India.

    1. Oh thank you so much Sanika! I’m so glad you found some help in my posts. You can heal!! Keep faith and keep working, it may take a little time but it’s possible. Believing is the first step:)

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