For anxiety in general, I mentioned this app last week, but the Pacifica app had a couple different ways of chipping away at my anxiety that I found useful. The most helpful from that app was something you don't really need an app for, just writing out your thoughts and then going over what you wrote and identifying where you're falling into certain thinking traps (I don't know the traps by heart, but if you google, there should be a couple good lists to look at).
For relationship anxiety, a combo of regularly seeing/talking to my friends to remind me that one relationship does not and should not define me, and keeping physically active (for me that was running, but any physical activity you enjoy I think will do the trick), to remind myself that I can get great joy out of just seeing what my body is capable of, without needing affirmation from some other person about what makes me great.
For sleep, the only thing that's been able to get my brain to stop whirring is the Sleep With Me podcast
The Pacifica app helped me get through some rough periods. It gives you several little ways to check in on yourself throughout each day, and at the end of it, it ends up making all of those small things feel like substantive accomplishments. In particular, the thinking traps exercise really helped me work through my tendency to dwell on a lot of negative thoughts that otherwise would have kept me stuck in the same place emotionally.
You didn't ask for advice about the guy, so feel completely free to ignore, but when I was going through the terminal illness of one of my parents, I actually found it comforting when one of my friends would send me something funny/interesting and unrelated to what I was dealing with at the time; it was a nice distraction for me and made me happy knowing he was thinking of me and that this illness wasn't completely redefining my life and how other people were thinking of/treating me. Everyone deals with this sort of ordeal differently though, and it sounds like you're being a really caring, sensitive friend to him. Just make sure you're kind to yourself too.
That cardigan looks like the perfect "let's bury my feelings in shopping!" purchase. Anyone have recs on etsy shops or other places that have good options for stud earrings? The madewell ones are cute, but my irrational worry is that the studs are so small that I won't be able to grasp them enough to pull them out, and then I'm stuck with forever earrings (a worry I discovered the last time I browsed etsy for cute stud earrings that would be work friendly).
I really want to reply to everyone on this thread as the comments come in, but I am technically just on my lunch break and only have a limited amount of time, so thanks all for being so kind and supportive, and definitely for all the cake recipes!! My IRL friends I think tend toward having a default mode of wanting to destroy the person who hurt my heart, which makes talking to them about this difficult when I'm still in the headspace of, maybe I want to work through this rather than end it. I'm legit getting teary eyed with how happy and grateful I am to be part of this online community. You all are seriously the best.
I started playing it only 1-2 months ago so I'm here to talk about it! I really want to catch every one of them sleeping in that face-down pose, but so far I've only got a fraction of them like that. So soothing and adorable! I think my favorites are conductor whiskers and apricot.
Ugh, anyone have stories of staying with a significant other who cheated? I'm facing that question now and it's ... just ... blerrrrrrgggh. On an entirely related note, cake recipes welcome.
I am so sorry for your loss, Nicole. I have had pets on my mind even more so than usual because I am dealing with a rough chain of events (got in huge blowup/possible break up fight with my boyfriend, work has been particularly awful this past month, and then my grandma died), and I sincerely believe my dog has been trying to tend to my sadness. The other night in bed, I was feeling particularly heavy and sad, though not outright sobbing like a couple other days, and my little rescue mutt scooted her front half up to my face, licked my nose twice, and rested her head on my chest. I was not in a comfortable sleeping position like this, but i was comforted.
Pets are the best. It's clear from your words and these pictures that Eliza knew that you knew that and that you particularly felt that way about her. She had her last night among family, in her home filled with love, which is the best end we can hope for, for any creature we care about, human or not.
OK, everyone, important question: how would you classify Rowlf? He's a musician so it seems he's more chaos than order, but at the same time he has such a calming presence. As an Order Muppet whose favorite muppet has always been Rowlf, I think about this all the time.
Ahh this thread blew up while I had to go back to work, and now everyone is probably gone baking their delicious pies and other pie-like desserts, but please come back with this amazing sounding cream cheese pastry. Cream cheese in everything, always.
Anyone feel like talking about food instead of real world events? I am in the mood for pie, preferably something creamy with a graham cracker crust. Alternately, pie fillings that will go well with a tart/press-in type of crust. I am just not in the mood right now for fiddling with the types of crust recipes that tell you to add a variable amount of ice water depending on how it feels/looks, but hey don't fiddle with it too much or your pie crust will be ruined. Share your pie recipes with me please!
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Brainchild