Several years ago, being diagnosed with an anxiety disorder was like being shoved into a vat full of mysteries. Getting the diagnosis didn’t exactly change anything. The most common response when you told someone that you had an anxiety disorder was for them to ask, well, have you tried yoga? In more recent years, it’s become a more common diagnosis – and it’s become something that’s far more understood. Even those who don’t have an anxiety disorder have heard of it. Most people know that it’s not something that can be erased with one yoga session.

So, how do you manage it? Well, there are medications that can be taken to help with it. In fact, there are a lot of choices out there. Your doctor can go over them with you, if you ask. But what about management styles outside of that? Over the counter medicine exists, too. Supplements like 5htp and St. John’s Wort can be useful in dealing with anxiety and depression, and are absolutely worth looking into.

Other, day to day changes can be made, too. If you can identify certain triggers for your anxiety – locking the house up at night, getting work done, household tasks, etc – then you can begin figuring out how to change those routines for the better. Taking a shortcut or using a cheat code shouldn’t be looked down on. If getting ready for bed at night sets off anxiety for you, change your routine! Make a good drink to sip on as you lock up the house, or hang up fairy lights in the hallway so you never have to walk through a fully dark house!

Having anxiety isn’t something to be ashamed of, and neither is managing it. If something exists in life that can help you through a specific task – go for it! No one is going to think less of you for it.