Surviving the Mental Stuff

Earlier in the week I released a video that asked the question “What is the Most Difficult Withdrawal Symptom?”

While that question is nearly impossible to answer, I identified two types of symptoms that were among the most difficult for me: depression/emotional flatness and mental symptoms (ruminations, disturbing thoughts, and that terrible feeling of being “stuck in one’s own head” all the time).

So what are a few coping mechanisms to help with the terrible “mental stuff” that can be a part of the withdrawal experience?

1). Let it go. This one isn’t easy at first, and it takes practice, but I guarantee that if you can get better at this it will a) make your withdrawal more manageable and b) improve your mental wellness for the rest of your life. The anxious mind feels compelled to cling to, identify with, and analyze worrisome and scary thoughts, but a person is under to obligation to do so. This liberation is healthy and liberating. Really, it is okay to let negative thoughts go. They are just thoughts. Practice this and it will help you both now and in the future.

2) Physical exercise. Physical exercise encourages positive neurotransmitter reactions. It gives us increased natural access to serotonin and GABA, and it also floods our systems with endorphins that calm our inner environment. This all adds up to a less anxious mind, and one that is more open to cultivating (and holding onto) peaceful and encouraging thoughts.

3) Talking. Talk to someone. Get it out. Even if you don’t offer a play-by-play description of every mental symptom you are experiencing, just the admission to someone that you are having a “tough mental time today” goes a long way. I often spilled the beans with my wife in this way, and just letting her know that my thought life was wacky at the time helped me to feel less alone so that I could move onto the next hour and then next day of my journey. Professionally and/or personally, talk to someone about what you are going through. It will help.

Stay encouraged, and keep moving forward in your healing!

Michael