How Not to Deal With Anxiety Procrastination
Dealing with anxiety and depression means that a lot of those “everyday tasks” pile up on me. Some days, I’m too tired to deal with anything and I spend the day in bed. Other days, I waste so many hours on stressing and ruminating over all the things I have to get done that by the time I have to make that phone call or send that appointment request, I’m a shaking mess.
The worst part of having anxiety is that natural inclination to procrastinate. To put it off. Wait until there’s a better day until I’m feeling braver.
So I wait until Monday.
Monday always arrives with a long to-do list, which in turn sends me off in anxiety spiral. I have to finish an application to school, but I also need to deal with my loans, but before that I have to call my doctor and make an appointment… and on and on and on, ad nauseam.
It’s Monday today, and I finally got up the courage to make a phone call. I didn’t get past the receptionist and I’m certain she thought I’m some kind of idiotic weirdo because I couldn’t plainly just say what I wanted, so I rambled, much like this sentence.
Today isn’t going to happen. I’m going to have a nice lunch and watch some shows. Maybe nap. I tried my best to get something off my list, but I didn’t quite get there.
Next time, I won’t wait until Monday. I’ve put too much pressure on the day. Mondays are traditionally the worst day of the week for most people, so why overload it with tasks? Instead, Monday can be my day of self-care — easing myself into the week, so I can look at those tasks a little more realistically. If I take care of myself today, I’ll feel braver tomorrow.
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Thinkstock photo via JOHNGOMEZPIX
Julie is currently recovering and detoxing from city life in her hometown in rural Ontario, Canada. After a hard day of slinging lattes at the local coffee shop, you can usually find her playing with her two cats — Waffles and Deb. Julie writes about her experiences with mental health challenges with the hope that her stories will help other people facing their own issues feel less alone. Julie is a passionate advocate for mental health policy in the workplace and works to fight mental health stigma in her community.
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