We often read about how to handle our own anxiety attacks. But what if you are someone who has never experienced an anxiety attack, how do you give your support to someone close to you who is experiencing an anxiety attack? Or are you giving the appropriate support?

I have never had an anxiety attack till I am 29 years old. And before that, all I could say to someone having an anxiety attack is to “just calm down and breathe”. And sometimes, I cannot understand why they cannot calm down, the world is not ending (or so I thought). But boy I was wrong and sorry to all my friends who probably think I am a bad support in the past! After experiencing my first anxiety attack, the world can feel like it is ending or my life is ending at that point of time.
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Hence, whether or not you have had an anxiety attack before, and you would like to give support to people close to you, this article (CLICK HERE) is worth the read.

​As a yoga instructor for the past years, I have taught yoga to many athletes. They lead an active lifestyle (running, badminton, soccer etc) but they are mostly very inflexible and often experience back pain, tight calves etc. Yoga to them, is a great balance to their active lifestyle – Yoga complements it. Yoga stretches the tired muscles and aids in muscle recovery. How you use your breath in Yoga is also very important  but I will leave that to the next article. In the article  (source: https://www.shape.com/blogs/working-it-out/why-every-athlete-should-do-yoga) below, you will find the benefits of yoga for athletes.

Yoga is for everyone, athletes included. Yoga works on strength, flexibility, balance, agility, endurance, core, and overall strength, among other things. Any athlete could benefit hugely by adding yoga to her or his training regimen. Here’s more details on a few of the perks:

Strength: No amount of weight-lifting with free weights will give you the strength that consistently holding up your own body weight will.

Flexibility: Practicing yoga increases flexibility and ease of movement, therefore increasing range of motion. In particular, athletes in sports that require swinging action (tennis, golf, etc.) can benefit greatly. Flexibility in general also helps to prevent injury.

Balance: Balancing poses in yoga improve overall balance in everything you do, preventing falls and injury.  When you learn how to be soft and go with the flow, you can more easily bend and are less likely to break or fall over.

Endurance: The endurance that the ease of yoga gives you lends to endurance sports like running, triathlons, and Iron Mans. When you learn to tune into your body and mind, everything can be a meditation—sports included. Yoga also helps you learn how to pace yourself: slow and steady, in it for the long haul.

Core: Almost everything you do in yoga works on your core strength. Strong core equals a healthy back and a healthy body.

Stability: Yoga helps strengthen all of the little stabilizing muscles that people tend to miss in other physical workouts and are vital in protecting your joints and spine (among other things).

Recovery: Yoga also helps put athletes back together after injuries. Again: You’re tuning into your body and giving it the care it wants and needs. Yoga also elongates all of the muscles that athletes spend so long contracting, so it is a great counter-action.
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Most importantly, yoga changes the way you think and approach everything in life: When you learn to move with ease and stop forcing things, you will prevent injuries and your body will open with your mind, increasing your flexibility all around.

I was reading this article a couple of days back and I feel these are useful pointers to manage anxiety and stress in  this world – where perfection is overrated in social media, and almost everyone is glued to their digital devices. And you don’t have to spend a fortune using these pointers. I will recommend to head over to the link to read more as I will only be putting the main points here.
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• Take a Techno-Detox – so that we can sleep better. Singaporeans are the 2nd most sleep-deprived people in the world!

• Find Your Own Way to Exercise –  No matter what is your choice of exercise. Getting some forms of physical activity a few times a week is known to relieve stress

• When in Doubt, Breathe – Take deep breaths, and exhale out slowly. Shallow breaths will cause more anxiety

• Embrace a Relaxing Hobby – Any activities (like yoga or meditation) that require extended periods of concentration – sometimes known as getting into the “flow” state – may just be the antidote to anxiety. Find something you love so that you will be more enticed to continue doing it.

• Fuel Up on the Right Food – I am not sure about you, but this is the hardest for me when I decided to cut down on sugar and carbs. I will suggest one step at a time, and never total elimination until you are comfortable. Eg. If you are used to ordering 100% sugar in bubble tea, for the next 2 weeks u may opt for 75% and then subsequent 2 weeks 50%. If it gets tough at the 50%  point, give yourself more time (maybe give it 4 weeks at 50%) to get used to the taste. The goal is not to give up and persevere no matter how long the journey is. After all, it takes time to cultivate a habit / lifestyle. It took me about a year to get used to 0% sugar, and once in a while I still indulge myself in sugar drinks.  Find the way that works for you :)