Anxiety Survival Kit

This Friday I am road tripping up to Northern California with my parents to spend a week with my Aunt and Uncle in Santa Cruz. I am so excited for this change of scenery and time with family, but I am also pretty nervous because this is the first time I'll be traveling long distance in over a year. My parents will be spending half the time up there with me but they will be spending half the time elsewhere, which is a pretty big deal for me. My therapist and I came up with making a backpack that I could always have with me when traveling to help conquer my anxiety if it arises. This kit helped me so much as I was getting reacquainted with being in a car for a longer period of time and really made my trip to San Diego to meet Jenny Lawson go smoothly. I thought I would share with you all its contents because it has been a tremendous benefit to have with me when I adventure out of the house and hope that it can help you as well!

My Anxiety Survival Kit

  • Stress Ball - My stress ball is a pretty green and has the word breathe on it. I know they are meant for squeezing but I love to toss mine from hand to hand, it gives me something to concentrate on and distract me from my anxiety. I bought mine from CVS and you can find them online here.
  • Instant Cold Packs - One of the first signs that I'm getting anxious is that I begin to get really overheated. In the car this isn't a huge deal because I can turn the AC on but I bought these instant cold packs for when I'm not in a place where I can easily change my temperature. I've used them at the doctors before when I'm anxious and they really help calm my body down. I also bought them at CVS and you can find them online here.
  • Cat Stuffed Animal - My cat is a major calming device for me, I can be extremely anxious but if she curls up with me I immediately start to calm down. Unfortunately I can't take her everywhere with me (I 100% would if I could) so I bought a stuffed animal that looks similar to her that I can hug on to and cuddle when I'm feeling overwhelmed.
  • Positive Quote Journal - One of the first things I started doing at the beginning of my anxiety journey is keeping a journal with positive quotes in it. Whenever I would start to feel anxious I would pick up the journal and start reading or if I was really panicky I would make someone read them to me. This has proven to really help me over time, so I made a special edition for this kit filled with uplifting and positive quotes about getting through a difficult situation. If this sounds like something you would benefit from let me know, I would love to make one for you. 😊
  • Dolphin Travel Pillow - Sometimes the position of my neck can increase my anxiety just from the pain of being uncomfortable so I packed a travel pillow especially for when I'm in a car. Plus, it's a dolphin and I love dolphins so I can also just look at it and be reminded of something that makes me smile.
  • Word Search Book - I'm learning that when I start to feel anxious the best thing for me to do is try to distract my brain as fast as possible. I love doing word searches and they are simple enough that I can do them even in a state of increasing anxiety to try and calm me down, so I thought they would be the perfect addition to my kit.
  • Water Bottle and Snacks
  • Xanax - I keep a few emergency Xanax in my kit just in case my panic becomes too big to conquer on my own but so far (knock on wood) I have been able to use the other items in my kit to calm me down before I need to take one.

I chose to put my kit into a Garden Grove bag I got when I was a Miss Garden Grove court member. This bag is like taking a little bit of home with me wherever I go since it literally says my hometown on it, so I try to use it to ground me back to reality and my comfort place. This kit could easily be put into a backpack, a purse, or anything that you can look at and have a positive response!

If anyone has any tips for traveling with anxiety I would love to hear them! I can't wait for this adventure and am hoping to report back to you all that it has been a huge success. I'll leave you with this quote that I know I will be keeping in mind during my travels and hope it can help you this week as well!

"Courage is never to let your actions be influenced by your fears." - Anonymous


Until next time. 💜

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