How I Fought Anxiety with Lego

My name is Dawn and I am an addict: A Lego addict. Let me explain. Many years ago, I was struggling with anxiety. I had been taking medication for it for way too long, so I decided there had to be a better way. I slowly weaned myself off the drugs and started the journey to “hacking” that area of my life.

Was this easy? Oh, hell no. But man, am I glad I did.

I was walking through a mall doing some errands when I felt the shakes of withdrawal from the anxiety medication start. I started to sweat and my breathing shallowed and the panic set in. I had no meds with me. I was shaking and ready to fall into a full-blown panic attack when I stepped into the nearest store. I thought, If nothing else, maybe they had a bathroom I could use. I walked into the store and looked around. At the time, I wasn’t even aware of where I was but I saw a display that said, “build your own mini figure” and started playing.

In building that figure, I calmed down faster than I ever had. Right away, I felt my breathing regulate, felt the tension in my chest start to release, and I felt this overwhelming sense of calm. What the hell had just happened?!?!

I stood there for a bit to make sure that it was all good. I was calm. I was fine… When I realized I was more than ok, I decided to look around. I walked out of the Lego store that day with two medium-size sets.

I felt hopeful that I found a tool to help get me through the transition from anxiety-medicated Dawn to unmedicated-but-dealing-with-it-Dawn for the first time in a long time. I wondered if I could replicate that feeling of calm disconnection from the anxious state? What if I could take that magic home with me? Does this sound dramatic??? It should. I truly felt that way. A few days later, when the feelings all flooded back… the withdrawal, the anxiety, the panic... I opened that first box and just started to build. I had not built lego since I was a kid but IT WORKED!!!

The awful feels all went away and I felt human again. And it kept working. I slowly started adding kits to my collection. One day I realized I had a lot of sets but nothing else to build... and the budget wouldn’t allow for more.So when the next panic hit? I started breaking down the nearest set and like magic, it kept working!

I now have a ridiculous collection and use it almost daily with clients! It is amazing how calming it is. You don’t need words, you don’t need to be good at it and there is no competitive anything involved! Some days I want to build, some days I want to tear it down, and others? I just organize the pieces.

Are you a lego fan? Do you have a trick that you use for your anxiety? Comment below!

#beatinganxiety #lego #doitdifferent #thetaylorway #lifecoaching #traumaspecialist