How Jewelry Helps Me With My Anxiety?

As with many people I know, I am by nature an anxious person. Sometimes, I channel my nervous energy in very positive ways, such as designing new jewelry, working on my health and fitness, or doing other activities that require that extra burst of kinetic energy.  There are those times, however, when it just gets the best of me and takes hold. In those cases, I feel like the world is closing in on me a bit and I just need to ride it out for however long it lasts. 

I’ve tried many strategies along the way to help me with this - some more effective than others- for example, tapping (which I highly recommend), anything physical (tennis, lifting weights, or  any form of cardio), and yes, even a good glass of wine (terrible I know, but I’m imperfect). In these cases where I am able to manage it, the common denominator is that I generally have the comforts of home and my family by me. For all of that, I am thankful, but a lot of my life happens outside the home.

Away from my comforting abode, anxiety is not one that I can as easily deal with. So I found it quite interesting when I started seeing more and more articles on everything from “Anxiety Rings” to “Spinning Mechanisms” and other pieces of information that I can FULLY relate to.  For me, it’s one of those quiet habits we form to calm our minds. You might be a person who twirls their hair or cracks their knuckles or does small little gestures that really only you notice.  For me, yes I admit to the hair twirling, but I always noticed that I would spin my rings on my fingers, or if I was wearing a necklace where the pendant had some mobility, I would zip it back and forth. These are all small, calming behaviors that don’t magically make anxiety go away, but they do allow my mind to focus on something else.

All of this got me thinking about what I could design and create as a jewelry designer, and I’m very proud of the pieces I’ve created so far, such as my Chroma Illusion Spin Ring (my take on the spinner ring) and my Chroma Illusion Spin Necklace that uses a spin pendant made of different stones. They work their little magic for me as part of my overall plan to not eliminate but to curb and quiet. The very act of spinning the stones around helps me to take my mind off the worrying thoughts that creep in and allows me to focus on more positive ones. Looking at the colorful stones helps to ground me and has me feeling grateful and appreciative for all the things I have in my life. 

There are many wonderful designers out there that are making some incredible pieces. If you do a quick Google search, you will find everything from “Fidget Ring”, "Fidget Necklace", “Anxiety Rings”, “Spin Rings”, “Spin Necklaces”, and the list goes on and on.  I am working on some newer pieces as part of my collection (coming soon) that take my creativity and imagination further and am so very excited to share them with everyone when it drops. Jewelry has always had the power to make us feel special, confident, and beautiful—but it also has the power to do something even bigger at times: providing us with comfort.  For me personally, they have been incredibly helpful tools for dealing with my anxiety, but… I still enjoy my wine!

What I'm wearing...