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My dog is making me anxious

Bookworm_
Community Member
Hiii I'm new to this. My parents have gone overseas and I'm home alone with my sister and the dog. Today hasn't been a good day. I keep having anxious thoughts about everything and I can't find a way to relax myself. Even my dog is making me nervous as she won't listen to me and keeps barking for attention. I haven't been sleeping very well either lately. I keep waking up several times during the night. Any advice is appreciated thanks
3 Replies 3

sagebrush
Community Member

Change is difficult to adjust to.

Try and find what makes you feel safe and calm. You have to find something and use it.

Sometimes I have to listen to music for hours on end before I can relax. Listen to relaxing music while you sleep, it can help.

Do things to make yourself feel secure. Like making sure all the doors are locked. Leave the lights on in the house overnight. Make sure all the curtains are closed and there is no gaps. Make sure the house is clutter-free. If anything creeps you the hell out, then get rid of it out of the house.

Dogs can be difficult. Unless you are the pack leader, the dog will walk all over you. Get the dog into a submissive position by patting their underbellies. Yawn exaggeratedly at them, and lick your lips. These are dog signals to be calm, and puts you into the pack leader position. All dogs are anxious and hyper-vigilant if they think they are the pack leaders.

Not getting enough sleep is a symptom of the anxiety, which makes it even worse.

Deep breathing techniques send calming signals to the brain, so this can help to relax. You also get an oxygenated brain which helps to think clearly. Because when you're anxious you take really shallow breaths, which subconsciously sends panic signals to the brain.

Thank you for those tips and for replying back! Much appreciatd. Sorry I've been MIA, needed to take a break from social media for a bit but I'm feeling better now!

Hi Book

Just thought Id see how you are going...I apologise for being late in your thread.

Waking up several times a night just means you have a lot on your mind which is understandable.

I think you are a legend for posting here when you did and good on you 🙂

What breed of dog do you have? Ive had snow dogs (Alaskan Malamutes) and used to wake up every hour of the night too. I understand what you mean.

we are here for you Book and thankyou Sagebrush for being there 🙂

Im Paul and there are a lot of kind people that can be here for you too!

my kind thoughts