8 Instagram accounts to follow if you have anxiety

@themindgeek is dedicated to fostering mental well-being by offering a wealth of mental health advice and transformative tips. The curated content is designed to guide you through the complexities of healing, providing practical tools and empowering insights – whether you're seeking solace, inspiration, or actionable steps toward well-being.

Founded by a US-based licensed anxiety therapist, Alison Seponara, @theanxietyhealer is one of the most accessible and beginner-friendly Instagram accounts on all things anxiety. You will find posts that help you identify the many symptoms of anxiety – many of which could seem very trivial and be easily overlooked.

If you assume a supporting role in your family as a mother taking care of your children, husband, elderly parents, elderly in-laws, along with your colleagues and bosses, this one is for you. @doodledwellness is the brainchild of Amy Tran who has an M.A. in psychology. Her posts are so brutally honest and relevant to our day-to-day lives such as:

People Pleasers: Saying ‘yes’ and ‘ya’ to everyone. Learn to say ‘maybe’ and ‘I’ll think about it’ instead to draw boundaries
Compassion Fatigue: People who take care of others tend to experience burnout. You need to drop your responsibilities and start taking care of yourself first
Chronic Emotional Invalidation: When people dismiss your feelings in a manipulative attempt
Relationship with Food
Depression
Rest and Sleep

Tran’s posts are often pastel coloured, with cute doodles and fonts – making it easy for anyone to digest. If you identify with any of the above, do scroll through Tran’s posts and follow her simple steps for some self-care.

Mental health advocate Stefania Rossi runs @dearmyanxiety, an account that aims to help those with anxiety to feel validated, supported and understood.

Having struggled with anxiety throughout her childhood and teenage years, Stefania found hope when she decided to open up about her struggles and has since learnt to accept that it was okay to ask for help; her aim is to help others do the same. She's also a breathwork facilitator, and she teaches those with anxiety how to use conscious breathing to help curb symptoms.

A former primary and early years teacher, Laura Jane Jones was inspired to start @laurajaneillustrations after she noticed a number of teachers (and other professionals) struggle with maintaining a healthy work-life balance during the early years of her career.

With bright colours, cheerful illustrations and thoughtful words, Laura aims to spreads awareness for emotional and mental wellbeing whilst advocating for the importance of boundaries, self-care and self-compassion.

For those of us who prefer straightforward wake up calls, pay @ablackfemaletherapist a visit. The lady behind the Instagram handle is a therapist called Brittney. Her posts are simple – plain text on a coloured background. And they are often honest, frank, and demand you to read and recognise the hard truths of the situation that you may be facing. Expect clarity such as:

Debunking Myths About Anger: “If I’m angry with you, I can’t love you anymore.”
Differences between a genuine growth mindset versus comparison and competition with others
Moving away from shame that you may have about past behaviour, and shifting that to a feeling of empowerment and self-compassion

If you’re vaguely aware of the possibly causes of your anxiety attacks – are they related to a traumatic episode that you have experienced or witnessed in your childhood or adult life? If the answer is yes, your anxiety may be related to a traumatic event but you’re not sure where to start reading up or coming to terms with it, try scrolling through the Instagram feed of @innerglowtherapy.

Fronted by a female trauma psychotherapist named Lauren Baird, her posts are bite-sized facts, tips, and nuggets of information that are beautifully illustrated to exude a sense of accessibility and calm. The tips that Baird offer are pretty specific to trauma survivors, such as:

Dissociation
Memories
PTSD nightmares
Bodily memories of trauma
Fear of relationships
Hypoarousal (overwhelming trauma triggers causing you to freeze and shut down)

Finally, @the.holistic.psychologist by psychologist Dr. Nicole LePera is an all-encompassing, comprehensive Instagram feed for a wide variety of anxiety, mental health, and emotional wellbeing topics and issues helpful for daily life such as:

Relationship rules
Drawing healthy boundaries between you and your partner, parents, and siblings
Mental wellness
Emotional maturity
Self betrayal

This article was first published by The Singapore Women's Weekly.