Ideas for calming down?

I broke my laptop yesterday and today I went to see if I could get it fixed and of course it is no longer under warranty so I have to either save $300 to get a new screen or buy a whole new computer... So I was stressed and worked up about that and then Dad starts fussing at me telling me to stop being all frustrated and having anxiety (as if I could help that?)

I zoned out after that and all through dinner, as I do when I need a break from everything going on around me, but I kept getting yelled at because my parents mistake my zoning out for sulking. Then they decided we should go to Wal-Mart (where of course they were restocking so it was noisy and crowded and frustrating...) And then I saw a wreck on the way home and the car was completely upside down...

The being yelled at and Wal-Mart madness made me start scratching my arm, and I haven't done that quite so much in a very long time... And now I've been home for a few hours and my heart has calmed down though it is still racing a bit and my hands are less shaky, but how do I get myself to calm down when stuff like this happens?

Thank you for any help or suggestions.

Hello, BatsAndButterflies! I've been thinking about your question on and off for several hours, and frankly it's a difficult one. I'm sure you can find all sorts of self-calming techniques on the Web (example from a PsychCentral blog), but I've been trying to single out what actually works for me.

• Medications.
• Deep, slow diaphragmatic breathing -- slower than your current heart rate.
• Playing familiar simple computer games -- nothing that takes too much or too little thought.

Thank you. I recently started taking Celexa and I recently bought a book called the Tao of Music that said something about diaphragmatic breathing I should probably read that... thank you for your advice!!!