Happy Halloween!! As I'm not big on Halloween, it does not mix well with my anxiety, I hate fancy dress (especially scary fancy dress) and I spend the majority of it tucked up in my bedroom, pretending to the trick or treaters that there is nobody home as I am too afraid to answer the door, watching something more anxiety friendly such as Harry Potter or Hocus Pocus. I am currently watching The Nightmare Before Christmas as I write this. I thought it would be the perfect time though to share with you my visit to the Warner Bros Studio Tour.
Things like this are a massive step for me and I had a huge mix of anxiety and excitement and as I am doing as much as I can this year to battle my anxiety and try to find a bit of enjoyment in life again, I was determined to go. I also thought it'd be a nice little stepping stone towards seeing how I will cope when I go to Disneyland in December.
I have to admit I don't remember much about the first part of the tour besides trying to focus on not having a panic attack. All I remember is being led into a dark room where a member of staff was explaining what was going to happen to us and then into a small cinema room. I honestly could not tell you a single thing that happened in that screening, that is how much my anxiety takes over and this time last year I would've ran as fast as I can to get out of there but I am learning to find coping mechanisms so that I don't have to run away from every situation and miss out on all the good things that follow. I was so pleased I didn't as when the screen lifted to reveal the door to the Great Hall it was the first distraction from my anxiety that pushed me to fight through and not give up. I did not want to miss out on this like I had so many things before.
The Great Hall was all decorated for Halloween and looked amazing. This had to be one of my favourite parts of the tour, it really felt as if you were on the set of the movie. My only qualm with this is that it didn't feel like we got very long to spend looking around in here before we were being ushered out ready for the next group to come in. This may have just been me, as I do like to hang back where I feel more comfortable than in the midst of a crowd of people, but I do feel like they could've left a little longer between tours as this part of the tour did feel a bit rushed to me. After this we were left to wander around the rest of the studio tour at our own pace.
I took so many pictures, another technique I used to manage my anxiety as it gives me something else to focus on rather than the amount of people around me, as it was pretty busy. I wouldn't want to bore you with them all though so I'll just share a few of my favourites.
It was very interesting to see how the films were made and I was quite surprised that the majority of the films were filmed on set here in the studios and not on location. It's amazing what they can do with a green screen! Just to see some of the time and effort that went into the making of these films was incredible, especially some of the artwork. I also got to try my first Butterbeer and it tasted amazing! I need the recipe! We also paid for an audio guide which I have to say was a bit of a god send when it came to my anxiety. To be able to put on those headphones and watch the videos on the screen were a great way to shut out what was going on around me when it all got a bit too much.
The tour ended with this incredible model of Hogwarts, which switched between day and night to show it all lit up. This was one of my favourite parts of the tour as there was just something about this room that was a lot more relaxing than the rest of the tour, I don't know it it was the dim lights or the music or just the fact that it was over, ha ha! No, in all seriousness I am glad I have got to a point where I am able to even attempt to do things like this and not let my anxiety rule my life as much and miss out on all the fun things in life. Although it's still not as plain sailing as I'd like, each time I do something like this it gives me hope that one day I will be able to do things like this filled with nothing but excitement like everyone else.
Have you been to the Warner Bros Studios? How did you find it? Also if you are a fellow anxiety sufferer I would love to hear how you manage it in situations like this?
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