Do This Monkey Stretch To Release Tension
In this exercise, you bring your hands in front of you, then bring the arms down. Then you bring your arms to your side, and then down. Finally you bring your arms all the way past your head and then swoop down, with your head dangling between your knees, and you hang out there for a second. This exercise is extremely effective at releasing the tension we hold in different parts of our body.
Write A Quick Gratitude List
A study published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology asked participants to jot down a few sentences each week, focusing on specific topics. One group wrote about the things that they were grateful for that week, a second group wrote about the things that had displeased them and a third group wrote about things that had happened . After ten weeks, researchers found that those who had written about gratitude were more optimistic and felt better about their lives than the other two groups. Not only that, but they had also exercised more and had fewer visits to the doctor. So grab a notebook and try to jot down a few things that youre thankful for each week. Hey, even no traffic on your daily commute is a win in our book.
Health Anxiety As Unwanted Thoughts
Health Anxiety usually starts with doubt about our wellbeing which quickly grows into a story of possible illness complete with all the awful details.
The key to overcoming Health Anxiety is to catch these thoughts and either divert them or stop them spiralling out of control, and that is what youll learn in our new Anxiety Slayer First Responder Series for Health Anxiety.
The disturbed mind will always look for evidence of what we fear the most
Health anxiety prompts us to Google Symptoms and keep checking in with our bodies, or we might freeze and fixate on any feelings we think are causes for great concern.
Also Check: How To Improve Social Anxiety
To Relieve Anxiety Talk Out Loud To Yourself
Give yourself permission to have an anxiety attack by saying the words out loud. Remind yourself that the attack will end, and it wont kill you or cause you to faint.
Carbonell says that understanding the physiology of fainting and reminding yourself of it is important. People faint when their blood pressure drops. A anxiety attack can make you feel like youre going to faint, but you wont because your blood pressure doesn’t drop during an attack. Remind yourself out loud of truths like these to counter your fears.
Tip : Learn To Calm Down Quickly
While socially interacting with another person face-to-face is the quickest way to calm your nervous system, its not always realistic to have a friend close by to lean on. In these situations, you can quickly self-soothe and relieve anxiety symptoms by making use of one or more of your physical senses:
Sight Look at anything that relaxes you or makes you smile: a beautiful view, family photos, cat pictures on the Internet.
Sound Listen to soothing music, sing a favorite tune, or play a musical instrument. Or enjoy the relaxing sounds of nature : ocean waves, wind through the trees, birds singing.
Smell Light scented candles. Smell the flowers in a garden. Breathe in the clean, fresh air. Spritz on your favorite perfume.
Taste Slowly eat a favorite treat, savoring each bite. Sip a hot cup of coffee or herbal tea. Chew on a stick of gum. Enjoy a mint or your favorite hard candy.
Touch Give yourself a hand or neck massage. Cuddle with a pet. Wrap yourself in a soft blanket. Sit outside in the cool breeze.
Movement Go for a walk, jump up and down, or gently stretch. Dancing, drumming, and running can be especially effective.
You May Like: What Are The Best Vitamins For Stress And Anxiety
Take A Mental Step Back
Anxiety tends to be focused on the future, so instead, try to focus on the present. Tamar Chansky, Ph.D., psychologist and author of Freeing Yourself from Anxiety, suggests that you ask yourself what is happening and what, if anything, needs to be done right now. If nothing needs to be done now, make a conscious decision to revisit the situation later in the day, when you are calmer.
A Meditation For Anxious Emotionsbob Stahl
- 20:36
You May Like: How To Stop Chronic Anxiety
How To Calm Someone With Anxiety
Anxiety affects millions of people across the United States, and sometimes when we or others near us experience anxiety, a panic disorder, or other mental health disorders, it can be difficult to know what to do.
When we have a friend, loved one or even a co-worker experiencing anxiety disorders or panic attacks, it is normal to feel like you should do something. However, in the moment, that something can seem very elusive. What should you say? What should you do? How should you respond?
All these questions will run through your mind and they are valid. Unless you know the exact kind of anxiety the other person is going through, theres a good chance that you may not even be able to relate to the situation.
However, that does not mean that you can not positively impact the situation. In fact, we are sure that you are capable of not only impacting the situation but doing so in a way that will reduce stress and anxiety.
Let Your Thoughts Come And Go
When we are anxious our thoughts about our worries go around and around in our mind. Never ending and building on each other until we feel drained by them so we try not to worry. Whenever you try not to do something it is guaranteed to make you do it more so instead, observe your thoughts like you are an outside looking in. Just watch your thoughts for a minute. Imagines leaves floating on the surface of a stream. For each thought that comes to mind, allow that thought to take its place on a leaf and watch it blow away in the wind. Or allow the thought to turn into a fish and watch it float away down the stream. Allow those thoughts to come and go, you dont need to respond to them.
Also Check: What Is An Anxiety Attack Like
Cut Back On The Caffeine
Caffeine is a stimulant, and if you have anxiety, it can make you feel more on edge. It may also cause some physical symptoms like increased heartbeat and shaking, which could make you think youre experiencing a panic attack.
Research also shows that, in some people living with mental health disorders, caffeine may also increase anxiety symptoms.
If you are used to drinking large amounts of caffeine, it may be a good idea to slowly limit this intake to avoid symptoms of withdrawal that are common if you go cold turkey.
Sigh To Help Yourself Be Fully Present In The Moment
During the MBSR class, we would take a few mindful sighs between transitioning from one person speaking to another. You breathe in to a count of five through your mouth, and then you let out a very loud sigh, the sound you hear your teenager make. I was always amazed at how powerful those small sighs were to adjust my energy level and focus.
Read Also: How To Know You Have Social Anxiety
Most Importantly Stay In The Moment
Learning to manage anxiety takes time. Its important not to get ahead of yourself. That means being patient with your progress. Typically, it takes a holistic combination of approaches that is unique to you. So, dont live too far in the future or in the past. Do your best to stay in the moment and remember that feelings are only temporary.
A Meditation To Calm Panicbob Stahl
- 30:05
3 Ways to Get Out of Panic Mode
Read Also: How To Know If You Have Stress Or Anxiety
Acceptance Helps Calm Anxiety
As I accept that what is happening around me and within me are temporary happenings, I am a little calmer knowing this feeling and this situation will not happen forever .
Considering the example of me getting a new supervisor:
I accept that my worst fear, yep we are going to go there: would be that I would be rejected and have to work somewhere else. Ok well, now that Ive gone there, that seems like a bad situation, but it could definitely be worse.
So, if I had to work somewhere else, I could find a new job and I could start over. So just going with that thought, thats not so bad if that happened in the big spectrum of worst situations. Im still alive, and I have survived worse.
My grandmother says that really everything in life is good because we are alive to experience it, even the bad situations.
Notice the water streaming, the leaves rustling, the cool air
Overall, it helps me know that what Im afraid of is not as bad as I first thought, and that I have a back-up plan if the worst happens.
Controlling Anxiety Takes Time
Theres no quick fix for anxiety, and it may often feel like an uphill struggle. But by gaining awareness of what causes your symptoms, and getting help from your doctor, you can manage your symptoms.
You may find some of these hacks work for you straight away and others may have no effect at all, but the important thing is to keep trying.
Giving in to feelings of anxiety by retreating from the world only served to make my life more difficult in the long run. Continuing to search for solutions that work for me has been key to my recovery. Practice makes perfect, so dont stop trying to find ways that work for you.
Fiona Thomas is a lifestyle and mental health writer who lives with depression and anxiety. Visit her website or connect with her on .
Don’t Miss: Is Depression And Anxiety A Mental Illness
Relaxation Exercises To Help Fall Asleep
Having trouble falling asleep is a common experience. In fact, research suggests that almost a third of adults experience chronic insomnia, a sleep disorder characterized by persistent difficulties in falling or staying asleep. However, for those of us without insomnia, tossing and turning in bed after a stressful day can be a familiar experience.
Stress and anxiety are often to blame for sleep issues. During periods of tension, the body activates its natural stress response, beginning with a cascade of hormones that make us feel more alert and trigger additional physiological changes. Our breathing becomes more quick and shallow, our heart rate and blood pressure increases, and our digestion slows.
When our bodys stress response is activated, it can be immensely challenging to fall and stay asleep. Fortunately, research has shown that there is a way we can turn off the stress response. By activating another natural process, called the relaxation response, we can calm the mind, relax the body, and help ourselves drift off to sleep naturally.
How To Stop A Panic Attack
A great many people who suffer with panic attacks describe feeling a disconnect from reality that scares and confuses them. You may feel completely helpless, as though there is nothing you can do and no one can help you. You literally believe that a threat is present, likely, or imminent. Its a frightening experience not easily forgotten. In fact, the fear alone that it may happen again is enough to start the cycle of panic and insecurity. If youre feeling scared or insecure about a reoccurrence right now, you are not alone, and there is help.
A Meditation for Investigating Panic Attacks
Theres no predicting when your next panic attack will occur. It might happen while youre out running errands, interacting with strangers at the market or post office. Being in public may feel like the worst-case scenario for a panic attack, but it is also your cue to listen to your mind and body.
Mindful inquiry will help you investigate what is driving your panicky emotions, in order for you to become free from them. Practice these skills the next time you feel panic beginning to rise.
Also Check: How To Get On Disability For Depression And Anxiety