Monday, March 18, 2024
HomeMust ReadHow To Calm Nerves And Anxiety Naturally

How To Calm Nerves And Anxiety Naturally

Why Your Capacity To Manage Stress Matters

How I Calm Anxiety and Relax Naturally

Your capacity to manage stress is called a window of tolerance. This window is your optimal state of nervous system regulation.

Within this window you feel relaxed yet alert, engaged and secure.

There may be events throughout the day that take you to your edge of tolerance, but using different strategies, youll be able to soothe your nervous system and stay within your window.

You naturally respond to the ebb and flow of life.

But when stress pushes you beyond your window of tolerance, you become dysregulated.

These dysregulated responses to stress are sometimes called the 4 Fs of Fear

  • Fight – become combative, hostile or argumentative
  • Flight – run, escape, avoid, or withdraw
  • Fawn – become overly friendly, cooperative or submissive
  • Freeze – disassociate, numb or shut down

These responses are ways you adapted to survive threats and danger. Which means dysregulation is different for everyone. It could look like:

Steer Clear Of Alcohol

Drinking alcohol may take the edge off at first, since its a natural sedative. However, suggests theres a link between anxiety and alcohol consumption, with anxiety disorders and alcohol use disorder occurring hand-in-hand.A 2017 review that looked at 63 different studies showed that decreasing alcohol intake can improve both anxiety and depression.

Heavy drinking can interfere with the balance of neurotransmitters, which can be responsible for positive mental health. This interference creates an imbalance that may lead to certain symptoms of anxiety.

Anxiety may temporarily increase in early sobriety but can improve in the long run. Alcohol has also been shown to disrupt your bodys natural ability to sleep by interfering with sleep homeostasis. And as well later point out, a good nights sleep is incredibly helpful when combating anxiety.

Do You Have Normal Anxiety Or A Disorder

Steven Gans, MD is board-certified in psychiatry and is an active supervisor, teacher, and mentor at Massachusetts General Hospital.

Anxiety is a general, unpleasant feeling of apprehension. When youâre anxious, you may feel restless and experience physical reactions such as a headache, sweating, palpitations, chest tightness, and upset stomach.

Anxiety is a normal human experience. In fact, it can be a potentially beneficial response in anticipation of dangerous situations. The physical symptoms of anxiety are coming from your autonomic nervous system response. It is different from but related to the fear, which is a natural reaction to a clear and present danger.

While anxiety normal and common, it can become maladaptive. So, when is anxiety normal and when is it an anxiety disorder?

Also Check: How To Overcome Fear And Anxiety

Don’t Miss: What Does Anxiety Medicine Do

How To Prevent A Severe Anxiety Attack

Not all anxiety is just general nervousness. Some people experience severe anxiety attacks. Also known as panic attacks, these are bouts of what can feel like uncontrollable, severe anxiety that are usually followed by other physical symptoms like rapid heartbeat, chest pain, lightheadedness, and more.

Anxiety attacks often peak after about 10 minutes and then there is a slow but clear decline in the anxiety symptoms, usually followed by a feeling of being drained or stressed. Many people wonder how to stop panic attacks from getting out of control. It’s difficult to stop the attack itself, but there are some fast ways to prevent the attack from being as severe. These include:

These won’t stop the panic attack altogether – for that you need panic attack treatments – but they will reduce the severity of the panic attack, and an anxiety attack that is less severe is generally easier to cope with.

Most Importantly Stay In The Moment

What Is A Good Home Remedy For Anxiety

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.

You May Like: What To Take For Anxiety

Proven Ways To Control The Symptoms Of Anxiety Without Medication

Robert A. BarnettTonicsThe Volumetrics Weight-Control Plan

You’re anxious, worried, freaked. You’re upset about : money, health, work, family, love. Your heart is beating fast, your breathing is shallow and rapid, your mind is imagining doom, and you wish you could just relaxnow! Whether you have a full-blown anxiety disorder or are just freaking out, you may not want to try medicationat least not yet.

There are many safe, drug-free remedies for anxiety, from mind-body techniques to supplements to calming teas. Some start working right away, while others may help lessen anxiety over time.

Not sure where to begin? Here, 19 tips and tricks to practice, including the best natural supplements for anxiety.

How Long Can Anxiety Last

Anxiety attacks typically last no more than 30 minutes, with the symptoms reaching their most intense at about halfway through the attack. Anxiety can build up for hours or even days before the actual attack so it is important to take note of factors that contribute to anxiety to effectively prevent or treat them.

You May Like: What God Says About Anxiety

Learn How To Manage Your Anxious Thoughts

Anxiety doesn’t come out of the blue. When you have anxiety attacks, it’s often because your mind tends to spiral into negative thoughts – often without your control. Sometimes you can control this anxiety by keeping these thoughts at bay and learning to dismiss triggers that cause you anxiety.

For many, this is easier said than done. But there are many different strategies you can try that may be effective. These include:

A Question Checklist

When you feel anxious, have a checklist on hand of questions to ask yourself about that anxiety experience. The longer the checklist, the more you’ll find that your thoughts become more realistic. Questions that you can use include:

  • Is there a reason to believe something is wrong?
  • What evidence is there that something is wrong?
  • Is there a chance I’m blowing this out of proportion?

Affirmations

Affirmations not for everyone, but those that do use them find them to be very beneficial. Affirmations are things that you say to yourself to make yourself feel better. These include:

  • I’m okay. This is just anxiety and I will get passed this .
  • I have a great life and I’m looking forward to tomorrow.
  • My anxiety won’t control me.

Getting Used to Physical Symptoms

The latter is known as “exposure therapy” and there are countless ways to create exercises that will habituate you to your panic attack triggers.

Identify Pressure Points To Calm Anger And Anxiety

How To Calm Your Anxiety

Going for a massage or getting acupuncture is a wonderful way to manage anxiety and anger. But its not always easy to find time in your day to make it happen. The good news is, you can do acupressure on yourself for instant anxiety relief.

This method involves putting pressure with your fingers or your hand at certain points of the body. The pressure releases the tension and relaxes your body.

One area to start with is the point where the inside of your wrist forms a crease with your hand. Press your thumb on this area for two minutes. This can help relieve tension.

Read Also: Are Anxiety And Depression Related

Read Also: Does Acupuncture Work For Anxiety

Calm Your Mind With Prayer Or Meditation

For many, spending time in prayer every day is the best way to find peace. Scientists have found that prayer evokes a relaxation response that suppresses stress, quiets the mind and body and promotes healing. Other studies show that those who pray tend to live healthier lives, get sick less often and experience less depression.

While some people are intimidated by the idea of meditation, its really quite simple because theres no right or wrong way to do it. It can be as simple as taking focused deep breaths and remembering to stay in the current moment. Becoming more aware of your mind and body through simple meditation can help calm the storms inside. There are also guided meditations and many apps you can utilize.

A 2013 randomized controlled trial published in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry found that meditation had a beneficial effect on anxiety symptoms. Stress reactivity and coping mechanisms improved when participants faced a stress challenge.

Take A Hot Bath With Epsom Salts

First, a hot bath is always calming. Second, adding some Epsom salts to the water may help boost your mood and act as natural anxiety relief. These salts contain magnesium sulfate, which may have anxiety-fighting benefits. For example, information published in a 2017 issue of the journal, Nutrients, notes that there is suggestive but inconclusive evidence for a beneficial effect of magnesium supplementation in mild anxiety. As is the case with a lot of research about natural remedies, this one also points to the need for further investigation.

Read Also: What Oils Help With Anxiety

Get Your Daily Dose Of Omega

There is some evidence that omega-3 fatty acids are one of the natural remedies for anxiety. A systematic review and meta-analysis published in 2018 in the journal JAMA Network Open assessed the potential benefits of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids for anxiety. While its authors note that more clinical trials should be conducted, their information is the first meta-analytic evidence, to our knowledge, that omega-3 PUFA treatment may be associated with anxiety reduction. Canned fatty fish, such as tuna and salmon, walnuts, and flaxseeds are all great sources of omega-3 fatty acids. If youre not a tuna fan, here are some omega 3-rich foods for people who dont like fish.

Meditate And Practice Mindfulness

14 Ways to Reduce Anxiety Naturally

A main goal of meditation is full awareness of the present moment, which includes noticing all thoughts in a nonjudgmental way. This can lead to a sense of calm and contentment by increasing your ability to mindfully tolerate all thoughts and feelings.

Meditation is known to relieve stress and anxiety and is a primary facet of CBT.

Research from John Hopkins suggests 30 minutes of daily meditation may alleviate some anxiety symptoms and act as an antidepressant.

Recommended Reading: Does Sex Relieve Stress And Anxiety

Talk To Someone Who Gets It

If your feelings of anxiety are making it hard to function, you should speak to a health professional. But talking to friends can also help. I have friends who have an anxiety disorder too. When Im feeling really bad, I send them a message telling them how Im feeling.

They might have a new hack I can try, or they can point out something that might have acted as a trigger. But sometimes its just nice to vent to someone who knows how it feels to be in my shoes.

Naturelo Magnesium Glycinate Chelate Complex

Features

  • Heart Health: Magnesium activates the enzymes necessary for a number of physiological functions, including neuromuscular contractions, cardiac function, and the regulation of the acid-alkaline balance in the body.*
  • Overall Health & Nutrient Metabolism: This vital mineral helps the metabolism and utilization of many essential nutrients, including vitamin B6, vitamin C, and vitamin E.*
  • Energy & Bone Support: Magnesium is necessary for the metabolism of carbohydrates, amino acids and fats, as well as for energy production and the utilization of calcium, phosphorus, sodium and potassium.*
  • Pure Quality: Our supplements are made with only premium ingredients sourced from trusted suppliers and guided by our nutritional experts, then carefully manufactured and tested to verify their potency and purity.
  • Pure Difference: What makes us different isn’t just our process or what goes into our supplements — what we leave out matters, too. Pure Encapsulations products are FREE FROM wheat, eggs, tree nuts & peanuts, gluten, artificial colors, flavors & sweeteners, coatings and shellacs, GMOs, and unnecessary binders, fillers & preservatives.

Also Check: How Does Anxiety Feel Like

Develop A Relaxing Bedtime Routine

Its important that you wind down properly and avoid stressful situations in those few hours before you go to sleep.

Developing a bedtime routine is a great way to do this, whether thats choosing to read every night before you sleep, doing some gentle yoga or having a warm bath to soothe your muscles.

Try to go to bed at the same time every night, too, to help maintain a good sleep routine.21

Finding Your Inner Support System

How to Use Your Nerves To Calm Yourself

Yes, we need a support system in our lives. But even more importantly, we need an INNER support system.

That means being compassionate, kind, supportive, understanding and patient with yourself. Believing you are capable, lovable, and worthy.

Internal support is coaching yourself through challenges with love instead of criticizing yourself from a place of fear.

You May Like: How To Overcome Death Anxiety

How Much Worrying Is Too Much

Worries, doubts, and anxieties are a normal part of life. Its natural to worry about an unpaid bill, an upcoming job interview, or a first date. But normal worry becomes excessive when its persistent and uncontrollable. You worry every day about what ifs and worst-case scenarios, you cant get anxious thoughts out of your head, and it interferes with your daily life.

Constant worrying, negative thinking, and always expecting the worst can take a toll on your emotional and physical health. It can sap your emotional strength, leave you feeling restless and jumpy, cause insomnia, headaches, stomach problems, and muscle tension, and make it difficult to concentrate at work or school. You may take your negative feelings out on the people closest to you, self-medicate with alcohol or drugs, or try to distract yourself by zoning out in front of screens. Chronic worrying can also be a major symptom of Generalized Anxiety Disorder , a common anxiety disorder that involves tension, nervousness, and a general feeling of unease that colors your whole life.

If youre plagued by exaggerated worry and tension, there are steps you can take to turn off anxious thoughts. Chronic worrying is a mental habit that can be broken. You can train your brain to stay calm and look at life from a more balanced, less fearful perspective.

Natural Remedies For Anxiety

Natural remedies for anxiety are those that donât involve conventional medications . They include things such as herbs, aromatherapy, and performing certain actions that promote relaxation. Some people with anxiety use natural remedies alongside conventional treatments to find relief.

Examples of natural remedies for anxiety include:

Deep Breathing Exercises

Rapid, shallow breathing is a common symptom of anxiety. Breathing in this manner can increase your heart rate, make you feel dizzy, and may even increase the risk of a panic attack. Deep breathing involves taking deliberately deep and measured breaths to restore normal breathing patterns, which can help to reduce anxiety.

Weighted Blankets

Research shows that weighted blankets can be beneficial for alleviating symptoms of anxiety. The pressure helps to put your body into ârest mode,â reducing those symptoms and preparing your body to rest. These blankets come in many different sizes and weights, enabling you to find what works best for you.

Quit Cigarettes and Alcohol

Both alcohol and cigarettes may appear to calm your nerves at first. After taking a drink, however, your anxiety may worsen. A cycle can develop, leading to alcohol dependence.

Several studies also show that smoking can worsen symptoms of anxiety. Therefore, itâs a good idea to try to avoid drinking or smoking to reduce feelings of anxiety.

Recommended Reading: What Percent Of Teens Have Anxiety

Stick To A Sleep Schedule

Anxiety can make it difficult to sleep, and not being well-rested can contribute to more anxiety.

However, there are a few key ways to get better sleep with anxiety, such as having a sleep routine that includes going to bed and waking up at the same time each day.

Overall, trying to get near the recommended 7 to 9 hours of sleep each night can help keep anxiety at bay. “Inadequate sleep increases the production of stress hormones that can exacerbate anxiety,” Jonas says.

The Benefits Of Becoming Calm

Foods to calm the nervous system

Theres one more important thing to remember about overcoming anxiety, stress and overwhelm.

Calm isnt just a lovely feeling. And out of all the scientific benefits of calm, theres one that really stands out.

More than restful sleep. More than better memory. More than clarity, focus or high performance at work. And even more than better relationships.

Resilience.

Becoming resilient is the biggest key to making lasting changes in your life.

If you want to live a deep and meaningful life, you need to be resilient. And becoming resilient requires calm.

Counselor Emily Read Daniel writes “Resilience is about the nervous system: the body’s stress response and its ability to remain in a healthy range of arousal and settling without getting stuck in an over or under-activated state.

So the greatest result of becoming calm? Is being resilient enough to do the things that matter to you.

Recommended Reading: Do Energy Drinks Cause Anxiety

One When You Are Anxious Stressed Or Overwhelmed Start In The Body To Calm And Ground Your Nervous System

This will not only get you back in control NOW, but will retrain your nervous system to stay in control.

Youll find that you become:

  • Less reactive to stress and more in control.
  • Less overwhelmed and more focused.
  • More present and adaptable to change.

This makes it easier to balance the heavy load on your plate.

How To Reduce Anxiety In The Long Term

If you find that you’re often suffering from anxiety and nervousness, even when you’re not in a situation that typically cause that level of anxiety, you may be suffering from an anxiety disorder. Anxiety disorders cannot be cured overnight but many people do improve. They’re the result of years of experiences, and they take time to heal.

The fastest way to reduce anxiety is to first identify what you’re experiencing, and then use step by step methods to move forward.

Was this article helpful?

Read Also: Can High Blood Pressure Cause Anxiety Attacks

RELATED ARTICLES
- Advertisment -

Most Popular

- Advertisment -