Anxiety is one of the causes behind major illnesses. It involves worry, uneasiness, nervousness, and fear. People experience it on their emotional, physical, and cognitive levels. When a person becomes anxious, he gets negative and disturbing thoughts. He loses his emotional control and starts to sweat, shiver, or experience shortness of breath.
When these symptoms persist for a longer time, it results in anxiety disorder / panic disorder. Due to this reason it becomes essential to control it quickly so that it doesn’t negatively impact your personal and professional relationships.
We have come up with some effective tips that will help you cope with the feelings of anxiety. When you feel anxiety is overpowering you, then these ways will definitely assist you to manage your anxiety.
What Is Anxiety?
Anxiety develops from ‘Stress’. It can be understood in another way that anxiety is the natural response mechanism of the body to face stress. When you feel stressful, your heart starts to race at a rapid pace. You would notice your palms becoming sweaty at the time when you have to confront a challenging event, or work.
Let’s watch this informative video explaining the concept of anxiety in detail –
Some of the events that can make a person anxious are: joining a new job, facing an interview, meeting the family of your partner, presenting an act on stage in front of several people etc. The symptoms of anxiety are generally short-lived. They subside once the anticipated event happens.
However, in some cases, anxiety can be long-term. Examples of it are: what will happen in the future, when will I get job, what will be the future of my children, when will the disease cure, when will my daughter get married etc. All these situations can lead to long-term anxiety.
When anxiety persists for a longer-time then it can do a lot of harm to the body on mental, emotional and physical levels. That is the reason it is very much important to learn the skill / technique to manage anxiety.
Different people can have different triggers that makes them anxious. Identifying those triggers is an important way to cope up and manage anxiety attacks. Being self-aware of how your body reacts to different triggers and ways to calm your mental and physical body at that critical time is called anxiety management.
When you learn how to relax your mind and emotions, you can deal with any situation easily. You develop an incredible power and strength within you that makes you unshakeable.
Symptoms Of A Panic Attack / Anxiety Attack
Following are some of the common physical, and mental symptoms of anxiety:
- feelings of panic, or danger,
- nervousness
- rapid heart rate
- restlessness
- sweating
- chills
- trembling
- pain or tightness in the chest
- sweating
- inability to focus
- tiredness
- weakness
- gastrointestinal issues
- fear of dying
- loss of control
- feeling detached
- hyperventilation
- heart palpitations
- hunger of breath
- nausea
- lightheadedness or dizziness
- numbness
- extreme tingling sensation
Effective Ways To Cope With Anxiety
If you feel that you are frequently experiencing anxiety disorder and that is reducing your productivity at workplace and destroying your health, then you need to act quickly on this issue. The below natural remedies will definitely help in controlling the situation.
1. Analyze your thought pattern
The fear of negative can make you incapable of dealing with the situation. You may not get the clarity to take the right decision at this time. Sometimes it is just an illusion created by our mind. The reality is very different. One of the ways is to contest your fears. In this approach, you need to keep your fears and preconceived notions aside, and look at the situation with a neutral outlook. See how you can take control of the situation.
2. Find Out What Triggers Anxiety In You
In order to get to the origin to the anxiety, it is important to figure out what leads to anxiety in you. Here are some of the triggers that can make you anxious:
- a stressful job, or work environment,
- traveling,
- driving,
- genetics,
- withdrawal from psychotic medicines, or drugs,
- trauma,
- intake of caffeine,
- depression,
- claustrophobia (fear of close knitted spaces),
- agoraphobia (fear of open, and crowded spaces),
- chronic ailments such as heart disease, asthma, diabetes, etc.
If you notice that in certain situations your body starts to show up the above signs, then those are the triggers that makes you anxious. Only when you understand the cause, you can manage it well. Take some timeout to explore your feelings, and thoughts. Find ways of how you can manage it.
Meditation, writing a journal, take a leisure walk in nature, do some household chores like cleaning or organizing the house, get creative and participate in some activities like painting drawing, etc., watch an interesting movie, read your favorite book, listen to soothing music, cook your favorite dish, do gardening, talk to friends etc. are some of the ways by which you can calm your anxiety.
Find out which activity effectively works in your case. Implement it every time you face a trigger that can take you out of the terrible situation.
3. Figure out what changes can you bring to the present situation
Life is unpredictable. The fear of losing your possessions can cause anxiety in you. Holding on to the things tightly and do not let it go will only make you more anxious. In such a scenario, you need to change your attitude towards life. Start to feel blessed for what you are bestowed with. Gratitude is the best antidote to anxiety.
When you feel thankful for all that you have, then you get more of such things that will make your life happier. If possibilities of losing a job is making you tense, then you should think that nothing stays permanent. The new job will be better for the growth of your career. So, start searching for the job. Proactiveness can give you more control over the life’s situation. Be determined to give your best and leave the rest to Almighty.
If you fear to lose your loved ones, then turn this negative feeling to gratefulness. Have faith that God is there to support everyone. If he has given birth, then he will protect his children too. Spend time appreciating the presence and support of your loved ones in your life. Soon you will start that the anxiety will drop and your perspective towards life will become positive.
Some things in life are in your control, while others are not. You can take action towards the realistic situations in life and adopt a grateful attitude for all unknown fears and unrealistic situations that are created by your own little mind.
4. Deep Breathing
Anxiety can make you nervous about any past, or future event. Our breath has a great impact on our emotions. You must have noticed that when you are angry, or anxious, your breath becomes short and quick. Just by changing the rhythm of the breath, you can change your emotions.
So, if you want to become calm, then focus on taking long and deep breaths. Just five minutes of deep breathing will clear your mind and make you so light and free. This technique does not require any equipment. It is the simplest ways to manage your anxiety.
Make your breaths as slow and long as possible. Keep your focus on your breath. This simple technique can help you restore your personal balance and bring you to the present moment. To make it a more pleasurable experience, you can light an incense stick, candle, or put on some soothing music in the background.
5. Aromatherapy
The aroma of lavender, sandalwood, and chamomile, can be highly soothing. It has the ability to activate specific receptors in the brain that eases anxiety. Aromatic oils in the form of scents are beneficial. Try this remedy to see if it works on you.
6. Pray
Prayer is an excellent healer. Sit quietly at one place, close your eyes and remember Divine. Surrender all your worries and trouble to him. While communicating to the divine, you can even cry to your heart’s content. The power of this act is incomprehensible. It will open up the blockages in your heart, and lighten the burden from your head. You will feel so peaceful and calm.
Long-Term Strategies To Cope Anxiety
If the above natural measures are not helping you to cope up the anxiety, then it indicates that you need medical assistance. Chronic anxiety is considered to be a mental health issue. Before it adversely impacts your health, career, work etc. you need to get quick assistance through therapy to manage your severe mental state.
1. Cognitive behavioral therapy
It is one of the best ways to manage chronic form of anxiety. In addition to it, work towards limiting your exposure to situations that can put you into anxious state. In CBT, a person learns different techniques to bring changes in his behavior, and the way he reacts to the situations that causes anxiety within him. This therapy is provided by a skilled therapist to develop ways to modify negative behaviors, and thought patterns in the mind.
2. Enroll yourself in a meditation course
Anxiety is a condition related to your mind. Meditation is one of the most effective ways to get rid of unwanted negative thoughts from your mind. With regular meditation, you will observe that you get very fewer negative thoughts. Also, meditation boosts your mental strength and makes you self-aware of the body and the sensations that arise in it when confronting to any anxiety causing situation in life.
When you become aware that you are getting negative thoughts, you need to change your thoughts at that time so that you do not give more energy to those thoughts. In this way, you will save your mind.
To make the meditation successful, it is important to do a little yoga stretches to free your muscles from any tension and stiffness. After a few yoga stretches, you get into a meditative state. It is an ancient and highly powerful technique wherein you only need to observe your thoughts and let them pass without getting attached to it.
Meditation builds self-awareness in a person. A person who regularly meditates, develops this self-awareness in his daily life too. He becomes the spectator of his incoming and outgoing thoughts, without getting attached to it. In this way, you can gain emotional and mental control over yourself and become more powerful than any event and situation in life.
3. Bring changes in your diet
Certain foods like lemon, ashwagandha, dark chocolate, omega-3 fatty acids, and green tea can also help in relieving you from anxiety. Including these foods in your diet will also help in long-term management of anxiety.
4. Keep yourself physically and mentally healthy
Regular exercise, well-balanced meals, adequate sleep, and being touch with your loved ones will all help in easing anxiety symptoms. You can include moderate-intensity exercise like brisk walking, or a vigorous-intensity exercise such as swimming, or jogging in your daily exercise routine.
5. Medication
In cases of severe anxiety, your doctor may also advise you to consume anxiety-relieving medicines based on the symptoms, and severity of the condition.
Lifestyle Tips To Manage Anxiety
Here are a few lifestyle tips that is helpful for people who face anxiety issues, or those who want to maintain their healthy mental state.
- Make relaxation techniques such as meditation, breathing exercises, music, yoga, etc. a part of daily routine. yoga, listen to music, meditate, get a massage, or learn relaxation techniques.
- Always eat well-balanced diet that includes healthy, and energy boosting snacks. Don’t skip your meals.
- Limit the level of caffeine, and alcohol as it can aggravate anxiety.
- Take adequate sleep to reduce stress levels in the body.
- Incorporate exercise in your daily routine to stay mentally and physically fit and healthy. You can even recruit an “exercise partner” to make your workout more interesting. Tell your partner to encourage you and motivate you to stay committed at the initial stages when you are new to the exercise routine.
- Accept the fact that somethings are not in your control. Do your best and maintain a positive outlook in life.
- Embrace humor in life.
- Become self-aware of your thoughts and be proactive to replace bad ones by the good ones.
- To be of help to someone is one of the best feelings in the world. Get involved in any charity service. When you serve the poor and deprived sections of the society then you earn good karmas. This act of kindness will make you feel good.
- Form your support group and discuss with them about your issues. Be open to receive assistance. Connect to a therapist, or physician for professional medical assistance.
- Identify self-help tools that can distract you from depressing thoughts. It could be an audiobook, podcasts, music, spiritual discourses etc.
Conclusion
Several situations come in life where we lose our mental peace and develop symptoms of anxiety. If your anxiety doesn’t reduce with the above steps, then you need to talk to the doctor to provide precise diagnosis, and discuss the available treatment options.
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What Is Anxiety And How You Can Deal With It Effectively?