Anxiety can be a wicked beast if you let it. Ask anyone who suffers from it. It is more than a few butterflies in your stomach. People that suffer from anxiety truly are experiencing pain and sometimes in a real physical sense. Anxiety most of the time connects with depression. The two typically go together like peanut butter and jelly.
This article is going to discuss 4 ways that you can end mild to moderate anxiety without the use of medications or at the very least minimize it to where it is manageable.
Tip #1 : Re Write the Script
Think back to the last time you felt anxious. Thoughts were probably going through your head such as “What if the job interview doesn’t work out? What if they don’t like me? What if the guy doesn’t call me for another date? What if it hurts? What if I can’t pay the bills? What if….. (enter whatever you like) ” The list can be endless right?
When a “What If” statement pops into your head, immediately shoot it down because what if statements are based out of trying to predict something that is going to occur in the future and we do not know what is going to happen unless you are a psychic or something. The “What If” is outside of our control.
An effective way to control these thoughts is to rewrite the script in your head and look at the situation with a glass half full approach. Take the examples from earlier, “If that job interview doesn’t work out, well ok it probably wasn’t a good fit for me anyways and you know what they say when one door closes another one opens.” “If they don’t like me, well ok I don’t like being around judgmental people anyways, so I can look for other friends that are more like me.” Try to rewrite what comes in your head.
Tip # 2: Determine the Trigger
Anxiety typically is triggered by something like an event, a person, whatever. One will be more able to effectively cope with it once you identify the trigger or what initiated the anxious feeling. Identifying the trigger is key to tip 2.
After the anxiety passes and it does always pass. Sit and consider the source of it. Is it a person, an insecurity within yourself or a previous event? Is it from a past trauma or someone not treating you right?
These subconscious triggers from the past many times with initiate a feeling of anxiety or worse panic attacks. Once you identify the triggers, you can formulate a strategy to combat them.
For instance, and this is an elementary example but all I can think of at the moment, I truly hate snakes and am scared of them. I don’t want to be in the same room as them. If we are planning a trip to the zoo, I mentally prepare a plan. While everyone else is enjoying the reptile house, I will be waiting outside. If for some reason I end up in the reptile house, I will breathe deeply and slowly a few times. I will give myself a gentle reminder that they are all behind glass and that I am safe and keep walking through.
Another example perhaps in line with an insecurity from the past would be like this, I get anxious when people yell around me. When I look at the trigger for that perhaps it is how I grew up or the result of a previous relationship. When I recognize the trigger I realize hold on, I can set a boundary (rule) that if you want to be my friend or want me to stick around there will be no yelling.
I can also view it as this way, if I get anxious when someone is yelling, perhaps it’s my brain clicking into the fight or flight mode which is totally plausible since someone is yelling. I hope you see what I am saying by rationalizing the thought. I can get myself out of that situation and calm myself back down.
The key takeaway is to identify the trigger and plan a strategy to overcome anxious thoughts/feelings when meeting that trigger again in the future. What is your plan?
Tip # 3: Deep Breathing & Mindfulness Does Work
Oh snap, I know what you are thinking….she went to the deep breathing mindfulness hippie route. Actually I am only giving tips that I know work because I have tried them and have overcame anxiety without medication. I believe we all have struggled with some type of anxiety at some point in our lives.
Let’s look at this further, when I focus completely on my breath and breathe in slow and deep. The type with the inhale through the nose and exhale through the mouth, you will relax or at least it will give you a point to stop feeding the anxious thoughts and focus on one thing…….breathing.
When an anxious thought comes like “I can’t calm down and I’m feeling panicked”, stop that thought and focus entirely and completely on your breath. This is where mindfulness comes in because you are staying in that exact moment. Say to yourself “Deep breath in…. deep breath out….” Or you can count to 3 for each inhale and exhale. Another example of what you can say to yourself is “I can calm down. I have calmed down before and I will today too.”
Tip # 4: Plan Ahead with Taking Care of Yourself
Anxiety typically hits the worst when you are over stressed, overwhelmed or trying to control a situation that is completely out of your control. In the mental health field, we are taught and stress the importance of self-care, which is basically taking good care of yourself.
For myself I find that anxiety and depression will increase if my life gets out of whack or balance like I’m working too much or not recognizing the fact that I do not have control over others and situations pretty much. To maintain a healthy body and mind, one must focus and place importance in taking care of yourself.
So that means getting a check up, taking vitamins if you eat a lot of junk (junk food is called junk food for a reason….it’s tasty junk but all the same junk you can’t eat it all the time and expect to feel good), drink more water and perhaps exercise. If you are not into that, that’s cool neither am I (cardio….ugh just the word makes me tired) so I do yoga and meditate which helps ground me, increases my self-esteem and keeps my mood positive.
There was a brief period in my life I took anti-anxiety medication and honestly it did calm me down temporarily, but it didn’t fix the problem in the long run. It was a band aid for the moment. Overall it made me feel sluggish and my mood more depressed because I was feeling more sluggish and therefore not positive about anything and especially since I thought I couldn’t even control my own anxieties. Make sense probably not lol… but I do get how awful anxiety and depression feels and how it continues with a snowball effect.
Everyone is different and if you struggle with anxiety try these tips as they do not require medication. I understand the therapeutic value of medication and for some it is very effective, but I do know these tips do work for people. If your anxiety is still not being managed by these suggestions, seek out a licensed mental health provider in your area. They will be able to assess the issue and suggest treatment options.
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