It’s no secret that living with anxiety is incredibly difficult. It can be one of the most crippling and debilitating mental health conditions, keeping you from functioning and enjoying life the way you should. While you may have figured out how to get by without the help of medication or support, you don’t necessarily have too. There are many useful tools that can help alleviate your symptoms to offer you a better quality of life – things that you can do in your day-to-day life to care for your mental health and well-being. In this article, you’ll read about some helpful and beneficial self care tips for anxiety. 

 Living with anxiety

 Many people experience the feeling of anxiety at one point in their life. It is often experienced in things like the anticipation for an important event or performance, when there is a lot of stress or pressure surrounding work or the anticipation of a significant life change. It is the feeling of worry, fear, panic or stress that manifests emotionally, mentally and also in physical sensations. It is a natural response to when the mind and body feel they are under threat, but often with anxiety it occurs when there is, in fact, no real threat. 

The most common symptoms of anxiety include:

• Tense or unable to relax

• Constant sense of dread

• Always fearing the worst-case scenario

• Out of touch with reality

• Restlessness or inability to sit still

• Sweating or hot flashes

• Rapid heart rate

• Fast breathing

• Sleep disturbances

• Light-headedness

• Upset or “nervous” stomach

 While anxiety can be isolated to certain periods of time or experiences, there are also more serious and on-going forms of anxiety that a staggering number of people face. Generalized anxiety disorders cause individuals to suffer with the symptoms listed above on an every-day, constant basis. People who suffer from an anxiety diagnosis live with symptoms of anxiety, including panic attacks, regularly. Their anxiety symptoms aren’t necessarily a result of a stressful event or the anticipation of any significant life change, but simply their brain making them feel as if they need to be prepared or fearful of something threatening them. 

There are many anxiety disorders beyond generalized anxiety, some of them are:

• Social anxiety

• Panic Disorder

• Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)

• Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

• Phobias

• Separation Anxiety

 If you suffer from a more serious anxiety diagnosis, it is in your best interest to seek the help and support of a mental health specialist such as a licensed counselor, clinical psychologist or a psychiatrist practitioner. A professional will be able to assess your symptoms, advise you, offer a diagnosis and initiate a treatment plan. There are many types of treatment available to you, including behavioral therapies, other psychotherapy techniques and even psychiatric medication treatment. 

Self-care Tips for Anxiety

Whether or not you seek treatment from a professional, it is still beneficial to have things you can do for yourself that help to reduce the symptoms of anxiety. Certain self-care activities or simple changes you can make in your day will allow you to free up some capacity to simply function on at a higher-level and even enjoy your life more.  

1. Mindfulness and relaxation techniques 

The biggest challenge in facing anxiety is the constant worry about the future or what is to come. Or maybe the worry of what could possibly happen in the future, even if it isn’t likely. Anxiety disorders take the person completely out of the present moment and out of their own body, consumed by fear and panic about external factors, the future and the possibility of the worst outcomes. Therefore, a useful technique in combatting anxiety is to practice mindfulness and other relaxation techniques. Mindfulness is the practice in which you focus on being intensely aware of what you are feeling and sensing in the present moment, without scrutinization or judgement. This practice allows you to take your head out of whatever you may be worrying about and focus acutely on the present moment. It encourages you to focus on each of your senses, what you are experiencing around you and eliminating all other factors or worries. Mindfulness can happen where and whenever you want and does not have a specific requirement of time and space – which makes it accessible and realistic for anyone suffering with anxiety.

2. Journaling 

Something that can help with processing and alleviating feelings of anxiety, is processing all of your thoughts and feelings in the form of writing. This could be sitting down for a certain amount of time each day and free-writing whatever comes to your mind, or it could look like a more structured format of writing that involves prompts, lists or schedules. The most beneficial form of journaling for those with anxiety, is typically the act of writing out and expressing all of one’s fears, worries or stresses. This allows the person to express, release and process the anxiety in a healthy way that could lead to them feeling lighter or more relieved of the pressure and weight. 

3. Moving your body 

A method that is actually scientifically shown to reduce the symptoms or anxiety is movement and exercise.

Exercise helps relieve anxiety in many ways:

•  Serves as a diversion or distraction from your anxiety.

• Activates the frontal regions of the brain, which helps our reaction to real or imagined threats

• Elevates your heart rate, which actually changes the chemistry of your brain allowing more space for anti-anxiety chemicals in the brain such as serotonin

• Moving your body releases muscle tension 

Moving your body doesn’t have to mean an intensive workout regimen. Moving your body can mean taking a daily walk outside, doing some yoga when you wake up in the morning, going skiing or snowboarding with friends or taking a cycling class. It’s important to move your body and exercise in the way that best suits your body, mind and lifestyle – in order to not cause more unneeded stress or anxiety. 

4. Nourish your body 

An important piece to mental health that often gets overlooked, is the way we treat our body – in what we put into it. Our mental health is actually considerably tied to our diet and nutrition and being mindful of how we eat can be an entire form of self-care in itself. Eating a diet with intention and being mindful of how you eat, can reduce symptoms of anxiety and many other related disorders and mental health conditions such as depression. Eating a diet that is rich in protein, natural vitamins, antioxidants and low in sugar is proven to reduce symptoms of anxiety. While some of the most comforting or “easy” things to eat tend to be the most appealing when you are struggling with mental illness, they can also be some of the most damaging. Fueling your body with healthy and nutritious foods will also fuel your mind.

 5. Talking to or surrounding yourself with people you trust

One of the biggest ways we can support ourselves through anxiety is to spend time with and talk to someone that we trust and feel comfortable with. Of course, you should only do this if it feels truly beneficial and not at your detriment. Having a listening ear, someone to offer support and companionship and even provide some feedback or helpful advice can make a significant difference in your daily life. In addition to having an outlet, if you simply spend time with people whose presence makes you feel safe, comforted or content, it will reduce your feelings of panic and potentially also serve as a distraction from whatever stress is consuming your mind. If there’s no one in your life specifically that you feel you can trust in this way, seeking the help of a therapist can be an incredibly helpful and comforting resource. A licensed therapist can not only provide a safe space to share all of your thoughts and emotions, but they can also provide you with helpful tools and resources that will also reduce your anxiety symptoms.

The Takeaway

Facing anxiety in your life can be consuming and extremely challenging, but there is an abundance of self care ideas like the ones listed above that can truly reduce your symptoms and make living with anxiety more manageable. It’s deeply important to know that regardless of what anxiety looks like for you, or the severity of your condition, you are never alone, and you never have to suffer through without help. If you feel that your anxiety symptoms are beyond the help of simple self-care routines like these, it may be time to reach out to a mental health specialist who can offer you support, diagnosis and treatment if necessary.

At Insight Northwest Counseling, we have a wonderful team of experienced providers who specialize in many forms of therapy to help treat anxiety disorders. Book an appointment with us today!