5 Ways To Combat Anxiety
We’d be hard-pressed to find someone who hasn’t struggled with gnawing, anxious thoughts before. For some of us, bouts of anxiety pop up when life has gotten particularly messy or uncertain — when it feels like everything is just piling up and we’re struggling to stay on top of our responsibilities.
For others, our anxiety is less about exterior circumstances, and more about an ongoing internal conflict; anxiety, in this case, feels like our shadow, a persistent humming that hasn’t gone away, and it’s left us weary.
Either way, anxiety is a universal experience, and however our anxiety presents itself, we could all use more tools and ideas to healthily handle it when its presence feels overwhelming. Below, find five ways we can combat our anxiety and breathe a little easier.
01 | Get active.
Whether it’s going for a brisk walk, jogging on a treadmill, or taking a dip in the pool, exercising has been shown to help ease both anxiety and depression (the friend that might tag along with anxiety) by causing us to release endorphins, our body’s natural mood booster. Along with that, exercising regularly will give us more confidence in our overall health and appearance.
02 | Meet up with a friend.
This is what friends are for; the worst thing we can do with our anxious thoughts is leave them to keep multiplying and intensifying without confiding in someone who knows and loves us. The act of going to meet a friend for coffee will give us an opportunity to shift our focus onto something else for a time, and talking through our worries with them in a new, energizing setting may offer us a new perspective.
03 | Do something creative.
It turns out that our creative hobbies like painting, baking batches of cookies, tinkering on the piano, or writing that fantasy novel are more valuable to our mental health than we initially thought. Creative acts will activate the parts of our brain that process emotions, making engaging in creativity in the midst of our especially anxious moments all the more beneficial.
04 | Seek out counseling.
Some will find the first three rhythms and routines helpful enough to soothe their anxiety. Others might need more help — professional help. Counselors are trained to walk through our anxiety and any other mental heath hangups we’re struggling with, and sometimes, having someone that we can lean on and trust with our darkest, heaviest emotions is necessary for our betterment.
05 | Treat yourself.
Anxiety has a way of building up, of compounding as it becomes heavier, leading us to feel as though we don’t have a spare moment to treat ourselves to something good and beautiful — or that we don’t deserve it. But continuing to allow ourselves to indulge in the small yet wonderful things in life — a long bath with candles, an extra piece of chocolate, a hot mug of tea before bed, or a sweet, comforting movie without interruptions — can offer us a breath of peace in what otherwise would’ve been a draining day.