In these times it seems like you can’t turn on the TV, read the news or even read social media where there isn’t some doubt or worry that creeps into your mind. You are not alone! There are many people that have anxiety, stress or depression. We are going to focus on some anxiety management strategies – please note that you should seek professional support if your anxiety is proving to be difficult to manage. Any of the following 5 techniques listed below can be used to help alleviate worries and mitigate anxiety.
- Write down your worries: Take the time each day to document your worries and review/study them. By giving yourself time to focus on your worries, it can lead to other times that these worries will not come to mind, thus reducing anxiety.
- Stay in the present: Don’t focus on thoughts that are based on a self-made future that is scary. This ramps up anxiety. (ex: my husband is late coming home from work – he’s been in a terrible accident or something bad has happened; when in fact, his cell phone battery may be dead, and he is stuck in traffic, or he stopped at the store to buy you a treat that you have been wanting/needing). Bring yourself back to the present and focus on breathing, which leads to our next technique.
- Breathe: Focus on your breathing and slow it down. Your breathing is shallow and fast when you’re anxious. Breathe in 3 seconds through your nose, then breathe out through your mouth for 3 seconds. This is going to assist you in slowing down your breathing.
- Question your self-talk: When you think of different ways of looking at a situation, use facts to determine what are those things that are within your control or outside of your control. Focus on an action plan in which you are in control. You could worry about those things that are not in your control, but why worry about it if it is completely out of your control? Here again, determine what you could do if the best or worst case were to happen and add that to your action plan, but please don’t spend time worrying about those things that you have no control over. By taking action, you are focusing on what you can control, and you start eliminating those worries that cause anxiety.
- Muscle Relaxation: Tense and relax your various muscle groups by holding the tension for 3 seconds and then quickly releasing. This will assist in relieving tense muscles that occur when anxiety exists.
On a very personal note, my relationship with God and prayer has helped me more than anything. Spending time to truly worship and have a relationship with God has been something I have built into my day-to-day activities. I always carve out quiet time to study His word through the Bible. I know that he is always with me, no matter what I am going through in life.
What are techniques or routines that have helped you with your worries or anxieties?
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