How To Calm Down When Coping With Anxiety?

Researchers estimate that 31% of adults may experience an anxiety disorder at some point in their lives. While stress and anxiety may be unavoidable, there are effective ways to self-soothe and manage your anxiety.

What is anxiety?

Anxiety is a feeling of worry, fear, or concern about an event with an uncertain outcome. It can be accompanied by various physical manifestations. Although anxiety is a natural reaction to many situations, it can become excessive.
Common symptoms of anxiety include trouble falling or staying asleep, difficulty concentrating, feeling tense, irritable, or restless; one becomes easily fatigued or weak.

Calming techniques to help with anxiety

If you allow anxiety to build up, the above symptoms can become even more severe. It can also affect relationships with your partner, family, and friends, and interfere with your work. To cope with anxiety, try one or more of the following calming exercises.

Anxiety Jar

Excessive worry is a symptom of anxiety.
The “anxiety jar” exercise helps you get away from anxiety by acknowledging your thoughts and then giving them distance. Close your eyes and imagine the following:

• Write your worries on a piece of paper
• Fold the sheet several times
• Put it in the jar of anxiety
• Close the jar with the lid and put it away

This exercise can be done with guided imagery or with a pen, paper, and an empty jar. Physically putting the closed jar of worries aside symbolizes controlling your reaction to them and letting them go.

Positive Affirmations

Positive affirmations are short, powerful statements that help you challenge your negative thoughts. Affirmations boost self-confidence and help you focus on the positives. It takes practice, but over time you will notice positive changes. Start by choosing an affirmation that you would like to focus on, such as:

• At this moment, I feel grounded
• I am not my thoughts
• I will focus on today
• I am worthy of love
• I trust myself
• I get rid of toxic and negative thoughts.

Repeat your affirmation slowly five to 10 times, allowing yourself to really feel and internalize the message. Breathe deeply between each repetition to connect even more with your body at the moment.

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Keeping a diary

Keeping a diary will help you process your thoughts and feelings and allow you to see them from a new perspective. There are different ways to diary. Experiment, changing your approach to journaling if necessary, to keep you motivated.

• Make a gratitude list
• Compose a poem or song
• Use pictures to express how you feel
• Write a letter to someone
• Write a letter to your future or former self
• Make up a story with you as the main character
• Use reminders

Physical Grounding

This calming technique is especially effective when you feel stress and anxiety building up or intensifying. Here are some ways to physically ground yourself:

• Pick up an object and make an observation over it. How heavy or light is it? Is it soft or hard, smooth or rough? What does the texture look like? Is there an edge to it? Does it have a flavor?
• Focus on the feel of what touches your body. If you are standing, what does the ground beneath your feet look like? If you are sitting in a chair, is it soft, hard, or cozy? What do the clothes you wear feel like?
• Hold your hands under running water. Notice how the liquid moves through your palms and between your fingers. Is it warm or cold? Is it a gentle trickle or a heavy stream?
• Breathe in your favorite scent. Maybe it’s a candle, a piece of clothing, a fresh flower, or perfume.

Breathing exercises

When we are anxious, our breathing becomes frequent and shallow, which deprives our body of essential oxygen.

Box breathing is a simple breathing exercise that you can do at any time. It gets its name because it consists of four equal parts: exhale while counting to four, hold your lungs empty for four counts, inhale for four counts, hold air for four counts, then exhale again before repeating.

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