Coping with daily anxiety can be incredibly difficult, interfering with your ability to go about life as you see fit. However, there are effective anxiety management techniques that can help you reduce your anxiety symptoms, help you relax, and provide you with the relief you need to thrive.
If you need help coping with daily anxiety, reach out to Active Path today and book an appointment.
1. The 5-4-3-2-1 Method for Coping with Daily Anxiety
One of the most powerful coping skills for anxiety is called the 5-4-3-2-1 technique. When you feel the first signs of anxious thoughts or a panic attack, try to notice:
- 5 things you can see
- 4 things you can touch
- 3 things you can hear
- 2 things you can smell
- 1 thing you can taste
As simple as this may sound, it’s one of the most common and effective coping strategies for anxiety there is. It helps to ground you in your physical surroundings, which can stop anxious thoughts in their tracks.
2. Body Scan
Anxiety is typically rooted in the mind, but the path to relieve anxiety is often through the body. A body scan is a simple tool for managing anxiety. It starts by scanning your body from head to toe, noticing how each part of your body feels, relaxing your muscles, noticing the physical symptoms you are experiencing, and letting them wash away.
3. Mindfulness Strategies
Mindfulness strategies are rooted in helping people connect to the present moment. People with anxiety disorders often get anxious feelings when thinking about the future, and these thoughts can spin out of control at a moment’s notice. Mindfulness simply encourages you to focus on the here and now, let your thoughts drift by without engaging with them, and focus your entire attention on your senses, rather than your mind.
Practicing meditation can help you tap into this sense of mindfulness and help you manage anxiety when it occurs.
4. Breathing Exercises
Breathing exercises are powerful relaxation techniques for people with an anxiety disorder. During panic attacks or anxiety symptom flare-ups, people can experience shortness of breath or trouble breathing, which escalates the physical symptoms of anxiety. Breathing exercises switch your breath into manual control, helping you regulate your breathing and reduce anxiety.
The next time you’re feeling anxious, try the box breathing technique:
- Breathe in through your nose for four seconds
- Hold your breath for four seconds
- Exhale slowly through the mouth for four seconds
- Hold your breath at the bottom of the exhale for four seconds
This simple strategy can reduce feelings of anxiety rapidly and stop your symptoms from escalating further.
5. Starting an Exercise Routine
Physical activity has been shown to reduce the symptoms of anxiety in several scientific studies. It can be used for short-term relief, such as going for a run when you feel anxious, or for long-term prevention, such as exercising regularly to keep anxiety at bay.
6. Anxiety Support Groups
Anxiety support groups connect you with other people who share a common set of symptoms and are working together to achieve better mental health. These groups can help you to feel understood, teach you anxiety management techniques that have worked for other people, and provide you with a social support network to lean on in difficult times.
7. Leaning on Friends for Support
A calm friend or family member may be just what you need when your negative thoughts are spiraling out of control. If you have a supportive friend who can understand what you’re going through, try calling them the next time you start feeling anxious to see if their support can help calm you down.
8. Starting Therapy
Meeting with a mental health professional for anxiety therapy is one of the best things you can do for coping with daily anxiety. There are a number of evidence-based therapeutic styles to help overcome anxiety, and a mental health provider can help you start the treatment you need to achieve a lasting recovery.
9. Anxiety Medication Management
Anxiety medication can provide both immediate and long-lasting relief from panic disorder and other forms of anxiety. Medication management can make sure that you’re taking the right medications for your needs, and that you have the support you need in the treatment process.
Reach Out to Active Path
Leaving your anxiety untreated can often make anxiety worse. When you’re ready to start taking the steps toward lasting recovery, call Active Path Mental Health in Portland at 503.388.9992 to get the evidence-based services you need, or book an appointment here.
