How to calm down your brain and body
What is anxiety?
Anxiety is common response to stress or uncertainly, usually about something that might happen in the future. In many ways, anxiety is a helpful response to prepare us for potential threats. However, anxiety may become excessive and problematic when it interferes with daily living.
Anxiety is both physical and mental. You might find yourself experiencing muscle tension, difficulty sleeping, nausea, racing heartbeat, or trembling. Mentally, you might notice difficultly concentrating, racing thoughts, excessive worry, or increase irritability.
Calming down our bodies and our brains can help manage anxiety symptoms.
Helpful coping skills for anxiety:
Box breathing. Box breathing helps to reduce stress and relax your body. Simply inhale for four seconds, hold your breath for four seconds, exhale for four seconds, and hold for four seconds. Repeat until your body feels calm.
Progressive muscle relaxation (PMR). PMR helps your body to relax by intentionally tensing and relaxing different muscle groups in your body. Follow this guided video to try it out for yourself: https://www.therapistaid.com/therapy-video/progressive-muscle-relaxation.
Journaling. Try writing out all your thoughts and feelings onto paper. Sometimes getting the thoughts out of your brain and onto a piece of paper can help us process difficult emotions.
Seek professional help. Talking to a counselor or psychiatrist can be extremely beneficial in managing anxiety symptoms.
*Please note, this blog post does not substitute for mental health care or a specific treatment plan.