7 Daily Tools to Help Naturally Manage Anxiety

Living with anxiety can make most days seem a lot harder than normal to get through and having this feeling is totally understandable. Your body more often than not will react to everyday scenarios with a fight or flight response and this is very challenging and extremely draining for your body, mind, emotional and physical state. Trying to manage the most basic tasks can seem impossible when your anxiety takes over, so, I’ve put together some simple tools to help you manage your anxiety on a daily basis so that you have the upper hand on it before it has the upper hand on you. It is important to remind yourself that having anxiety is just one part of who you are, it is not all that you are, and it does not define your worth. An important step to help manage your anxiety is to grow to appreciate it (I know it sounds crazy to think, “why would I want to appreciate something that makes me feel this way!”). Be open to seeing the positives it has and what it teaches you. Everything in life can benefit or hinder us, we don’t have the power over our make up and many other things, but we do have the power over our perspective on it. Working with your anxiety instead of fighting against it will be a turning point for you and how you see yourself.

Simple Steps on How to Cope with Anxiety

Breathing

How we breathe plays a major role in the signals our bodies receive, leading to what we feel and therefor how we react. When you are feeling stressed, overwhelmed, anxious or all of the above take a moment, ideally 15-30 minutes and find a comfortable upright position or lay flat on a mat and do some deep breathing. Deep breathing also known as diaphragmatic breathing is extremely effective in lowering anxiety, stress and depression and helps restore your bodies emotional balance. It is one of, if not the most effective natural route to take to calm your body and mind, in an immediate, practical and easy way. I do this on a daily basis, anywhere from a few minutes up to almost 45 minutes whenever I need to settle my body, calm my chest being tight or ease my mind. I really really recommend it.

Stretch It’s no question that stress in our bodies causes major tension, headaches, feeling tired and a plethora of aches and pains, including blockages. Stretching can help you to feel more at ease physically and emotionally, it often gives me the mindset and energy to then get through some daily errands and gives me an overall uplifted feeling. The other benefits of stretching include:

•Better circulation: promotes blood flow which increases circulation

•Focus: increased circulation helps in the release of oxygen to the brain which helps you to feel more focussed

•Happier mood: Brain produces endorphins and serotonin in the body, the chemicals that make you feel happy

•Increased energy: if you feel physically and emotionally drained, stretching is a good way to get your blood flowing, release tension and reboot your system

Music

Listening to gentle, calming music such as instrumental music is always my number one go to. It’s the core element I add to any anxiety managing exercise I do. Sit or lay down, close your eyes or have a soft focus on something in front of you and follow the sound of the instruments. Allow yourself to be completely immersed in the melody. Music can help ease the feeling of stress, reduce that anxious feeling lingering in your body and really alter your mood. It is another very effective, simple and natural method to reduce anxiety.

Fresh Lemon Water

Lemon water has a soothing and calming effect on your body while providing your system with energy. Calms and energises, two in one!

Journal

Journaling is a really good tool to use to get things off your chest, or even get you to a place to discover what it is that is on your mind. Even though it isn’t actually speaking to someone, simply expressing whatever it is you’re thinking about, something you’re stuck on, or finding what may have triggered the heightened anxiety- sitting and writing it out can lift a big weight that it has on you and simply ease the load on your chest and your mind. In my case it sometimes removes its weight completely, and often helps me to calm to heightened worry over the things I can’t control. It’s a powerful tool to use because it can also help you come to the understanding you were looking for, and often gives you a new perspective on the matter as though you were talking it out with someone.

Less Phone / More Nature

It’s no surprise that we can easily over indulge in the technology and social media world. This can have a major impact on our mental and emotional states. Take some time away from your phone and add that time into being in nature. No messaging, calling, answering emails, scrolling through Instagram, Tiktok, editing photos, watching videos on Youtube- the works- Take a pause, it’s not going anywhere. Really take this time to remove from the screen and be present in your surroundings. Take in the nature around you, if it’s not in your immediate surrounding, go for a little walk. Be present with yourself and listen to what your body is truly feeling and really needs from you. This time often brings you the sense of clarity and calm.

Cut Down on Caffeine

I am a coffee lover so I KNOW reading that it’s almost an immediate “okay well I definitely can’t/won’t be doing that one”. However- as a coffee lover and someone who deals with a LOT of anxiety I will tell you that sometimes it is a better call to make to decide to cut it back or even cut it out for a little while, and when adding it back, if you decide to, making sure you create a comfortable medium where it doesn’t take over. Caffeine is a stimulant and what that can do is trigger your “fight or flight” mode and heighten your anxiety on an exponential scale simply by just adding caffeine to system, (we already are very familiar with this feeling having anxiety), so when your anxiety is heightened and you are having caffeine, especially a lot of it, your body can end up in fight or flight overdrive, which is exhausting and unhealthy on many levels, which can result triggering an anxiety attack. If you cannot manage to do every step everyday, that is okay. Try doing at least one of these tools everyday and see the difference you feel. Play around with them, and see what resonates most, if not all, with you.