Anxiety is the body’s way of responding to situations that seem scary. It may lead to stress if not managed. Typically, you may experience anxiety on three levels; cognitive, emotional, and physical levels. Accordingly, you may struggle to manage anxiety and feel like it is taking over or that you are entirely out of control. Luckily, there are three simple ways to control your anxiety.
Physical exercise
Physical exercise is one of the best ways of managing stress. Putting your body through its paces can help you relieve mental stress. The benefits become even more incredible when you make it part of your lifestyle. In addition, people who work out frequently are less likely to be anxious than those who do not. Physical activities that involve repetitive movement of major body muscles can help you relieve stress. You can try jogging, walking and dancing as part of your daily exercise.
Breathe in and out
When anxiety takes over, you should take time and think about the things that make you nervous in the first place. This may be a past or future event. For instance, you may be anxious about the thought that something may not work out as it should. You may also feel upset over something that has happened. Regardless of what makes you anxious, it is always advisable to be mindful of the situation beforehand.
You can manage anxiety by taking a deep breath to clear your mind of worrying thoughts. Stop and breathe to restore your balance. Accordingly, you can take mindful breathing to the next level through a breathing exercise. A breathing exercise is an excellent relaxation technique that will help you ease your body and mind of any depressing and stressful thought and allow you to focus on the present.
Identify and manage your triggers
The best way to manage anxiety is by identifying your triggers. You can do this on your own or with the help of a therapist. Inpatient treatment can be a perfect way to determine what triggers your anxiety. Some anxiety triggers can be as apparent as alcohol or caffeine. Sometimes, the catalyst may be a less obvious cause.
For instance, financial or work-related issues may be your triggers. Unfortunately, some of these long-term causes may be hard to identify. You may need time to figure out this, and that is why you may need a therapist.
When you identify your anxiety triggers, the best way to manage them is to limit your exposure to them. However, restricting some triggers can be challenging. For instance, a stressful work environment may not be easy to avoid. In that case, try other coping techniques.
Some common anxiety triggers include:
- Trauma
- Traveling
- Stressful work environment
- Drug addiction
- Chronic illnesses
The Bottom Line
Anxiety may come from a working environment or issues to do with your personal life. Fortunately, there are many ways you can use to manage it and reduce the pressure from your life. If you can learn to manage sleeplessness, you can always find it more manageable to deal with anxiety.