How to cope with anxiety and worry: causes of mental discomfort and methods of calming down. How to cope with worry and anxiety? Practical recommendations and advice from a psychologist

In most cases, it is generally accepted that anxiety and worry are standard reactions in the presence of certain threats, unforeseen situations and other stimuli. Simply put, this is an absolutely natural process that allows a person to soberly assess what is happening and preserve his life, health, etc. However, in modern society, where natural threats are rare, some principles have changed significantly.

Practical psychology provides a number of methods that are guaranteed to reduce or completely eliminate the feeling of anxiety, leaving it at the level of natural reactions.

Breath

This is almost the simplest and effective way to relieve tension. It even allows you to stop the growing panic and relieve stress. Breathing exercises They are also actively used in yoga, allowing you to tune the body to calmness and tranquility.

To relieve tension and anxiety, try relaxing your muscles, preferably taking a sitting position if the environment allows it. Take a deep breath through your mouth, hold the air in your lungs and exhale through your nose. It is very important to take deep breaths and hold the air for at least 3-5 seconds, but no more, otherwise you can only make things worse. Repeat 5 to 8 breaths and the feeling of anxiety will most likely go away almost instantly.

Preparedness for consequences

Very often it is the uncertain prospects that cause anxiety. Transport is delayed, which may cause you to be late for an important meeting, there are layoffs at work, which may affect you, and much more. There can be a lot of reasons, but the essence is always the same - they “pump up” you, forcing you to experience anxiety and even fear.

How to fix this? Try to be prepared for the consequences that await you. Even if they don’t happen and everything turns out completely differently than you thought, this willingness will allow you to gain some confidence, come to terms with everything that happens and avoid the fear of uncertainty. As a result, the feeling of anxiety will no longer grow and cause you inconvenience.

Down with fear and suspiciousness

Psychologists note that often the reason for DC voltage and anxiety is common suspiciousness. Although this relates more to the individual himself, you still cannot leave everything to chance. Try not to avoid the growing feeling of fear and understand the reason for its appearance. Solve this problem and you can find peace of mind even in the most difficult situations.

Certainly, we're talking about more about those cases when fear is really unnecessary and it is not a natural reaction to external threats.

Don't make things worse

How often can anxiety occur? It grows gradually, starting small. It is enough to give in and find a reason for the development of anxiety, and after that other reasons will immediately begin to be found. As a result, you will bring yourself to a state of severe stress simply because you were unable to stop in time.

Although this is not easy, still try not to exaggerate and not allow any negativity to develop. Even if some incident has occurred, it is better to concentrate on finding a way out and solutions, rather than aggravating an already difficult situation.

Minimizing stress

Everything is simple here, less stress means fewer negative thoughts, a healthier psyche, which means there is no reason for alarm. Simply put, you won't feel anything like that when you feel good, so you need to try to work on it. This method is incredibly effective because it allows for prevention rather than correction.

Try to be less nervous, worry less about some trifles, try to concentrate on the good and not focus on the bad. Also be sure to get a good night's sleep and normalize your diet. This also applies to avoiding bad habits such as alcohol and cigarettes. Believing that cigarettes reduce stress is wrong and is nothing more than self-hypnosis.

Sport

You've probably met people who have been involved in sports for a long time and, it would seem, nothing can piss them off. This is partly true, because physical activity, especially if it is regular, relaxes the psyche. Moreover, it is an excellent discipline and also “teaches” the body to better cope with stress.

Therefore, if you need emotional release, there is nothing better than physical activity. This could be a workout in the gym, a trip to the pool, or a regular jog in the park or stadium.

Find something that makes you happy

Have you ever seen an artist panic while painting a picture? What about a musician who performs your favorite music? In most cases, the answer is simple - unlikely. Therefore, it is hardly possible to think of a more suitable way to get rid of anxiety and worry than favorite activity and hobbies.

Learn to express yourself in something that will bring you joy, positive emotions and a feeling of pride. This can be absolutely any activity, from creativity to collecting badges or magnets for the refrigerator. The activity itself plays absolutely no role, only the emotional return from it is important.

We all feel anxiety from time to time, but there are people in whose lives anxiety has become a constant guest. Anxiety occurs in a healthy, normally functioning brain that is working too hard to protect itself from fear. An anxious brain is extremely sensitive to danger; it often turns on the “panic” button just in case. This comes in handy when you really have something to worry about, but if it happens too often it becomes a problem.

Anxiety is a reaction of our body, we cannot control it. It is so widespread that if you are not affected by it yourself, then someone in your close circle probably suffers from an anxiety disorder.

Below are a few scientific discoveries, which shed light on the meaning of anxiety and suggest new ways to cope with it. If you trust science, read carefully.

The latest ideas on ways to cope with anxiety that work.

Five massage sessions can significantly reduce anxiety levels.

Very often it is unpleasant to do necessary and useful things, but this is not the case. As they say, “sign me up for this procedure for the rest of my life.” Massage really works, even if it seems too much at first glance in a simple way recovery.

Studies have shown that five sessions of Swedish massage can significantly reduce symptoms of anxiety and the level of cortisol (stress hormone) in the blood. Swedish massage is a technique classic massage, consisting of intensive kneading muscle tissue. People suffering from generalized anxiety disorder (feeling almost constantly anxious) received two 45-minute massage sessions per week for 6 weeks. Already at the fifth session (in the third week), the manifestation of anxiety symptoms decreased significantly. This was accompanied by a decrease in the symptoms of depression.

Another study demonstrated that massage reduces cortisol levels by an average of 31%, and also increases serotonin levels by 28% and dopamine by 31%. Anxiety and reduced level serotonin and dopamine correlate with each other. The exact reasons for this are unclear, but the importance of touch in maintaining good physical and mental health has been proven. Frequent touch (pleasant touch, of course, and not the kind that makes you want to run away) improves the immune system, lowers heart rate and blood pressure, strengthen connections between people and improve their well-being. But if massage is not your option, consider the next point.

Sleeping under a thick blanket can also help relieve anxiety.

A study has shown that sleeping under a heavy, thick blanket provides relief from anxiety. The feeling of being wrapped in something, like a cocoon, is calming nervous system.

It's no secret that one of the ways to calm a baby is to swaddle him. This works not only with children, but also with adults. When you wrap yourself in a thick blanket, your body's tactile receptors receive stimulation. This makes you feel more relaxed, grounded and safe.

Healthy gut flora reduces the risk of anxiety symptoms.

It is officially recognized in the scientific community that gut health has great value For psychological state. The healthier the intestines, the healthier the psyche. We know that the gastrointestinal tract is home to trillions of microbes. They send signals to the brain that can change our mood or behavior. Beneficial live gut bacteria are superstars in the world of mental health.

This is why it is very beneficial to eat foods that contain probiotics. Changing the composition of the intestinal microflora towards increasing the number beneficial bacteria, probiotics reduce anxiety levels. They are contained in:

yoghurts (not all, read labels carefully) and kefir
sauerkraut (or kimchi in Korean cuisine)
soybean products.

Be careful! The introduction of probiotics into the diet should be gradual. As probiotics destroy pathogenic microbes, toxins are released. These toxins already contribute to the development of symptoms of depression, anxiety, and physical illness. When the number of beneficial bacteria in your gut increases greatly, the amount of toxins increases as well, and the symptoms you are already suffering from become worse. So softer and more gentle.

And again about food! Taking Omega-3 reduces irritability and anxiety.

According to a study published in the journal Brain, Behavior and Immunity, omega-3 polyunsaturated acids reduced anxiety levels by 20% compared to placebo. The amount of Omega-3 was equal to 4-5 times the volume of fish oil in 1 serving of salmon.

The authors of the study believe that modern people You need to take care to include Omega-3 in your diet. There are three types of Omega-3. EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) and DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) are found in fish, especially tuna and salmon. The Harvard Institute of Public Health recommends eating fish or seafood at least twice a week. The third type of Omega-3 is ALA (alpha-linolenic acid), it is found in walnut, flax seed and flax oil, leafy vegetables and meat from grass-fed animals.

There is a special song for reducing anxiety, which scientists call« the most relaxing song in the world» .

The collaboration between music therapists and the Manchester group Marconi Union resulted in the creation of a music track called “Weightlessness”, the purpose of which is maximum relaxation. The creators claim that they relied on proven scientific data.

The British Academy of Music Therapy concluded that listening to a song can indeed lower blood pressure, slow down the heart rate and significantly reduce cortisol levels in the blood. The study also found that listening to a song reduces general level the patient's anxiety is 35% of what is usual for him. The relaxation effect was noticeable even when test participants were given a task that provoked stress in them. “Weightlessness” is eight minutes long and can be listened to here.

We warn you! The song has such a relaxing effect that it is better to refrain from listening to it while you are driving.

Anxious adults (and children, too) benefit from mindfulness because of the way it changes brain activity.

Mindfulness practice ( in the Orthodox tradition this is sobriety, vigilance and prayer- approx. ed.) changes the functioning of the brain, in particular its front part, which is responsible for cognitive and emotional processes, in such a way that the level of anxiety decreases.

Mindfulness is widely used in cognitive behavioral therapy, one of the most popular treatments for anxiety. Both children and adults can use this method.

Exercise at least a little. This has a magical effect.

Some neurons are born like puppies: they are easily excited and always ready to play. IN right time and in the right quantity, these neurons have no price. It is thanks to them that we can think quickly, act quickly and remember.

When there is too much of something good, it ceases to be good. When it's too much large number These neurons are activated unnecessarily, and anxiety may occur. To inhibit them, the brain has special remedy- GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid), whose task is to calm the brain. If there is not enough of this acid in the brain, then the body has nothing to calm the raging neurons.

Exercise works in a way that increases GABA levels in the brain. Most other ways to reduce anxiety (eg alcohol, meditation) also increase GABA, which is why they are effective ( but for obvious reasons we do not recommend them- approx. ed).

Apply that kind physical exercise, which makes your heart beat faster. It will be something different for each person. This doesn't mean you have to push yourself on the treadmill to the point where you can barely breathe. If you enjoy a more gentle form of exercise, try a brisk 20-minute walk or 8-10 minutes of walking up and down stairs twice a day. This will work too. Try something that you can do at least 5 times a week. We will write a separate article with ideas for those who think best view sports in the world lying on the couch.

If the exercises are rigorous and you are still in a bad relationship...

... try not aerobic exercise, but all kinds of stretching (stretching, Pilates, etc.). Scientists have found that these types of exercises also reduce anxiety. So relax and have fun.

So, if exercise reduces anxiety, what is the effect of lack of exercise?

When there is already anxiety, absence physical activity does not affect in the best possible way. Scientists from Deakin University in Australia found that sitting passively or doing low-energy exercise makes anxious people feel worse through the same brain chemistry we discussed above. So don't sit too long, go ahead!

Putting your feelings into words is a great way to reduce anxiety!

Using words to describe strong feelings can relieve symptoms of anxiety. In one study, 88 people with arachnophobia were asked to approach a large live tarantula and touch it if they could. Those who spoke openly about their feelings as they approached the spider showed less severe anxiety symptoms than those who used neutral words to describe their condition or remained silent. The more vividly the feelings were described (instead of “I’m nervous,” the person said “I’m scared to death”), the more pronounced the effect.

Previous research has shown that verbalizing feelings reduces activity in the amygdala (the part of the brain responsible for the fight-or-flight response) and therefore reduces the physiological manifestation of anxiety.

“This is ancient wisdom. Putting feelings into words has a healing effect. If my friend is sad and I can talk to him about it, he is more likely to feel relieved.”

Matthew Lieberman, professor of psychology and neuroscientist

Naming emotions calms the nervous system and allows the right and left hemispheres of the brain to work together smoothly. It is known that right hemisphere is more responsible for emotions and feelings, and the left in to a greater extent operates with words and logic. During anxiety, the right hemisphere is more active, and feelings can become overwhelming and seem meaningless. The left hemisphere states “this is what is happening,” and the right hemisphere then states “what does this mean to me.” When the left hemisphere is more actively involved through verbalization, it helps to give harmony and meaning to feelings. As Mark Brackett of the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence says, “If you can name it, you can harness it.”

Don't stop: take a position of strength!

Using power pose for two minutes changes the brain in a way that reduces anxiety and builds self-confidence and courage. Amy Cuddy from Harvard conducted research that showed that being in a position of strength for two minutes increases the level of testosterone in the blood (the dominance hormone) by 20% and reduces the level of the hormone cortisol by 25%. High testosterone leads to more confidence, while low cortisol increases the ability to resist stress. This powerful duo, working together, can significantly reduce anxiety.

The best thing about this is that this pose can be practiced alone. It triggers changes precisely at the physiological level, and does not change how you look to other people. In general, any pose that increases the amount of space your body takes up is a power pose. Think Superman: legs wide apart, arms in front of you, chin up, chest forward. A power pose is any pose that makes your physical presence larger.

And finally, an unexpected way to cope with anxiety before a difficult task.

A study conducted at Harvard University found that relabeling “anxiety” as “worried” improved performance in an activity that was typically associated with anxiety.

Anxiety and agitation are similar in many ways. Both the first and second are characterized high level excitement and a number of physiological signs: increased sweating, butterflies in the stomach, rapid heartbeat. Naming a feeling as anxiety triggers a series of negative thoughts about how things could go wrong. The new wording “excitement” helps to think in a constructive way.

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“The whole secret of existence is to get rid of fears.
Don't be afraid of what will happen to you, your future won't change
but the present will become calm.”
Siddhartha Gautama (Buddha)

Are you worried about yourself, your life, or the people close to you? To what extent are these worries are justified?

When you are worried about a serious matter and are able to pull yourself together in time, nothing threatens your state of mind.

But if the experiences are permanent, restless thoughts they buzz in your head like a swarm of wasps, it “paralyzes” you, deprives you of peace of mind.

In this state, you cannot control your emotions to accept right decision. And you don’t know how to stop the growing excitement.

At these moments, it seems that the ground is disappearing from under your feet. You feel helpless, you try to persuade yourself not to think about bad things. But that doesn't help.

I am convinced - with any problem we can handle it. There is always a resource to solve it.

And if you are feeling confused and anxious right now, this material will come in handy.

Let's figure out what's behind anxiety and how to eliminate it.

Why does anxiety occur?

Awareness of the problem is half of her solution. Sigmund Freud spoke about this.

Where do worries and restless thoughts come from? Once you know the nature of their occurrence, it will become easier for you to deal with them.

Let's define What are the reasons for anxiety?

1. The root chakra is unbalanced

Root chakra responsible for security in the material world.

If you are overcome by fears, anxiety, concern for yourself and your loved ones, then your first energy center not okay.

Muladhara is also family contact center. Most family and tribal programs are passed on to us by inheritance.

And hence the second reason for anxiety.

2. Family or ancestral programs

If your family was worried and worried about any reason, then you probably unconsciously based on this behavior. It's natural for you to worry.

It is important to realize this and in the moments of the next such “attack” ask yourself: “Are these my feelings?”

Swipe clear demarcation between your own thoughts and what you are used to hearing in your family. Maybe you are reacting out of habit?

3. Fear of repeating past experiences

If in your life (or in the lives of your friends/relatives) something happened in the past tragic event , the mind will periodically throw up alarming “reminders”.

He constantly fears something, reminds you with worry that if you go there or do that, something terrible will happen.

This is one of its functions - to protect you.

If you continue to try on all the troubles that happened to anyone else, then paranoia is guaranteed for you.

4. The desire to be “good”

One of the reasons for concern for loved ones is the need be "good".

As a rule, this applies to women. Since childhood, we have been taught to be “good girls.”

A good mother should worry about her children good wife- about my husband, good daughter— about elderly parents.

In the depths of the subconscious sits conviction, if you do not show concern, do not react with emotions to their problems, then what kind of mother, wife, daughter are you after this?

Think about whether your anxiety is needed by your loved ones.

If you love them maybe it would be better show love any other way? For example, learn trust them.

Find out how to get rid of the need to be good from the article.

5. Old emotions come out

After 2012, the period of transition of the planet from the 3rd to the 5th dimension began.

The Earth is freed from heavy energies, we are freed from old patterns of reaction.

If you have long found the cause of your anxiety and eliminated it, but panic attacks continue, these are old ones that are coming out unreleased emotions.

3. Shift your focus to pleasant things.

“Have you ever tried to think in another language in moments of anxiety? - Henry cut me off.
- What?
“It allows you to control yourself and prevents your thoughts from running wild.”
Donna Tartt "The Secret History"

Learn to take your mind off anxious thoughts. Don't let your emotions take over your mind.

As soon as the first restless thought flashes, shift focus for something pleasant, for something that makes you happy.

Do something. When you are inactive, you are more susceptible to anxiety.

Choose some active occupation, which will completely absorb your attention:

Play hide and seek with your child.
Go for a run around the house.

Allow yourself to be distracted and not worry about stopping worrying for a period of time.

4. Breathe out anxiety.

Focus on the physical sensations and determine where in your body the anxiety is located.

Breathe deeply through this area.

As you inhale, imagine how this part of the body is filled with harmonizing healing energy.
As you exhale, anxious thoughts leave the body beyond the aura and transform into light.

5. Observe your thoughts

“...start writing down your thoughts - everything that comes to your mind. Don't change them because you don't need to show this piece of paper to anyone! Just write them down for 10 minutes, if you look at them, these are your thoughts, you will think that this is the work of a mentally ill person..."
Osho "Orange Book"

When disturbing thoughts appear, do not banish them, but observe them. Don't resist, it will make you more anxious.

Imagine them as clouds floating across the sky. Just observe without judging.

Find out how to fill yourself with a sense of security from the inside on.

6. Replace anxious thoughts with positive affirmations.

You create your own reality. What do you choose to think, that's what will happen.

Rewrite anxious thoughts into positive ones. And as soon as bad thought occurs, replace it.

The saying is familiar - “life is like a zebra, then white stripe, then black.”?
Or this one - “he who laughs a lot will cry a lot.”?

Hence the belief that success will inevitably be followed by a series of troubles. It is better to give up benefits than to pay for them later.

Rewrite these attitudes as positive and inspiring. And then see how your life changes.

Life is like a rainbow. Every day greets me with new shades.
He who laughs a lot is happy.

7. Assess the benefits to loved ones of your anxiety.

Think about how anxiety can really help your children and loved ones? No way.

You you're wasting energy, which could be used to restore their resource or to truly take care of them.

The good news is that worrying alone will not change their fate.

Your fears most likely will not come true. Because your relatives came here with their own tasks.

But it is quite possible to create obstacles in their path and spoil the mood with anxious thoughts. Is this what you want?

In addition, you exhaust yourself, this makes you feel worse, which later leads to various diseases: hypertension, heart disease, stomach ulcers.

If you really love your children, husbands, parents, replace experiences pleasant memories of them.

And at a difficult moment, they will feel your message of love and care.

The same applies to yourself. Remember yourself in the sublime creative state, imbue yourself with this feeling, and it will displace anxiety.

8. “Where I am, there is a place of power”

At the accompanying webinar on May 19, 2016 for clients of the Training Center, Alena Starovoitova proposed the Keys of Mastery unusual method feel safe and protect your loved ones.

When you expose yourself to anxiety, you destroy yourself from the inside. You crave help, but you deprive yourself of it.

At such moments, the connection with the spirit is lost. And in it is yours true strength. Don't forget this.

How do you deal with anxiety? We'll be glad to read it!

The above practices will help you get rid of the disturbing thoughts that have already appeared in your head.

If you want to forget about fears and worries forever, with the help Bodies of Light.

Anxiety and phobias can be effectively treated

Do you feel anxious or overly anxious?

Perhaps your problems are related to an anxiety disorder.

How to cope with anxiety?

Self-help strategies for anxiety and anxiety disorders

Anxiety can be useful when it spurs you to take action and solve a problem. But if you worry for no apparent reason and always expect the worst-case scenario, then the anxiety itself becomes a serious problem that is not easy to cope with alone. Constant doubts and fears paralyze, rather than motivate or spur productive action. Anxiety reduces your emotional energy and interferes with your everyday life. The good news is that chronic anxiety can be managed effectively. You can train your brain to stay calm and collected and look at life from a more positive perspective.

Why is it so hard to stop worrying?

You have mixed feelings about your anxiety. On the one hand, you are quite tired of your worries - you cannot sleep and cannot get pessimistic thoughts out of your head. But it is possible that these concerns have an impact on you special meaning. For example, you think:

Maybe I'll find a solution.
- I don't want to miss anything.
“If I keep thinking about it a little more, maybe I’ll understand what’s going on.”
- I don’t want any surprises or surprises.
- I want to be responsible for what is happening.

You have a hard time letting go of your worries because, in a sense, they work for you.
It is very difficult to break the habit of worrying if you believe that worry protects you. In order to stop worrying and worrying, you must give up the belief that worry serves a positive purpose. Once you understand that anxiety is the problem, not the solution, you can gain control over your anxiety.

How to cope with anxiety?
Tip #1: Embrace uncertainty

The inability to tolerate uncertainty plays a huge role in the development of anxiety and anxiety. Chronic anxiety relies on doubt or unpredictability. You need to know with 100 percent certainty what exactly will happen. Anxiety is seen as a way to predict the future, avoid unpleasant surprises, and control outcomes. The problem is that this mechanism does not work.
Thinking about all the things that could go wrong won't make life more predictable. You may feel calmer when you are anxious, but this is just an illusion. Focusing on the worst-case scenario does not guarantee that nothing bad will happen. So if you want to stop worrying, start by changing your need for certainty and your need for immediate answers.

Combating intolerance of uncertainty is the key to eliminating anxiety.
Ask yourself the following questions and write down the answers. See if you can come to an understanding of the problem of intolerance of uncertainty.

Is it possible to be sure of everything that happens in life?
- What are the advantages and disadvantages of certainty?
- Do you tend to believe that unpleasant things can happen only because you are not sure of the opposite? What is the probability of a positive or neutral outcome in this case?
- Why live with constant fear that something negative might happen, given that the likelihood of this happening is extremely low?
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How to cope with anxiety?
Tip #2: Try putting off worrying until later.

It is extremely detrimental to productivity and normal daily life when anxiety and worry constantly occupy your thoughts. Trying to stop worrying doesn't work, at least not for long. You can be distracted for a moment, but you cannot get rid of anxious thoughts forever. Trying to do this often only strengthens them. However, this does not mean that there is nothing you can do to control your anxiety. You just need to try a different approach. Instead of completely suppressing your anxious thoughts, try to develop the habit of putting your worries aside.

Learning to put aside worry:

Define the "anxious period".
Choose a specific time and place for your alarm. They should be the same every day (for example, in the living room from 5:00 to 5:20 pm), and not too late so as not to be right before bed. During the "anxious period" you may worry about everything that comes to your mind. The rest of the time, try to avoid anxiety and worry.
- Stop what you’re doing if anxious thoughts come into your head during the day, make a short note on paper and put them aside for the “anxious period.” Try to remember that you will have time to think about it later, so there is no need to worry right now. Save the worry for later and continue with your business as usual.
- Work with your notes during the “anxious period”. Find out if the problems you have listed during the day bother you. If thoughts still bother you, allow yourself to think about them, but only for the amount of time you have allocated for the “worry period”. If problems no longer seem important, shorten your "worry period" and enjoy the rest of the day.
Delaying anxiety is effective because it breaks the habit of focusing on fears and concerns in the present moment. When you can develop the ability to put aside your anxious thoughts until later, you will begin to feel in control.
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How to cope with anxiety?
Tip #3: Track Negative Thoughts

If you suffer from chronic anxiety, you probably think the world around us more dangerous than he actually is. For example, you may exaggerate the likelihood that things will go wrong, choose the worst-case scenario immediately, or treat every negative thought, as if it were a fait accompli.
These irrational, pessimistic views are known as cognitive distortions.
Although cognitive distortions are not based in reality, they are not easily eliminated. They are typically part of an ongoing pattern of thinking and are so automatic that many people are not even aware of them.

In order to change this way of thinking and eliminate anxiety and worry, you must “reprogram” your brain. Start by identifying anxious thoughts, think in as much detail as possible about what scares or worries you. Then, instead of considering your thoughts as a fait accompli, think of them as hypotheses that need to be tested by reality.

Question disturbing thoughts:
- Is there evidence that the disturbing thought is true? What's not true?
- Is there a more positive, realistic view of the situation?
- What is the likelihood that what I fear will actually happen?
- If the probability is low, what are the possible scenarios?
- What is the use of this thought? How can anxiety help me?
-What would I say to a friend who was worried about this?
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How to cope with anxiety?
Tip #4: Learn to relax

Anxiety is more than just a feeling. It is the body's physical response to a perceived threat. Your heart beats faster, you breathe faster, your muscles tense. When you are relaxed, the reverse process occurs. Your heart rate slows, you breathe slower and deeper, your muscles relax, and your blood pressure stabilizes. Since it is impossible to feel anxious and relaxed at the same time, relaxation is a powerful way to combat anxiety.
If you suffer from chronic anxiety, relaxation techniques such as progressive muscle relaxation, deep breathing and meditation can teach you to use your body for rest. The key point is regularity. Try to set aside at least 30 minutes a day for relaxation. Gradually, relaxation will become a common practice for you and will be a good help in the fight against anxiety.

- Progressive muscle relaxation.
When anxiety strikes, progressive muscle relaxation can help relieve muscle tension and take time out. The technique involves systematic tension and subsequent relaxation of various muscle groups. As your body relaxes, your brain will also relax.

- Deep breathing.
If you are worried, breathe faster. Hyperventilation causes symptoms such as dizziness, shortness of breath, and numbness in the arms and legs. These are physiological symptoms of fear, which later leads to anxiety and panic. But by breathing deeply using the diaphragm, you can relieve these symptoms and calm down.

- Meditation.
Meditation has been proven to reduce anxiety. Research shows that meditation can actually change your brain. With regular meditation practice, activity in the left side of the prefrontal cortex, the area of the brain responsible for feelings of peace and joy, increases.
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How to cope with anxiety?
Tip #5: Take care of yourself

A healthy, balanced lifestyle plays a big role in keeping anxiety, fear and worry at an acceptable level.
There are a number of ways to cope with anxiety and worry.

Accept support
Anxiety and worry worsen when you feel powerless and lonely. The more you reach out to other people, the less vulnerable you will feel. If you are feeling anxious, call a close family member or friend. Simply talking about your concerns will make them seem less threatening.

Switch to a healthy diet
Start your day with breakfast and eat small, frequent meals throughout the day. Avoiding food causes low blood sugar levels, which can cause anxiety and irritability. Eat a lot complex carbohydrates such as cereals, fruits and vegetables. Not only do they stabilize blood sugar levels, but they also increase levels of serotonin, a calming neurotransmitter.
Avoid alcohol and reduce your consumption of caffeinated drinks, including soda, coffee and tea. Caffeine can increase anxiety, disrupt sleep, and even trigger panic attacks. Reduce the amount of refined sugar.

Exercise regularly
Physical education is a natural and effective way anxiety treatment. Try to start with at least 30 minutes of aerobics or other physical activity every day. Aerobic exercise relieves tension and stress, increases physical and mental energy and improves well-being by releasing endorphins, chemicals responsible for the well-being of the brain.

Avoid alcohol and nicotine
Alcohol temporarily reduces anxiety and restlessness, but actually causes additional symptoms once its effects wear off. Drinking alcohol to relieve anxiety and anxiety can lead to alcohol abuse and addiction. Smoking when you feel anxious also bad idea. Although cigarettes may seem to calm you down, nicotine is actually a powerful stimulant. Smoking increases, not decreases, anxiety levels.

Try to get some sleep
Anxiety and worry can cause insomnia. However, lack of sleep can also contribute to the development of anxiety. When you are sleep deprived, your stress tolerance is extremely low. When you are well rested, it is much easier to save peace of mind, which is a key factor in combating anxiety, and stop worrying.

If the suggested ways to cope with anxiety do not help, you should seek help from a mental health professional. There are many effective methods treatment of anxiety and anxiety disorders, including

People tend to worry about what is happening or might happen in their lives. There is nothing strange in a person’s desire to protect himself and his family from the blows of fate. But often fears become intrusive, interfere with living a full life, and destroy relationships and health. Then the question of how to get rid of anxiety becomes especially acute and requires an immediate solution.

What is the danger?

Experiencing anxiety for no reason or having real reasons for fear, a person feels enormous psychological pressure. In each case, the fears seem quite real to him. For people with an unstable psyche (subtle mental organization), the feeling of a constant looming threat can become absolutely unbearable, leading to nervous breakdown or committing reckless acts.

Often, without a proper understanding of how to deal with anxiety and worry, people become dependent on bad habits. They try to relieve stress with alcohol, cigarettes or even drugs. Such actions are not a method of dealing with anxiety. This is another cause for concern. After all, now you have to fight not only fear, but also a new disease.

Who is at risk?

How to get rid of constant feeling anxiety? This question most often torments those who are deprived of stability in everyday life, lack self-confidence, and are experiencing serious changes. For example:

Teenagers, against the backdrop of a hormonal surge, very often feel anxious, having no idea how to overcome their fears and what actually causes them;
lonely people in mature age are looking for a way to get rid of anxiety and worry, dreaming of starting a family and realizing themselves as parents;
elderly people in force age-related changes become victims of their own terrible fantasies and heightened feelings of anxiety;
those who are overtaken by serious financial difficulties often do not see a way to get rid of obsessive thoughts about financial collapse, especially for those who have suffered large losses.

In any of the above situations, a state of stress sets in, which can become chronic over time, and this is a direct path to prolonged depression, that is, to severe mental disorder. For this reason, any anxiety must be overcome, and persistent panic attacks require serious treatment.

How to fight?

To understand how to get rid of anxiety, it is important to determine its nature. To this end, it is useful to ask yourself the question: “What really scares me, what do I worry about most?” It is worth answering it as honestly as possible. Perhaps this will be the key to getting rid of anxious thoughts.

Often people are simply afraid to be honest with themselves and prefer to pretend that the problem does not exist, avoiding the need to act to eliminate it. Such tactics only aggravate the already difficult situation, increases mental tension and depletes strength.

The most common reasons for anxiety:

suspicions about serious problems with health;
family destruction, impending divorce;
threat of dismissal from a favorite job;
debts, unpaid loans;
upcoming difficult conversation;
any significant changes.

All these fears have a real basis, and this, paradoxically, lies good news. They can be dealt with if you take responsibility and take action. This approach will remove the problem.

We must admit that the problem exists and will have to be solved.
It is important to understand what will happen if events unfold according to the worst-case scenario, and immediately decide what actions to take in this case. This way there will be certainty in the situation. This feeling can significantly reduce anxiety, because a person’s greatest fear is the unknown.
Now it's time to act on your own. Stop waiting for initiative from other people if your anxiety is related to them. Let the unpleasant conversation take place in the near future, let the sick relationship begin to improve on your initiative. If it’s a health issue, see a doctor immediately!
It is extremely important not to “stretch out the pleasure”, but to decisively and quickly bring the situation to a resolution. To act rationally, it is wise to have a written plan where each item is well thought out and clearly outlined.

One has only to take the first step towards overcoming the problem, and a noticeable feeling of relief will come, the strength to move on will appear, and self-esteem will increase. There is a high probability that everything will be resolved much easier than expected, and you will even feel a little bewilderment, asking yourself: “Why didn’t I do this earlier?”

Groundless fear

How to get rid of anxiety if you can’t determine what caused it? Insomnia, a lump in the throat, heaviness in the chest - all this, alas, is not uncommon even for people living rich life and having stability in all respects.

Such obsessive fears very painful because they are incomprehensible. In reality, this condition also has real reasons, including:

intense work rhythm, insufficient number of days off;
hypertrophied sense of responsibility;
poor quality sleep;
sedentary lifestyle;
unhealthy diet;
sexual dissatisfaction;
hormonal imbalance;
negative social circle;
suspicious character.

When trying to find a way to overcome anxiety, you should look at yourself and your lifestyle from the inside, without taking into account external well-being. There are often cases when fears arise in the subconscious as a result of the body’s reaction to prolonged discomfort. This way you receive a warning about the danger and a signal about the need for change.

To deal with the problem, you will have to spend time, perhaps even take a vacation. It is important to spend at least a few days alone with yourself, analyzing and reflecting, walking alone and getting good sleep. Think about how you can improve your quality of life?

Play sports. It has been proven that during training, “happiness hormones” are produced in the human brain. Maybe there is simply not enough movement in your life? Then the problem is easy to solve. Hiking or jogging, cycling or swimming, dancing or yoga classes - the choice is huge!
Change your diet. Do you like sweets, baked goods, or are you into fast food? These are all “fast” carbohydrates that do not bring any benefit to the body. Moreover, they are the ones that cause a feeling of fatigue, apathy, and contribute to an increase in excess weight, develop dependence. Healthy eating– this is high tone, proper metabolism, blooming appearance.
Get rid of bad habits. There is nothing to talk about here. Alcohol depresses the nervous system, destroys brain cells, and poisons the entire body. That's the reason constant stress!

Think about what is good for you and what is harmful. Make adjustments to your lifestyle. Changing habits is possible only if you develop a new, replacement habit every day. Like-minded people will help; in sports, such a person can be a coach. A great way to keep your finger on the pulse is to keep a diary. With the help of daily reflections and notes, you can learn a lot of new things about yourself, come to unexpected conclusions and decisions, and achieve significant positive changes. Perhaps you can find own recipe How to get rid of constant anxiety and start living calmly. The main thing is to understand: you are not fighting in vain!

This property of human nature needs to be discussed separately. Laziness, like a snowball, becomes overgrown with negative, destructive emotions, which are very difficult to cope with:

apathy,
despondency,
low self-esteem,
self-doubt,
guilt,
fear,
anxiety.

Without action, a person loses control over his own life, becomes very vulnerable morally and physically weak. It is impossible to relieve the feeling of anxiety, no matter what causes it, if you do not make any effort. Often it is laziness that causes constant stress, a feeling of powerlessness and fear of an unknown threat.

How to remove this destructive factor from your life? There can be no new ideas here! Realize that laziness is just bad habit, a brake, a barrier between you and life. No one will remove it except you. The fight against laziness is movement. Once you start taking action, you will feel inspired, energized, and see the first results. There will be no time to worry.

Pathological fear

How to deal with anxiety if, even after analyzing your life, it is impossible to find out what is wrong in it? Physical health V in perfect order, there are no addictions, mutual understanding reigns in the family and financial well-being, but obsessive anxiety makes it impossible to enjoy it.

In such cases, we are usually talking about problems psychological nature, which should be treated by a specialist. It is better not to put off visiting the doctor, because depressive state may develop into panic attacks. It's difficult to get rid of them. They appear like this:

inexplicable, animal fear,
pressure surges,
profuse sweating,
dizziness,
nausea,
difficulty breathing.

Peculiarity panic attacks The point is that they usually happen suddenly, in crowded places and in ordinary situations that do not threaten life and health. This condition can be corrected, but it is easier to cope with it under the supervision of a treating specialist.