Health

5 Tips for Reducing Anxiety

Everybody experiences anxiety at some point in their life. Anxiety is a normal biological reaction to stressful situations and events, whereby the brain alerts us to potential danger by producing hormones that cause feelings of distress or uncertainty. These anxious feelings heighten our senses and awareness and can trigger us to take corrective action if necessary.

In modern society, anxiety is often triggered by ongoing stress from work and other obligations, instead of by potentially dangerous circumstances. Prolonged feelings of anxiety can impair functioning and productivity, or even lead to depression and other ailments. Here are some simple, natural, and effective ways to reduce anxiety.

  1. Get Enough Sleep

Insufficient sleep can increase anxiety by making it more difficult for individuals to control emotional reactions to stressful events. Unfortunately, this often creates a negative cycle, because as anxiety increases, it often becomes even harder to fall asleep or get restful sleep. Seeking practical methods to regulate and improve sleep can reduce anxiety.

  1. Move Your Body

Moving the body in any way, from slower activities like walking or yoga to more aerobic activities like exercising or skiing, helps relieve stress and anxiety. Try just stepping out and taking 100 steps away from your home and then return. Even that simple activity can reduce anxious feelings.

Physical activity increases the brain’s production of endorphins, the body’s feel-good hormones. Being active also improves overall health, works the body’s cardiovascular system, and positively impacts a person’s sense of well-being, so it has many benefits in addition to reducing anxiety. If you don’t exercise regularly, find a simple physical activity you enjoy and try doing it for just a few minutes daily to boost your mood.

  1. Practice Intentional Breathing

Breathing intentionally can help you manage anxiety instantly without requiring any tools, training, or even moving from where you are in the moment. Just try breathing in deeply and then breathing out deeply for five long counts each breath. Or add a mindfulness tool, and think to yourself, “Breathe in health, breathe out stress,” as you take each deep breath in and out. You can change the words “health” and “stress” to adapt this technique to make it work best for you.

There are many examples of effective breathing techniques online. Spend a few minutes researching and trying them out to find some intentional breathing methods to help reduce anxiety.

  1. Improve Your Self-Care Routine

Proper self-care improves our emotional, mental, and physical health and overall well-being. Some key self-care activities are relaxation, meditation, sleep, exercise, and maintaining a nutritional diet. Adjust your overall self-care routine to include many of these anxiety-reducing methods. Remember that making time for fun and enjoyment, such as visiting with friends and family or doing something you enjoy, is another important element of self-care.

  1. Use CBD Oil to Reduce Anxiety

Image via Flickr by Ecigclick.co.uk

CBD oil can reduce anxiety and provide many other positive health results. Some benefits of CBD oil include reducing anxiety and depression, improving sleep, and reducing pain and inflammation of joints and muscles.

Experiment with these helpful tips to reduce anxiety. Start with small changes to determine which options best alleviate your feelings of anxiety.

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