Exercises To Calm Your Anxious Thoughts
Getting a handle on anxiety.
Have you ever heard the “finding your happy place” expression? Painting a mental picture of a place that makes you feel relaxed can actually calm your brain and body. When you start to feel anxious, sit in a quiet and comfortable place. Think of your ideal place to relax. While it can be any place in the world, real or imaginary, it should be an image that you find very calming, happy, peaceful, and safe. Make sure it’s easy enough to think about so you can return to it in your mind when you feel anxious in the future.
Think of all the small details you’d find if you were there. Think about how the place would smell, feel, and sound. Envision yourself in that place, enjoying it comfortably. Once you have a good picture of your “happy place,” close your eyes and take slow and regular breaths through your nose and out of your mouth. Be aware of your breathing and continue focusing on the place you’ve imagined in your mind until you feel your anxiety lifting. Visit this place in your mind whenever you feel anxious.
Counting is a simple way to ease your anxiety. When you feel anxiety washing over you, find a quiet and comfortable place to sit. Close your eyes and slowly count to 10. If necessary, repeat and count to 20 or an even higher number. Keep counting until you feel your anxiety subsiding.
Listen to music that is soothing or makes you happy get up a dance if you need to moving your body can assist in reducing stress and release natural hormones that can make us feel happy.
When you feel anxious, you might notice strain or tension in your muscles. This muscle stress can make your anxiety more difficult to manage in the moment you’re experiencing it. By relieving the stress in your muscles, you can usually reduce your anxiety levels.
To quickly relieve your muscle tension during moments of anxiety:
Sit in a quiet and comfortable place. Close your eyes and focus on your breathing. Breathe slowly into your nose and out of your mouth.
Use your hand to make a tight fist. Squeeze your fist tightly.
Hold your squeezed fist for a few seconds. Notice all the tension you feel in your hand.
Slowly open your fingers and be aware of how you feel. You may notice a feeling of tension leaving your hand. Eventually, your hand will feel lighter and more relaxed.
Continue tensing and then releasing various muscle groups in your body, from your hands, legs, shoulders, or feet. You may want to work your way up and down your body tensing various muscle groups. Avoid tensing the muscles in any area of your body where you’re injured or in pain, as that may further aggravate your injury.
Connect with others, sometimes a conversation and talking it out can help to lessen anxiety during a panic attack. Reduce your isolation and engage with others.
