7 techniques to calm your anxieties

Anxiety has been noted as the most common mental health issue. A lot of us are affected by anxiety. Sometimes it can become so crippling that we can’t get productive. Do you get anxious? I do, and I am still trying to come up with solutions to manage my anxieties. Here are some techniques you can use to calm your anxieties.

How can you calm your anxieties?

Meditate

A friend recently introduced me to meditation, and don’t I wish I picked it way before? Meditation, or simply the art of calming yourself down and breathing, can calm your anxieties instantly.

First, I identify what is making me anxious. Is it because I about to do something new? Is it because I am scared things are not working my way? Knowing what is making me anxious helps me tailor-make my meditation to calm my immediate cause.

I sit down, take deep breaths, and tell myself calming words. For example, if I am about to do something new, I simply tell myself over and over, you can do this. You can do whatever you want. It is not as scary as it seems. You have done bigger things in the past.

This helps me unveil what is scaring me and dissect it enough to make it less scary. I have seen this work and help me deal with my anxieties and I am hoping to do more of it.

Affirmations

I have come to appreciate the power of affirmations. Sometimes you need to hear yourself say something out loud for you to believe it. Affirmations can help you calm down your anxieties.

Just as I have discussed under meditation, identify the cause of your anxieties and say out loud some affirmations to make you feel better. If you are anxious because you feel inadequate, or experiencing self-doubt, consider self-doubt affirmations.

I made a list of affirmations for different situations here.

Simply saying out loud, I am worthy of love, I can do this, nothing is thrown my way that I can’t handle, can help you feel better.

Journal

With phones and computers dominating our lives, few of us journal. Especially writing down on a journal is done by a very small population. However, journaling, whether you write down your feelings on your phone, tablet, computer or notebook, can help you calm your anxieties.

I journal on my laptop, I have a folder labeled journal. I spend a lot of time on my laptop. When I am feeling anxious, I write down what I am feeling, why I am feeling that way, and how I can do things differently so I don’t feel anxious in the future.

For example, there was a time I was anxious because I had failed at a task that had been delegated to me by my partner. It wasn’t much of a big deal but it made me so anxious. I remember journaling it down and reminding myself that it is ok to make mistakes sometimes, no one is perfect.

I also explored why such a small task made me so anxious and realized that I hated doing my partner wrong because he hardly does me wrong. I felt as if I had let him down. I reminded myself that he was understanding and didn’t blame me and I also need to stop blaming myself. After writing about the whole situation, I felt so much better.

Listen to some music

Has music ever been there for you when you needed it? it has for me. Listening to music can be so calming that you wish you did it often. Some anxieties are better dealt with by distracting yourself and this is one great way to do it.

Listening to music that makes you feel good lets you not get inside your head too much. Sometimes, our anxieties are simply founded on overthinking situations. A healthy distraction will help you get outside your head and focus on something you love.

Face your fear

I don’t know about you, but I am often anxious when I need to get something done, yet I don’t feel confident about doing it. Whether it’s a meeting, a new project, a tough project or a test, this can increase your anxieties.

From what I have learned, the more I postpone doing what is making me anxious, the more anxious I become. When I confront the task or the meeting, I realize it is not as bad as I had pictured it in my mind.

What have I done here? I have simply faced my fears and confronted the monster upon which I realize the monster is not as scary. Are you feeling anxious and avoiding that thing that’s making you anxious? Choose to confront it and get over with it. Trust me, you will feel so much better.

Exercise

Exercise releases some happy hormones and calms you down. Feeling anxious? Consider taking a walk, a jog, or whichever form of exercise is available and you are comfortable with. When you get your body moving, a few things happen.

First, you get outside your head and shift your thoughts. Secondly, you focus your energy not on worrying, but on doing something good for you, leaving you feeling much better about yourself.

Third, exercise improves your confidence, and this can help you face your fears that are probably making you anxious. A jog for me does wonders. When I take one in the morning, I feel confident enough to face my day with the least amount of anxiety possible.

Talk it out

I have always said that unmasking things make them less scary. When you talk about your anxieties, you make them less scary. If you are feeling anxious, find someone who understands and talk to them.

Talking it out can calm you down. When you address something, it is no longer burdensome to you since you have shared the burden.

Secondly, saying things out loud makes you realize that they are not as big as you perceived them to be. Have that friend that you can call, or go see, simply to talk things out.

What do you do to calm your anxieties?