Do you ever feel an unexplainable fear over certain situations? You know your fear is excessive and irrational but you can’t just seem to talk yourself out of it. This state of mind is called anxiety. Everyone gets anxious from time to time because it is our body’s natural response to stressful situations. However, when this fear becomes excessive, uncontrollable, and seems to be negatively impacting your life to a large extent, you may be suffering from anxiety.
Anxiety usually affects its sufferers on a cognitive, emotional, and physical level. One may have continuous negative and disturbing thoughts. Emotionally, the person may feel stressed and disoriented. People may also experience physical symptoms such as accelerated heartbeats, sweating, and trembling. Anxiety can indeed feel overwhelming for the sufferer and may make life seem harder than it really is. Fortunately, it can be managed and its symptoms can be quelled to a considerable extent.
Here are five ways you can start coping with your feelings of anxiety
Journal Your Thoughts
The practice of putting down your thoughts on paper can be very liberating. This is because you are able to see things more clearly and think more objectively. As humans, our thoughts, emotions, and feelings tend to run on autopilot. As a result, we are not aware of most of them and act subconsciously. This is why it is important for anxious individuals to write down their thoughts. This enables them to recognise their thought patterns and even change those negative thoughts that may be contributing to their anxiety. You can make this a habit by taking out some time each day to reflect over events and how you interpreted them.
Meditate
This research study and many others have found mindful meditation to be effective in reducing the symptoms of anxiety. Anxiety often occurs as a result of overthinking about past or future events. Through mindful meditation, one can easily observe their thoughts and recognise when their minds are wandering. Again, this is a habit you should inculcate in your daily routine. You can practise meditation by focusing on your breath when you are alone, observing when your mind has wandered and gently bring your focus back to your breath again. Do this repeatedly for approximately ten minutes every day until you get used to the practice and gradually increase the time interval.
Exercise
Alongside meditation, exercise has been shown to be a natural tranquiliser for anxiety sufferers. Engaging in daily aerobic exercises and other variations can help relieve stress, boost one’s mood and increase cognitive function. Moreover, an improvement in the physical fitness of an individual can act as a great confidence booster for the person.
Focus Your Attention On Less Anxiety-Inducing Activities
Most times, simply redirecting your focus from your anxiety to meaningful activities can go a long way in making you less anxious. You can
– Take up a new hobby
– Learn a new skill
– Go for mindful walks
– Volunteer
– Join A Book Club
With time, engaging in such activities can help you get over your anxiety and prevent you from missing out on the best things in life.
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