How To Control Anxiety, In 7 Useful Steps

Anxiety is behind many of the unpleasant experiences we experience on a daily basis. Fear of speaking in public, fear of failing an exam, desire to return home after spending a long time in a place we don’t know… The number of contexts in which this psychological phenomenon stalks us is very large.

So that, knowing how to control anxiety is something that can be very useful since there are some strategies to achieve this that can be applied in practically any situation, and in a relatively simple way.

    How to control anxiety? Tips and strategies

    Anxiety is a state of activation of the nervous system that is oriented towards the anticipation of danger, whether real or imagined. Being something so general, it has a physiological aspect and a psychological aspect: in the first, phenomena such as tremors, sweating and accelerated pulse appear, and in the second there are phenomena such as the emotion of fear, the desire to avoid a stimulus. aversive, and difficulties controlling emotional responses to a situation

    Now… how can we control anxiety and make its effects cushioned or even disappear? Let’s see it.

    1. Eliminate binge eating due to anxiety

    Many people fall into the trap of going to the refrigerator to stuff themselves with food every time they notice that their anxiety is becoming excessive.

    This may be a very short-term solution, but it has a very harmful effect in the medium and long term. Because? Because you enter into a dynamic of rewarding the appearance of anxiety episodes. The body gets used to this busy emotional life and which, of course, is anything but healthy.

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    Therefore, something as simple as setting clear limits with meal times can help a lot to not continue promoting the appearance of anxiety.

    Anxiety and food

    2. Take care of yourself and do moderate sports

    Many times we forget that anxiety is also connected to our self-esteem and self-concept. If we believe that we are insignificant beings and whenever we think about ourselves we focus only on our imperfections, we will obviously come to the conclusion that everyday life is full of dangers for us, and that therefore we must always be alert.

    Something as simple as practicing sports regularly, trying to eat healthy and maintaining good personal hygiene. it will make us feel better about ourselves The results of this are surprising, and usually become noticeable in a matter of a few days. If the way we think about ourselves changes, the way we see the world changes as well.

    3. Practice breathing techniques

    In many ways, our mood and emotions largely depend on the degree of activation of the nervous system. If there is a lack of oxygen, we will experience more stress, since our body will go into an alarm phase to find a solution to the situation. The thing is that part of that oxygen deficit may be due to how we breathe.

    Breathing techniques help bring out the maximum potential of our lungs, and this allows us to gain a significant advantage in specific moments when we feel overly activated. Furthermore, offering us a simple exercise on which to focus our attention helps us lose sight of that unpleasant feeling of being overwhelmed due to the need to do several tasks at the same time, something very typical of anxiety-inducing contexts.

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      4. Stop what you are doing and go for a walk

      Many times, anxiety is due to being surrounded by elements that remind us of something that worries us. Therefore, it is useful to disconnect, even for a few moments, and then return with renewed strength.

      When going for a walk, we have the possibility of finding new stimuli that demand our attention and that allow us to “refresh” our mind. Specifically, if we go out to completely unknown places, the references that evoke memories linked to what worries us will be much less abundant. In this sense, environments where nature prevails such as fields or large parks, have been shown to be especially effective against anxiety.

      These phases in which distraction prevails help you rest and in this way we gain the power to change what worries us once we have returned to the routine.

      5. Avoid caffeine

      If you consume products with caffeine, such as coffee or certain cola drinks, you will be setting yourself up. Remember that the distinction between body and mind is just a mirage, and many of the substances we regularly consume affect how we feel. Caffeine makes us prone to be activated by stimuli that we would normally not give much importance to. Controlling anxiety is also achieved through diet.

      6. Sleep well

      This condition is essential, since in a sleepy state It is very easy for everyday situations to overwhelm us Sleeping well makes us much more prepared to face everyday life. In fact, it has been shown that a lack of sleep greatly increases the risk of developing anxiety disorders. Furthermore, the mental wear and tear of not getting enough rest makes us perform worse and have difficulties concentrating and reasoning, and this can encourage the accumulation of responsibilities.

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      Therefore, it is best that you organize a clear schedule in which the times of the days of the week in which you will go to bed are detailed, taking into account the tasks that you must complete before, so as not to create unrealistic expectations. .

      7. Control rumination

      Psychological rumination is a very common phenomenon in the daily lives of many people who suffer from excess anxiety. It consists of the phenomenon by which intrusive thoughts with a negative emotional charge “invade” the person’s consciousness and this struggle to get rid of them, which increases the level of anxiety, because one goes into a state of alert in case one of these mental images arises again, and this favors their appearance through a self-fulfilling prophecy.

      The most effective way to combat rumination is not to try to completely eliminate these intrusive thoughts and to accept their presence, but without giving it any more importance. In this way it is easier to direct one’s attention towards other sensations and stimuli.