Key takeaways
• Deep breathing practices can help manage immediate feelings of anxiety by slowing your heart rate and bringing calm. The 4-7-8 technique and breathing in for 4 counts and out for 4 counts for 5 minutes total are specific methods recommended.
• Physical activity and regular exercise have both immediate and long-term benefits for anxiety management, including improved sleep, balanced appetite, mental clarity, and overall health. Even brief activities like 30-60 seconds of squats, pushups, or jumping jacks can help boost mood and calm the mind.
• Journaling can help identify anxiety triggers and record effective coping strategies, with research showing that regular emotion-led journaling may help reduce anxiety, depression, and feelings of distress.
Stress is the body’s natural response to a real or perceived threat. Anxiety is a symptom of the stress response and a natural process that every person experiences at one time or another.
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When the stress response is constantly activated, anxiety may go from an occasional symptom to a chronic condition.
Anxiety disorder is an umbrella term for a group of mental health conditions with slightly different manifestations and triggers but with anxiety as the core symptom.
Managing chronic or intense anxiety may require professional support, but developing certain coping skills is also essential.
5 techniques for coping with anxiety in the moment
These tips may help you relieve anxiety symptoms as they arise and before they become more intense. They may require some practice but can become important tools in managing anxiety.
Question your thought patterns
Unhelpful thoughts can take root in your mind and distort your assessment of a situation. This could involve negative self-talk and cognitive distortions.
One way to manage anxiety as you feel it rising is to challenge your thoughts and ask yourself what is fact and what is an assumption or emotional reaction.
Practice focused, deep breathing
Deep breathing practices may help you manage immediate feelings of anxiety.
Try breathing in for 4 counts and breathing out for 4 counts for 5 minutes total. This type of breathing slows your heart rate, which in turn can help bring calm.
The 4-7-8 technique is another popular breathing pattern for immediate anxiety relief.
Use aromatherapy
Some research suggests that aromatherapy can help relieve anxiety in some settings. Aromatherapy practitioners and supporters often report benefits of the practice.
You can use essential oil form, incense, or a candle at your workstation or bedroom. Natural scents like lavender, chamomile, and sandalwood can be soothing to the senses and help bring calm quickly.
Move more and exercise
The stress response involves a rise in some hormones, such as cortisol. Physical activity offers many benefits, including hormone balance.
Stepping out of your thoughts by focusing on physical sensations and your body, even if momentarily, may also help with anxiety management.
Low impact exercises like brisk walking, yoga, and tai chi can help you reduce stress and anxiety symptoms. Even a little bit of physical activity can boost your moodTrusted Source and calm your mind. For example, try doing squats, pushups, or jumping jacks for 30 to 60 seconds.
Use grounding techniques
Similar to physical activity, grounding techniques help you connect with physical sensations, taking your focus away from the stressor.
The 333 rule is an example of a grounding technique. It involves taking a few minutes to identify three things you can see, three sounds you can hear, and three things you can touch. Try to spend at least 1 minute on each thing you see, hear, or touch before moving on to the next.
6 strategies for managing anxiety long term
If you have anxiety that interferes with your life, consider working with a mental health care professional. They can help identify the root cause of your anxiety and work with you in developing a long-term plan based on your needs and lifestyle.
A mental health care professional may also suggest some of these anxiety management strategies, which you can use with them or on your own.
Identify and learn to manage specific triggers
Some triggers or stressors may be obvious to you, and some may be less so. You may find yourself experiencing anxiety and be unsure about the cause.
Common anxiety triggers may include:
- work deadlines or changes
- relationship conflict
- withdrawal from substances or certain medications
- side effects of some medications
- association with a past adverse experience
- past trauma that led to hypervigilance
- chronic pain and other health symptoms
- caffeine intake
- tobacco use
Triggers are personal and unique. What may cause anxiety for you may not for the next person. That’s why it’s important to learn to identify those situations that may be triggers for your anxiety.
Learn more about medications
If you take medications, ask the prescribing healthcare professional if anxiety may be a side effect of those. Even if you’ve stopped taking medications, anxiety may result from withdrawal or similar physiological responses. Having this conversation with a doctor may help you identify the root cause of anxiety and the next steps for relief.
On the other hand, if you have severe symptoms of anxiety and feel they interfere with work, school, relationships, or life in general, consider asking a healthcare professional if medication can help.
The most common anxiety medications include:
- selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs)
- serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs)
- benzodiazepines
- tricyclic antidepressants
Practice daily meditation
Building a daily mindful meditation practice may help train your brain to manage anxious thoughts when they arise. It could also help you prevent anxiety in some situations by reducing the anxiety response to known stressors.
If sitting still and concentrating is difficult, you can try walking meditation or yoga. Guided imagery may also help you manage anxiety.
Keep a journal
Writing down your thoughts and emotions in a journal every day can help you identify triggers and record effective coping strategies. The process of writing down thoughts itself can be calming for some people.
Journaling can also have long-term benefits. A small 2018 studyTrusted Source suggests that regular emotion-led journaling can help reduce anxiety, depression, and feelings of distress.
Try to socialize more
Although everyone is different, and some people experience social anxiety, spending quality time with trusted friends and family may help you prevent and manage anxiety symptoms.
Socialization can relieve stress, encourage feelings of laughter and togetherness, and decrease a sense of loneliness.
ResearchTrusted Source has shown that social connectedness can help you become more resilient to stress in the long run.
Stay active
Physical activity can help you manage anxiety. But its effect is not only immediate; regular activity has an accumulative effect that can have a lasting impact. Benefits include improved sleep, balanced appetite, mental clarity, and overall health.
Studies show that exercise, in particular, can have a lasting positive impact on managing anxiety.
Summary
Anxiety symptoms can make navigating life more challenging. Several coping techniques can help you manage these symptoms in the moment and also prevent anxiety from getting worse over time.
If you have severe anxiety, working with a mental health care professional can help you explore possible causes as well as actionable plans that improve your quality of life.
