How to Calm Anxious Thoughts, Even When They Feel Overwhelming
Anxiety can feel debilitating, in many cases leaving you feeling helpless and out of control. But with the right strategies, it's possible to better manage your anxiety and reduce its negative effects. Let’s look at how to identify the signs of anxiety and develop calming techniques to help you cope and calm anxious thoughts even when they feel overwhelming!
About anxiety and stress
Anxiety is excessive and persistent worrying about the past, present or future and can often feel uncontrollable. For some, anxiety can manifest as intrusive thoughts that break in, uninvited, with negative perspectives and feelings.
Anxiety is a feeling of uneasiness, fear, or worry that can range from mild to severe. It often manifests as physical symptoms such as shallow breathing, increased heart rate, and tense muscles. Understanding what anxiety is and learning to recognize the signs can help people manage it more effectively.
Anxiety is a mental health disorder characterized by feelings of fear, dread, or unease. These feelings can manifest as physical sensations such as palpitations, muscle tension, sweating, and nausea. While everyone experiences some level of anxiety from time to time, those with an anxiety disorder may experience these symptoms more severely and more frequently.
Anxiety can feel like an invisible weight on your shoulders, and it’s important to know that you aren’t alone in your experience and suffering. There is support for you!
Physical symptoms of anxiety
Anxiety can cause physical symptoms like shakiness, headaches, tightness in the chest, and rapid breathing. It can also lead to physical exhaustion, fatigue, and difficulty sleeping. These physical symptoms may be a result of chronic stress, or they may be due to worry about a specific event or situation.
Causes of anxiety
Anxiety can be caused by various factors, such as traumatic events and illnesses, concerns about finances or job security, stress from a difficult relationship, or excessive caffeine consumption. It may also be due to genetics, as some people are more likely to experience anxiety than others.
Ways to calm anxious thoughts in the moment
When anxious feelings pop up or intrude, here are some actions you can take in the moment to help process those feelings and move through them. These activities can help you feel grounded and can help you break the cycle of thoughts swirling around in your mind.
First, describe an object. This practice takes your concentration and focus outside of yourself, shifting from an inward focus to outward focus.
Identify what you’re experiencing through your five senses. What do you see? What do you smell? What noises do you hear around you? What do you feel as you sit on your couch or stand where you are? What do you taste right now?
Give the anxious voice in your head a name, and recognize it’s that named entity speaking the anxious, intrusive thoughts when they arise. This can help you feel separated from that negative perspective.
Practice deep breathing. A good rule of thumb is 8 seconds out, pause for 2-4 seconds, and breathe in for 5 seconds. This rhythmic breathing helps your heart rate slow and gives your mind something methodic to focus on.
Pick a mantra that makes you feel grounded and supported. Repeat it silently or aloud as you breathe and meditate upon it. Examples could be, “I am safe,” “I am supported,” or “I am in control.”
Pick up a beloved book. Have a few books on hand that you know always make you feel relaxed and at peace. When the anxious thoughts hit, pick one up and dive in.
Self-help strategies to help manage anxiety over time
Self-help strategies such as relaxation techniques, journaling, and coping skills can help you reduce and manage your anxiety. Deep breathing and progressive muscle relaxation are particularly helpful for reducing tension in the body and calming your mind.
Practicing gratitude, getting regular sleep, eating a healthy diet, connecting with friends or family members, or walking outdoors can all help to lower anxiety levels.
Identify your triggers
To effectively manage anxiety, it's first important to identify what's causing your anxious feelings. Common triggers can include everyday stressors such as work, school, family issues, or health concerns. It's also important to note that underlying traumas or difficult life experiences can contribute to an increased sense of anxiety. Keeping track of what sets off your anxious feelings can help you better understand your own triggers and prepare techniques for better managing them.
Recognizing and stepping back from stressors
One of the best ways to manage anxiety is to recognize and step back from what triggers it. That may involve spending less time in stressful situations, cutting down on caffeine and alcohol, making lifestyle changes, or getting counseling or therapy from a mental health professional. Developing coping mechanisms such as mindfulness meditation, exercise, yoga and journaling can also help reduce anxiety levels.
Practice relaxation techniques
Relaxation techniques such as deep breathing, mindfulness meditation, and progressive muscle relaxation can help reduce anxiety by calming both body and mind. Deep breathing involves taking slow, deliberate breaths while focusing on the sensation of air flowing in and out of your lungs. Mindfulness meditation is focused on staying present in the moment without getting stuck in anxious thoughts or feelings, while progressive muscle relaxation relaxes your body through systematically tensing and releasing each muscle group. Practicing these techniques regularly can help you develop responses to manage anxious feelings more easily.
Find healthy, beneficial distractions
What are some healthy and productive ways to distract yourself from anxious feelings? Taking a walk, connecting with friends/family via text/phone call, listening to music, reading a calming book, engaging in creative activities such as drawing or crafts, trying a new hobby or exercise activity, or even doing chores around the house! Finding ways to move your body can also be useful in reducing anxiety symptoms - even if it’s just stretching or gentle yoga.
Talk to someone you trust, who is in your corner
Talking to a friend or family member can be beneficial, as they can provide a fresh perspective and offer advice on managing anxious feelings. It’s important to know you are not alone. You can also find help from mental health professionals or therapists who specialize in anxiety and stress management, like your team here at Rockcreek Counseling. They can teach skills and support while helping you better understand the sources of your feelings, so that you can develop healthier responses to stressful situations.
Practice positive self-talk
Self-talk, also known as inner dialogue, is the stream of thoughts you have running through your head. Sometimes it can be negative and self-defeating or unkind but, with practice, it is possible to cultivate more positive, affirming self-talk that reminds you of your strengths and inherent worth so you can build your self-confidence. Find healthy ways to be reassuring, such as noticing when you do something well or telling yourself a positive affirmation. Try repeating it to yourself several times a day until you start to witness its effects on how you’re feeling.
Remember, it’s okay to not feel okay. What we don’t want to do is to stifle or ignore feelings of anxiety. Instead, we use calming and coping techniques to help us accept, move through, and heal from anxiety - not to ignore it or push it down. If you need professional help to manage your anxiety, reach out for a consultation - you are supported!