Top 10 Ways to Calm Your Anxiety Naturally
Waking up feeling anxious, worried, freaked out is much more common than you think. Money, health, work, family, love… choose your pick! Regardless of your reasons for feeling anxious, the symptoms are more or less the same. Rapid heartbeats and breathing together with feelings of impending doom invade us when we suffer from anxiety.
Anxiety is the way our body has of saying it’s experiencing too much stress at the same time. It’s a feeling of being always on the alert and not being able to relax, ever. If that feeling does not seem to go away, then it’s time to seek help. Don’t hesitate to talk to your physician about your symptoms so you can look for appropriate treatments. Meanwhile, you can also explore drug-free remedies that can improve your quality of life substantially. Here we present you with 10 ways to calm anxiety naturally you can try right away!
#1 - What Is Anxiety?
An anxiety disorder is quite different from being nervous about an upcoming exam or worried about a problem with your co-workers. While almost anyone experiences anxiety from time to time over daily situations, for some people these feelings are a lot more than passing worries over stressful events. Instead, this anxiety lasts for days, months, or even years and interferes with their normal routines. If this sounds like you, you may be suffering from an anxiety disorder.
And this happens much more often than you may think: anxiety disorders are the most prevalent types of mental illnesses in the USA and the second most common in Australia. The good news is that you can find a myriad of different treatments that go from therapy and medication to adopting a healthier lifestyle that can help you get rid of anxiety for good.
#2 - What Does Anxiety Feel Like?
The symptoms of anxiety can vary depending on the person, but there are some common signs that can help you identify it. In general, when anxiety strikes, your body goes on high alert and activates your fight or flight mechanisms to face the issue, sometimes producing a panic attack. So, people with anxiety usually feel:
- Nervous or tense, as if something was about to happen,
- Panicked and filled with dread,
- Rapid heartbeats and breathing,
- Sweaty and with muscle twitching,
- Weakness and difficulty to focus,
- Unable to get good rest,
- Constipated and with stomach problems,
- Obsessed about the event that makes them anxious.
#3 - What Causes Anxiety?
Unfortunately, doctors and researchers have not been able to identify the exact cause of anxiety disorders yet. They believe that certain traumatic events can cause it, while genetics can also play a role when it comes to anxiety and panic attacks (1). Sometimes, an anxiety disorder is associated with depression or other illnesses, like bipolarity. Lifestyle and environmental factors can also have an influence on the development of anxiety.
Without treatment, your anxiety may not go away and can become an obstacle to your daily life. If your feelings of worry and fear are too hard to control, you feel depressed, or you cannot overcome anxiety on your own, consult with your doctor as soon as possible.
#4 -How to Get Rid of Anxiety Naturally?
The feelings of fear, worry, nervousness, and even doom that anxiety provokes in us can be difficult to cope with, especially if these symptoms interfere with your daily life. The good news is that you don’t have to jump on medications, at least not yet. There are many ways to get rid of your anxiety naturally by making some adjustments to your daily routine. Once you have consulted with a physician to understand what treatments you have available, you can start working on identifying your triggers and how to avoid them.
This can take some time and self-reflection, but it will be worth your while! Plus, these 10 ways to calm anxiety naturally can help you overcome those feelings of doom and nervousness and get back on track almost effortlessly.
- Exercise Regularly
You’ve probably heard about the benefits of exercise a thousand times, so you won’t be surprised to hear that doing regular physical activity can help with your anxiety, too! And you don’t have to become an Olympic athlete for the benefits to kick in. A 10-minute walk or a light workout can do the trick and help you cope with your anxiety by releasing endorphins that boost your mood and make you feel happier. By doing exercise, you’ll also be able to get a good night’s sleep, which, in turn, can diminish stress, depression, and anxiety.
- Reduce Your Caffeine Intake
If the first thing you do every morning as soon as you get up is to prepare a cup of delicious coffee, think again: this may not be the best habit if you are struggling with anxiety. First, because caffeine can lead to sleeping problems that can exacerbate your anxiety symptoms and bad moods (2). Instead of coffee, maybe you can try upping your water intake or have chamomile tea, which also contains a bit of caffeine in addition to other properties that make it more suitable for getting rid of anxiety.
- Quit Smoking
Giving up smoking is a crucial step for better mental health. If you’re a smoker, it’s only natural to reach for a cigarette whenever you feel anxious, but this quick fix can make your symptoms worse because anxiety will return as soon as you stop smoking and start experiencing the nicotine withdrawal syndrome (3). Thus, abandoning cigarettes can not only help you reduce your anxiety but will improve your overall health, too.
- Spend Time With Your Friends and Family
A tight hug from a friend or family member can help you feel things are not so terrible after all, doesn’t it? Spending time with your loved ones can help you cope with stress and calm your anxiety. A research study carried out in 1994 (and many others after this one) shows that people who have a good support system find relief in talking about their problems and worries with their friends or family members instead of looking for negative coping mechanisms like smoking or drinking alcohol (4).
- Get some good sleep
Getting those necessary ZZZs can be harder than it seems when you suffer from anxiety. Here are some tips to have a good rest at night:
- Try to get a good sleeping pattern and go to bed every day at the same time.
- Get rid of devices that produce blue light at least 1 hour before going to bed.
- Avoid large meals and caffeine at night.
- Keep your room dark and cool
- Meditate and do some breathing exercises.
- Take chamomile and other herbal teas that can help you calm down and relax before bedtime.
- Try out natural health supplements like our Deep Sleep Mode, which can help you speed up falling asleep by 36% while restoring your body’s natural ability to get at least 7 hours of uninterrupted sleep!
- Meditate and Start Yoga
Sometimes, all you need to calm your anxiety is to whittle your problems down to size. This sounds easier than it actually is, but meditation can be of great help! Meditation is all about focusing on your breathing so you can keep your mind free of thoughts and preoccupations. Whenever you realize you’re thinking about your problems again, you should try to do away with those negative feelings and clear your head to focus on your breathing again.
An hour of yoga a day can keep your doctor away, too! Yoga is a form of meditation where you combine controlled breathing with positions that strengthen your body while you stretch your muscles. In addition to helping you focus on something else rather than your problems, yoga lowers your heart rate and blood pressure and makes you feel less nervous and anxious.
- Learn to Say No
Sometimes, it’s a lot easier to just say yes when your boss asks you to work overtime, but this can take a toll on your peace of mind for sure. It’s not selfish to refuse to do something you really don’t want or cannot do. And this applies to things you seem to have been doing forever. Just because you’ve always planned school Halloween parties doesn’t mean you have to keep on doing them if you don’t want to anymore. Learn to say no to things that make you nervous, anxious, or that simply add to your seemingly endless to-do list.
Also, remember that each individual has their own limits as to what’s overwhelming or not. Just because your friend can juggle 10 meetings a day doesn’t mean you have to do the same! Discover what’s too much for you and don’t feel guilty for saying no if you need to. Your mental health will thank you!
- Practice Mindfulness
Mindfulness can help you navigate anxiety and reduce it to manageable levels. Similar to meditation, it’s all about paying attention to what happens to your life every day, trying to focus on the small things we typically rush through. The best part is that you don’t need to do a physical effort or buy any tools to practice mindfulness. Instead, you can start with simple things such as keeping a morning journal or setting an intention for the day that will help you focus on that specific intention instead of what makes you anxious.
- Consider Taking Supplements
Relieving stress is crucial to reduce anxiety and improve your overall mental health. If you feel you cannot do this on your own, you can always get a little boost from natural health supplements. For instance, our New Ultra Potent Hormone Harmony contains ashwagandha, an evergreen shrub with chemicals that calm your brain and lower your blood pressure (5), which ultimately helps you manage your stress levels and deal with your anxiety.
- Drink Chamomile Tea
Getting in bed with a warm cup of chamomile tea after a long day can help you calm down and deal with anxiety. Studies show that chamomile has relaxing and calming properties because it contains an antioxidant called apigenin, and taking it as tea or pills has aided patients with anxiety disorders (6). So, whenever you feel your heart pounding and your skin sweaty due to nervousness, maybe some chamomile tea is all you need to calm down and get a good night’s sleep.
Get Rid of Anxiety Today
Anxiety seems to be a part of life in today’s world: all of us have felt it at some point in our lives before an exam, the first day at a new job, or even before a date. But if your feelings of nervousness and doom are not sporadic and get in the way of your daily tasks, there are some natural remedies and changes in lifestyle you can adopt to take control of your life and improve your mental health.
Don’t let anxiety run rampant in your life. Get moving and exercise at least 10 minutes a day, re-evaluate your caffeine intake, adopt a healthy sleep routine, take the health supplements you need together with treatment prescribed by your doctor, and soon you’ll see how your anxiety decreases to manageable or almost non-existent levels.
And if you are interested in knowing what other types of health supplements you can take to manage your anxiety storm, take our free Comprehensive Health Assessment and discover them!