If your daily life is a river of anxiety, it’s critical to find treatment options and strategies that will help to keep it in check. It may be a combination of different things, like meditation and talk therapy, or it may just be a matter of identifying and resolving or cutting out your triggers.
If you aren’t sure just where to begin, it can be helpful to talk about your options with your mental health professional, who may suggest something you haven’t considered before.
CBD
CBD is what’s known as a cannabinoid, or a chemical that’s found in hemp and cannabis plants. It appears to have a variety of health benefits. While its properties are still being studied, many use things like CBD candy to manage their anxiety.
The compound isn’t intoxicating, and this means you don’t have to worry about it making you feel high.
CBT
Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) assists people with learning different ways to think about and react to situations that cause anxiety. Your therapist can help you with developing ways to change those negative behaviors and thought patterns before they begin to spiral.
Triggers
You can identify these either with your therapist or on your own. At times, triggers can be obvious, such as smoking, caffeine, or alcohol. At other times, they might be less obvious. Long-term issues, like work or financial-related situations, might take a bit of time to discern. Is it a person, a due date, or a situation? You might need a bit of additional support, either with friends or through therapy.
When you figure out what your triggers are, attempt to limit your exposure to them. If you aren’t able to do that – like when it’s something you can’t change, like a stressful work situation – utilizing other coping techniques might help.
Meditation
While it might take some practice in order to be successful with this, when mindful meditation is done on a regular basis, it can eventually assist you with training your brain to dismiss those anxious thoughts when they occur. If being still and concentrating is hard, begin with yoga or walking as types of meditation. There are quite a few apps that offer guided meditation that can assist you with getting started.
Journal
It might be helpful to make a habit of writing your emotions and thoughts down in a journal every day. The process of putting these thoughts down in writing can be calming in itself for some. That said, it might also assist you with keeping track of when you’re experiencing anxiety, the way it makes you feel, and the types of things that are triggering it.
Socializing
We all know that every single one of us is different, and some of us experience what’s known as social anxiety. If this sounds like you, spending time with family and friends on a regular basis might assist you with managing the anxiety.
Socializing can assist with relieving stress. It encourages togetherness and laughter and can also decrease feelings of loneliness. In the long run, social connectedness can assist you with becoming more resilient to stress.
If you come to find that these quick tips don’t work for you, you might want to consider seeking help from a professional. That is especially true if your anxiety is interfering with daily activities and even causing physical symptoms.
A professional in the field of mental health can assist you with streamlining the process of identifying any triggers and maintaining strategies for the long term through medications, behavioral therapy, and more.
Anxiety might be a part of your life, but it doesn’t need to take over your day-to-day living. Even more extreme anxiety disorders are able to be treated so that their symptoms don’t overwhelm you.
