Relieve Anxiety With Simple but Powerful Lifestyle Changes

It's sometimes hard to determine the origin of your anxiety. However, it is a known fact that a hectic lifestyle can lead to chronic stress, anxiety, and feeling of impending doom.

Anxiety can pose a real challenge for you and your health. There may be days when you feel like you're unable to do things you've done all your life. This condition plays tricks on your mind and wreaks havoc with your mental health.

Luckily, you can take control of your anxiety by making behavioral adjustments in your daily life.

Try to implement these simple but powerful antidotes and kick anxiety to the curb.

1. Get fresh air. When you feel an anxiety attack coming on, run for fresh air! Fresh air inhaled slowly can help you relax almost instantly. Give yourself 10 minutes to take in the freshness and feel it calming your entire being.

• Enclosed spaces like offices tend to worsen episodes of anxiety. This is why it's a good idea to head outdoors the minute you feel an anxiety attack coming on.

• Closing your eyes while breathing deeply can help to expedite the process.

2. Participate in guided yoga. You may find that focusing on your breath and your ability to be present in each pose can help quiet negative mental chatter and boost your overall mood.

• To get the most out of your session, take note of the sensations that move throughout your body as you come into each pose. Allow yourself to feel and experience whatever emotions arise. If you feel your thoughts start to scatter, gently bring your mind back to the mat, and continue your practice.

3. Remove clutter around you. Clutter bombards our minds with excessive visual, olfactory, and tactile stimulation causing our senses to work overtime on stimuli that aren't necessary or important.

• De-clutter your primary workspace. Remove mounds of paper or file them away.

• Get the rooms in your home in order, so there is no sign of mess around you.

• Create designated spaces for frequently used items and supplies so that you can quickly and easily find what you're looking for when you need it.

4. Exercise. Regular exercise is one of the best ways to relieve stress, especially when it's causing anxiety. Exercising releases the "happy" hormones and helps free you of anxiety and fills you with joy.

• Choose an exercise activity that demands your complete attention. This helps to get your mind off the anxiety triggers.

5.Remove possible food triggers. Some foods trigger a negative response to stress. Do some research on those foods and try to eliminate them from your

diet.

• Caffeine has been tagged as the enemy for anxiety sufferers! Take a break from your morning coffee and see if you feel less anxious.

6. Limit your news consumption. While it's a good idea to keep up with current affairs, if you have anxiety, it might be best to set firm boundaries around news consumption by limiting how often you check for new developments throughout the day!

Staying glued to the news can lead to feelings of helplessness, powerlessness, and a lack of control over the situation. Remember that our minds experience a known bias toward holding onto negative information (negativity bias), so it is not abnormal to find yourself feeling overwhelmed when so much of the news headlines are negative.

• Instead of watching, ask someone to update you on the lighter news stories.

• Find formats that provide you with a more efficient, less frequent, and disruptive way to stay up-to-date. If social media apps are your primary source of news, consider switching to news aggregators, newsletters, or daily podcasts that summarize the news.

• Use your news time to watch something lighter like a comedy or a home renovation show.

Anxiety has become a way of life for many people. However, it is possible to manage your anxiety and experience a calm existence by making practical changes in your life. It may take a little while to take control of your anxiety completely, but just be patient and, your efforts will be well worth it.

Netsanet Tegegn, LCSW, is a Psychotherapist in Virginia Beach that provides individualized counseling services for those who wish to create long-lasting and positive changes in their lives...