7 Ideas For Reducing Anxiety Using Mindfulness

This is the first of a 15 part series of Month of Mindfulness posts.

Anxiety underlies many of the mindset issues we face. In this post I’ll share 7 ideas to help you reduce that anxiety and improve your career, relationships, health or whatever is your main problem.

I think it’s safe to say that just about everyone feels anxiety to some degree or other. First of all, it is perfectly normal to feel anxious. It is our body’s way of protecting us from danger, and in acute circumstances is helpful. The problem is when we are feeling anxious for an extended period of time.

I won’t go into a detailed description of anxiety and its effect on body and mind, as that could take a whole book in itself. If you want a more in depth understanding of the effects of anxiety, I recommend listening to the Feel Better Live More podcast by Dr Rangan Chatterjee and search for anxiety. There are several excellent episodes.

I will breathe. I will think of solutions, I will not let my worry control me. I will not let my stress level break me. I will simply breathe. And it will be okay.

Shayne McClendon

1. Breathe

One of the first things you can do to calm yourself down is to slow your breathing. Sit quietly if you can and just take a long slow breath through your nose. Feel your abdomen swell as you take in a deep breath. Hold it for a moment and then breathe out slowly and fully through your nose. A lot of people will say to exhale through your mouth, but I prefer through the nose. Use what works for you. Repeat this three times.

You can also do some box breathing. Start with breathing in for the count of four, hold for four, out for four, hold for four and repeat. You can adjust the count to suit you. I like to exhale for a little longer than the inhale.

Or you could simply become conscious of and follow your breath. You can count your breaths or just say in, out, as you inhale and exhale.

These techniques are helpful when you are feeling acutely anxious, and I recommend a regular breathwork practice to enable you to cope better with situations that cause you anxiety in the long term.

2. Exercise

Get of the house and have a brisk walk. Go to the gym and do a strenuous workout. Dance and shake it out. Do anything to burn up some of the anxious energy. Some people find physical work helps. Declutter a room or clean your windows. Dig the garden or rearrange a room. Anything that takes physical exertion and occupies your mind is good.

Keep mindful, whatever you are doing. Focus on your chosen activity

3. Improve Your Sleep

A lack of sleep, or lack of good quality sleep, is a real risk factor for anxiety.

One of the best things you can do to aid your sleep is to stick to a routine. Go to bed at the same time every night, and get up at the same time every morning. Try to ensure you get between 7 and 9 hours sleep per night, as the NHS recommend.

The best bridge between despair and hope is a good night’s sleep.

– E. Joseph Cossman

Turn off all of your screens at least an hour before your scheduled bed time. This includes tv, laptop, tablet, phone and games consoles. Don’t listen to news in the few hours before bed. Especially in times of crisis it can be deeply troubling and interfere with your sleep and your dreams, as your subconscious mind will be troubled.

Listening to a guided mindfulness meditation before bed can help to settle your mind a you will fall asleep focused on positivity.

If you have a lot of things you need to do and it’s making you feel anxious,, write them down before bed. This can help to stop worry, and your subconscious mind will be working on things while you sleep. You may find you wake up knowing just what you need to do and get things checked off your list very quickly.

Taking just a few minutes to do this before bed can greatly help to reduce your anxiety, and can help you to sleep better too.

4. Alcohol

A lot of people have a drink to ‘settle my nerves’, but in fact it does the opposite. Alcohol actually causes anxiety. So although in the very short term you may feel better for having that drink, long term you are adding to your anxiety.

I would say that 90% of my own anxiety disappeared when I stopped drinking.

If you want to drink, try to do so mindfully. Pay attention to how the alcohol tastes. Try and notice how your responses change after each drink. Ask yourself if you really need another one rather than just mindlessly reaching for the bottle again. Just taking a pause can help.

Journal how you feel when you are drinking. You may be surprised how your writing changes after the first drink, then second or third.

5. Gratitude Journal

Writing in a gratitude journal before bed can help us to realise that we have a lot to be grateful for. This becomes especially significant at times of stress and anxiety.

There is always good in our life, however difficult the circumstances may be. Try to think of at least 3 things that you are grateful for. Attempt to come up with different things each day, or go in to different details. For example, rather than writing ‘I am grateful for my family’, pick a different member each time, and something about them you are grateful for. Try to do this as mindfully as possible to get the full benefit.

By doing this, you are going to bed thinking in a positive way, and it is very likely you will then wake up feeling positive too.

6. Journaling

Journaling can be a great help in relieving anxiety. Some of the psychological benefits of journaling are:

• encourages positive thinking
• helps release negative emotions
• helps boost mood
• enhances sense of wellbeing
• helps identify cause of stress and anxiety
• helps reduce depressive symptoms

A nice journal and a good pen can make the journaling process more enjoyable, but any paper and pen will do. Try not to use a computer to journal. Studies have shown actually handwriting can be more beneficial.

Set a time each day when you are going to journal. First thing of a morning is a good time, as we are still not fully conscious and can more easily access our subconscious mind. If you set a regular time you are more likely to make it a habit. Set a reminder on your phone if you would like a nudge.

There are many ways to journal, but a good way to get started is just to write whatever comes to mind for three pages. If you can’t think what to write, you could use a prompt, such as ‘how am I feeling today?’

If nothing comes to mind, just write that down until something comes. Once you get started, words will start to flow.

Getting things down onto paper can help us to stop worrying about them. This will also allow you to see what is playing on your mind. You can change what can be changed, and let go of what you cannot change.

7. Meditate

Meditation

If you regularly meditate, you may wish to increase the amount of meditation you do. If you have never meditated before, you could start with a short guided meditation. I have a couple of free meditations you can download on my home page. You will also find an introduction to Journaling PDF and a Mindfuless Resources Guide there. Also if you search on YouTube you will find lots of free meditations to help with anxiety.

Don’t forget, this is the first of 15 mindfulness related posts over the next month, so keep checking back.

Gill Washington does not provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. See additional information