Dissolve Anxiety

Dissolve Anxiety

Find your inner calm

Do you experience a feeling of dread every Sunday evening, as you anticipate the working week ahead? Perhaps you freeze in social situations, or perhaps you panic when things don't go according to plan? It's normal to feel anxious sometimes before big events, but if you are experiencing these feelings every week, or worse everyday, you need to learn how to gently dissolve your anxieties and find you inner calm.

Show gratitude

A great way to put your anxiety into perspective is by regularly practising gratitude. At the end of each day, write down three things that went well for you. These could be big things like a work project or little things like enjoying the sunshine during a lunch time stroll or enjoying reading a book. This practice will help you see that you have far more good experiences in your life than you have things to be anxious about.

Sleep well

If you're feeling tired, you will probably feel anxious and irritated. So ensure you are rested to keep anxieties away. Go to sleep earlier to make sure you get at least seven hours every night. Relax before bedtime with a hot bath, good book, or your lover to push lingering anxieties out of your mind.

De-stress

Spend at least ten minutes everyday - more if you can - doing something that makes you feel de-stressed and relaxed. Whether that's taking the dog for a walk, petting the cat, playing with your relative's children, going for a brisk walk or run - do something constructive to move your headspace from stressed to relaxed.

Positive visualisation

For times when your panicking and your anxiety levels are going through the roof, try some positive visualisation. Now backed up with science, visualisation is proven to have a beneficial impact on your mind and your body. One simple visualisation is to imaging yourself surrounded by a golden light. So whatever you have to do you are protected and safe.

Crack a smile

When anxiety strikes you probable tend to fold in on yourself, looking down and tensing your muscles. The cure for this is to make a conscious effort to relax your body, limb by limb. Stand tall and crack a smile. Scientists say standing tall and smiling releases feel-good endorphins, which will help alleviate anxiety.

Clear your mind

If your mind is constantly whizzing with thoughts of all the stressful things you have to do today - no wonder you feel anxious! So learn a meditation technique so you can spend at least ten minutes a day with a clear and calm headspace.

Breath deeply

Deep breaths in a stressful situation are a quick-fix antidote to anxiety. Breath in through your nose to the slow count of three. Then out through your mouth to the same slow count. This oxygenates your body, making you feel relaxed.

Essential oils

On a similar note, breathing in a soothing scent will calm your body and mind. Put a few drops of lavender essential oil on a scarf, then breath the scent in for 20 minutes. This is proven to effect your brain, calming anxieties. Other relaxing scents are camomile oil, basil oil, or rose oil.

Time limit worries

If you have a particular concern running through your brain, allow yourself think about it for ten minutes. Give this worry all your attention, consider every possible eventuality with it. Once the ten minutes is over, stop thinking about it. This is your worry time limit. It is a way to get this concern out of your mind.

Be silent

Silence is calming. So if you feel anxious, take 5 minutes to totally tune out and sit in silence. Switch off your phone, emails and all noise around you. Put some ear plugs in if necessary. While you are silent, do not allow your mind to ruminate. Instead visualise one positive image, such as a colourful flower and focus on that.

Make a list

A good way to get anxieties out of your mind is to write them down. Jot down all the things you have to do tomorrow and feel anxious about, then put the list into a draw and forget about it. Knowing you've allocated the time to thinking about the anxieties, then putting them away allows you to mentally detach from the anxieties.