5 Natural Ways to Reduce Anxiety
You can use a variety of tricks and strategies to alleviate the discomfort of feeling anxious.
While therapy, medication, or a combination of the two with your doctor and a mental health professional is the most effective treatment method, there are numerous other ways to improve your self-care.
Natural remedies for anxiety exist and can be used with the advice of your medical or mental health professional to relieve anxiety.
Natural Way 1: Include plenty of joyful movement and exercise in your daily routine.
Joyful movement and exercise are different from going to the gym (though if you enjoy it, go for it!).
For example, if you enjoy going on nature walks, hip-hop dance classes, or kayaking, you are far more likely to schedule those activities regularly.
People who force themselves to engage in exercise or movement that does not excite them will only do so sometimes. For example, if you despise treadmill walking, you'll eventually stop using it because the activity feels too forced and unappealing to continue.
Consistency is essential in achieving joyful movement and exercise to relieve anxiety. In physical activity, feel-good chemicals are released in your body called endorphins, which are "feel-good chemicals."
Endorphins rush through your body during and after the workout, providing an instant mood boost. For example, runners frequently describe "runner's highs" after finishing races - this is the immediate rush of endorphins they're experiencing!
Natural Method 2: Incorporate a wide range of nutritious foods into your daily diet.
To function correctly, the human body requires a variety of vitamins, minerals, and nutrients. Fill your plate with nutritious foods to ensure you get enough of everything your body needs to function correctly.
"Products in processed foods linked to mood swings and other temperament issues in people include artificial sweeteners, artificial colorings, flavors, sugars, and preservatives.
Furthermore, a sugary diet can cause blood sugar issues, which can cause mood swings to occur quickly".
Because your anxiety will not go away unless you are feeling and functioning at your best, minimizing your consumption of processed foods and increasing your consumption of healthy foods may keep you relaxed and release your anxiety.
Natural Method 3: Make getting a good night's sleep a top priority.
Sleeping is the body's natural remedy for almost everything. A good night's sleep can help solve many problems.
Because it is the time your body uses to rest, repair, and prepare for the next day's activities, you must give your body enough chances to get the quality sleep required.
"You will almost certainly experience increased anxiety symptoms if you don't get enough rest. Anxiety, on the other hand, can make sleeping well tricky".
Do everything you can to avoid disrupting your sleeping schedule, such as developing a bedtime routine that allows you to relax before bedtime, going to bed at a reasonable hour, and making your sleeping environment relaxing.
While anxiety can make sleeping difficult, simple sleep habit changes like these ensure you're doing everything possible to avoid exacerbating the problem.
Natural Method 4: Incorporate chamomile into your daily routine.
Taking a warm cup of tea is a soothing thought in and of itself, but when you consider that chamomile may be an effective ally for people suffering from GAD, it becomes even more appealing.
A 2014 study published by PubMed Central found that participants who took German chamomile capsules up to five times daily during their study experienced a significant reduction in anxiety-related stressors compared to the placebo capsule group.
"Chamomile was shown in a 2005 study published in the Biological and Pharmaceutical Bulletin to help rats who struggled to sleep more quickly and effectively than rats who were given a placebo option".
Natural Method 5: Avoid products linked to neurotransmitter effectiveness, such as alcohol and caffeine.
At first glance, alcohol may appear to be a simple way to alleviate anxiety. It's simple to obtain, tasty to consume, and widely accepted by society as a way to unwind and unwind.
However, using alcohol to manage anxiety symptoms can lead to even more anxiety and, in some cases, an alcohol dependency problem. It is not uncommon for alcohol use disorder and anxiety disorders to coexist.
While anxiety may temporarily increase in the early stages of someone's sobriety, it will subside and improve once they have given their brain chemistry time to adapt to the lack of alcohol.
"Caffeine consumption can also aggravate anxiety symptoms. According to research, caffeine and anxiety are not a good combination.
Caffeine can exacerbate anxiety by causing jitteriness and jumpiness, making them feel much worse than usual".
While most people are safe with a controlled, moderate caffeine intake (much like a controlled intake of alcohol), people who suffer from anxiety disorders should seriously consider limiting their daily intake.
To start feeling the effects of reduced caffeine intake, remember to start slowly - taper off your caffeine intake gradually to minimize the chances of experiencing caffeine withdrawal symptoms, such as nasty headaches.