Anxiety is common in so many individuals today and can affect more people than you realize. After being recently diagnosed this summer with GAD (Generalized Anxiety Disorder), I have wanted to be an advocate for mental health. Learning as much as I can about how to cope with anxiety not only helps me but gives me tools and techniques to pass on to others in a similar situation. Here are some of the coping techniques I have found to help me best!
Breathing
Yes, just something as simple as breathing and controlling your breath can help anxiety from spiraling out of control. There is a technique called “triangle breathing” that I often refer back to. You begin by breathing in for three seconds, then holding that breath for three seconds, and finally releasing it for three seconds. Repeating this process multiple times helps to ground you and keeps your mind focused on controlling your breathing rather than anything else.
Journaling and Writing Down Emotions
This is something I have done in many different ways and I have found it helps me. I have used a journaling app before called Jour where I could track my emotions each day and write down my feelings to a few prompts. This helped as a sort of prevention for anxiety so I would start my day off in a positive way, and could refer back to this later. More recently, I have been keeping a note on my phone where each day I track my emotions, what that emotion was and where it came from. I have been able to notice a pattern in some of these feelings after having them written down to remind myself of when I may be feeling the same way again. Knowing how my anxiety starts or what triggers it has helped immensely in lessening it day to day.
Focus on the present
I am someone who is always thinking ahead into the future and what’s next when I should be present and focusing on the here and now. Breaking down tasks into smaller doable chunks is a way that I have found to help me stay grounded and less anxious. Instead of thinking about how I have 15 assignments due in three days, break it down and focus on one day at a time and one task at a time. Scheduling out a plan of attack can help calm my anxiety because it gives me the chance to see that I can accomplish everything. Then I start with just one task, trying my best to stay present and focus on the task at hand. After that is done I move on to the next thing, not allowing myself to get wrapped up in my fear of the future.
Try some of these techniques out and maybe they will help you too!