How To Reduce Stress And Cope With Anxiety Issues

Coping with anxiety can be challenging. Recognizing common symptoms of anxiety is the first step toward managing them effectively. Whether you're experiencing heightened stress or have a diagnosed anxiety disorder, several proven ways exist to cope with this symptom. Working with a mental healthcare provider to develop the right treatment plan may help you address the root causes of anxiety, manage symptoms, and stop worrying about the unknown.

What is anxiety?

Anxiety is a sense of intense worry, nervousness, or fear. Anyone can experience anxiety throughout daily life. Although it can be uncomfortable, anxiety often has positive impacts, allowing you to pay attention to focus on a difficult task or flee a dangerous situation. It can also help individuals prevent worst-case scenarios and plan for the unknown in situations where the fear level fits the situation at hand. 

What are anxiety disorders?

Anxiety may not be healthy or helpful for everyone. If anxiety affects you most days, follows your thoughts in every situation, or causes physical symptoms like palpitations, nausea, or dizziness, you might be among the millions of people with an anxiety disorder. Anxiety disorders cause marked functioning impairments in someone’s social life, physical and mental health, and professional duties. 

How to cope with anxiety issues

Anxiety often starts with the mind and your thoughts throughout the day. It may be helpful to cope with your symptoms by working with your thoughts. Below are a few tactics with which you can start.

Devise a plan

For some people, anxiety stems from a fear of the unknown. Being unsure about the future or not knowing how a particular problem or situation will resolve itself can be stressful. If this is the case for you, it might be helpful to devise a plan to identify triggers and address potential worries lingering in your mind.

For example, if you are anxious about the outcome of a job interview, sit down with a pen and paper and list all the situations associated with that worry that are bothering you. You might have examples like not getting the job, not hearing back from the hiring manager, not knowing how to negotiate a salary, or having to move your family if you get the job. For each of your secondary worries, devise a solid plan of the steps you could take should one of your primary worries happen. Below is an example plan map you can use as a reference. 

Accept your feelings

Another potential strategy for coping with feelings of anxiety is acceptance. Anxiety can be unpleasant, but accepting that it's present may make it easier to manage. For this step, it might be helpful to learn about anxiety, the emotional processes behind it, and why it affects the body the way it does. Meditation and therapy can also be helpful tools for practicing acceptance.

Dedicate time to worry

Some may cope with anxiety better when they know they have a specific time dedicated to worry. Set a timer each day and find a place to be alone. During your worry time, give yourself the freedom to worry about any topic. Once the time is up, mentally set aside your thoughts and move forward with your day, knowing another time to worry is on your schedule. 

Journal to improve mental health

Consider journaling as a coping strategy, as it can visually transfer your thoughts out of your mind, which may help with managing anxious feelings. Studies show that expressive writing, like journaling, may help improve mental and physical health. Through journaling, you can evaluate your self-talk and identify the thought patterns that may be contributing to your feeling anxious.

Practice mindfulness

Mindfulness is a relaxation technique that may be one of the most effective coping strategies, helping individuals feel less anxious and more in control of their anxiety symptoms. Find time each day to focus on your present moment. Doing so may help you learn to exist alongside your thoughts and feelings rather than fight or ignore them. It may also help you grow an appreciation for your environment and body. 

Understand your fears

If you attend therapy for anxiety, you might work on finding the root cause of your fears. While this step in the healing process can be beneficial, it is one you can start on your own. Think about your biggest fears and consider where they might have originated. Did your worry start after a particular situation or event? Maybe your fears can be connected to an unpleasant childhood memory. Knowledge can be a tool against fear. 

Learn what triggers your anxiety 

Another helpful technique for managing anxiety is identifying inciting events, particularly if you feel anxious about specific situations or find that certain triggers make your anxiety worse. Identifying these triggers may be a key step in anxiety management and requires tracking your feelings over time or discovering what periods of heightened anxiety have in common. You might notice that your anxiety increases when you drive, wake up in the morning, or walk in busy places. 

Physical health tips for managing stress and anxiety

Coping with mental challenges can be one part of anxiety. However, changes in the body can contribute to anxiety, too. Below are a few physical tips for reducing anxiety levels. 

Be conscious of what you eat

Research shows that a diet low in processed foods and high in vegetables may help manage symptoms of anxiety. Foods high in magnesium, zinc, and omega-3 fatty acids may help reduce anxiety and boost energy levels. Next time you're at the store, load your cart with foods like spinach, legumes, whole grains, oysters, eggs, and salmon, which may be part of a balanced, healthy diet.

Exercise regularly to reduce stress

One of the most popular lifestyle changes and coping strategies doctors recommend to those experiencing anxiety is exercise. Exercise can improve sleep, reduce stress, and stabilize mood, including a relatively low amount of exercise, such as a ten-minute walk. Another common suggestion for physical activity is to practice yoga to ease anxiety. Yoga is a way to stay healthy and alleviate pain from anxiety, panic attacks, and related challenges like depression or social phobia.

Get adequate sleep

Your body needs sleep to function optimally. However, anxiety and sleep often have a complicated relationship. Some people may experience anxious thoughts that keep their minds active throughout the night, resulting in restlessness or sleep deprivation. When you experience a lack of sleep, you might experience worse anxiety the following day.

Say no to alcohol and caffeine

Research suggests that some substances can increase anxiety. Two of the most used are alcohol and caffeine. Alcohol affects cognitive functioning, making concentration and decision-making harder. It also prevents you from getting rest and can lead to an anxiety cycle in everyday life. Likewise, it can cause anxiety by changing your hydration, blood sugar, and serotonin levels.

Practice progressive muscle relaxation

Progressive muscle relaxation (PMR) is a technique that involves tensing and then relaxing all parts of the body for a few seconds each, which may help release muscle tension and promote relaxation. This method may be a helpful way to manage anxiety levels by increasing body awareness and promoting a sense of calmness. It may help gradually increase your comfort and control over anxiety and panic.

Caffeine mimics anxiety symptoms, including an increased heart rate and jitters. These symptoms lead to the production of the adrenaline hormone in your body. The more adrenaline you have in your blood, the more likely you may experience these distressing physical symptoms. 

Breathe

How you breathe when you experience anxiety can impact your mental health. Anxiety can cause shortness of breath as one of several physical symptoms. In response, some people breathe too quickly or deeply to try to breathe better. However, doing so can cause hyperventilation, which provides less oxygen to the brain. Instead of hyperventilating, focus on breathing slowly with deep breaths while releasing tension. One way to do so is by practicing belly breathing or following along with a guided breathing app. 

Consider medication for anxiety disorder symptoms

Medications are available to treat anxiety disorders and mental illness. Talk to a mental health provider or your primary care provider if you are living with severe anxiety or an anxiety disorder, have severe panic attacks, or believe you might benefit from medical intervention. They can help you decide whether long-term or short-term medication is the proper treatment for your mental and physical health. Consult with your doctor before starting, changing, or stopping any medication. 

Social coping mechanisms for anxiety 

Anxiety can increase when you try to cope with it alone. While working on your mind and body, don't forget to reach out to others. Below are a few coping skills you can try. 

Talk to someone

Talking with a friend or loved one about your feelings may allow you an outside perspective to help you manage anxiety and negative thoughts. Knowing you're not alone and that people care about your mental health may reduce some of your fears. 

Volunteer

Serving others can be a way to manage anxiety. Look for a non-profit organization in your local area and dedicate time each week to a cause that you are passionate about. As you help others, you may notice that you're also helping yourself. 

See a mental health professional to help you cope with anxiety issues

If you struggle to control anxiety, consulting a mental health professional may be helpful, as they can offer advice and various coping strategies. Therapists have extensive training in anxiety relief and stress management. There are multiple ways to see a therapist, and some may find that online therapy through a platform like BetterHelp is more convenient. 

When you sign up with an online platform, you can be matched with a professional, qualified therapist, often within 48 hours. You can attend sessions from home and choose between phone, video, or chat session formats. In addition, sessions may be more cost-effective than in-person therapy.  

Effectiveness of online therapy for mental health conditions like anxiety and depression

Studies also back up the effectiveness of internet-based interventions. One review of 14 studies found that people participating in cognitive behavioral therapy through online therapy had a 50% improvement in symptoms of anxiety and depression.