19 Healthy Strategies For Coping With Anxiety

Anxiety is a common and natural response to stress, but when it becomes overwhelming, it can significantly impact your daily life and well-being. Whether it's due to work pressures, personal challenges, or the uncertainties of the future, managing anxiety is crucial for maintaining mental health. 

Fortunately, there are numerous effective strategies that can help you regain control and find peace amidst the chaos. In this guide, we’ll explore 19 practical and scientifically-proven ways to deal with anxiety. Read on to discover a comprehensive toolkit to calming your mind, correcting your thoughts, and making meaningful life changes that can help keep anxiety at bay for good.

Anxiety management fundamentals: the 3 Cs of anxiety

Calm your body

Anxiety and stress are rooted in physiological processes within the body. That anxious feeling is brought on by stress hormones like cortisol, adrenaline, and norepinephrine, which form the basis of your body’s “fight or flight” response. 

While it can feel like you have little control over these feelings, researchers have identified numerous cognitive and behavioral methods of minimizing, reversing, and even preventing these physiological processes, such as through meditation, physical exercise, and deep breathing. Below, you’ll find even more ways to find calm and relaxation amidst anxiety.

Check your thoughts

The way you think about a problem or situation can have a considerable impact on how you feel about it. Another fundamental tenet of anxiety management is to address anxious thoughts through a measured and rational lens. 

First, check the thought’s validity: is your concern based on evidence, or might there be a cognitive distortion at play? If you identify an error in your thinking, the next step is to consider a more helpful or reasonable thought. At this point, you can either use mindfulness to let go of the upsetting thought, or take action to work towards a solution.

Make a change

A third component of effective anxiety management is to make positive changes to address your anxiety both moment-by-moment and long-term as part of your ongoing self-care.

19 research-backed ways to deal with anxiety

The following anxiety management strategies are designed to help you address the physical, mental, and behavioral aspects of anxiety. Read on to learn how to deal with your anxiety—both in the moment and through your day-to-day habits.

1. Cultivate mindfulness

Mindfulness is a practice that allows you to connect with the present moment rather than worrying about the past or future—a crucial skill for managing anxious thoughts. A wealth of scientific research supports the effectiveness of mindfulness interventions for managing anxiety and other mental health conditions. 

Explore different mindfulness practices to find one that suits you, whether it be through meditation, yoga, self-study, grounding exercises, or a mindfulness-based therapy with a mental health professional. 

2. Get some exercise

Regular physical activity is a powerful tool for managing anxiety. Exercise floods your system with mood-lifting endorphins, combats the production of stress hormones, and promotes good sleep. Studies and meta-analyses have consistently shown that exercise can significantly reduce anxiety symptoms. 

Even a brisk half-hour walk each day can be an effective way to combat anxiety. You might also consider switching up your exercise regimen by trying a group fitness class, joining a local sports league, or discovering a new hiking trail in your area.

3. Meditate

Meditation practices, especially those based on mindfulness, have repeatedly been found to be effective for reducing anxiety symptoms when used consistently. Researchers believe its effectiveness may be due to the way that meditation can alter brain function and reduce stress hormone levels. 

There are a number of different meditation techniques you can try on your own, though it may be helpful to start with a guided meditation on a mindfulness app or streaming service. Aim to practice each day, even if only for a few minutes.

4. Try a deep breathing exercise

Deep breathing is a simple yet effective way to manage anxiety. These exercises can activate the autonomic nervous system, reducing heart rate and promoting relaxation, which helps mitigate the body's stress response.

Next time you feel anxiety beginning to take hold, take a few deep breaths and notice how much calmer you feel. A simple deep breathing exercise you might try is called box breathing: inhale deeply for four counts, hold the breath for four counts, exhale for four counts, and hold the exhale for four counts. 

5. Get adequate sleep

Sleep forms the foundation of good mental and physical health, and for those struggling with anxiety, it may be an especially important facet of mental upkeep: Poor sleep quality and sleep deprivation are known to impact emotional control and exacerbate anxiety symptoms.

Conversely, there’s a solid body of evidence to suggest that improving sleep habits can lead to significant reductions in anxiety levels. If you’re struggling to get good sleep due to your anxiety, it may be important to incorporate good sleep hygiene practices.

6. Declutter your space

Research has found that clutter can trigger stress and anxiety, perhaps because it echoes the internal chaos or lack of control that we might feel as a symptom of anxiety. Next time anxious thoughts creep in, try cleaning or tidying up your space and see if you feel any better. Not only will you create a more relaxed environment, you might feel better about having taken positive action.

7. Spend time outside

8. Engage in a hobby

Not only can hobbies provide a healthy distraction from anxiety, they can also give you a sense of purpose and fulfillment. A meta-analysis of over 93,000 seniors found that those who engaged in hobbies tended to have better mental wellbeing, physical health, and life satisfaction. Regardless of how busy you may be, try to carve out some time for activities that bring you joy.

9. Try yoga

Yoga combines physical activity, breathing exercises, and meditation, making it a holistic approach to managing anxiety. Research has repeatedly demonstrated that yoga can significantly reduce stress and anxiety, so it may be worth adding to your anxiety toolkit. To get started with yoga, try attending a beginners yoga class or following along with a video.

10. Use visualization or guided imagery

11. Stay connected with friends and family

Social connectedness is a known determinant of mental health, with a vast body of research suggesting that meaningful relationships and frequent socialization can improve mental health and life satisfaction. Try to make time for the people you care about, whether with a text, call, or visit—you might find their company a welcome distraction from anxiety and a reminder of what’s important.

12. Limit social media use

13. Maintain a balanced diet

Extensive research has found that dietary choices can have a profound impact on stress levels and mental health, perhaps because substances within certain foods trigger processes in the body that can influence mood, energy levels, and brain health. Particularly for those dealing with anxiety, it may be important to maintain a balanced diet rich in nutrient dense, non-processed foods.

14. Create and maintain a schedule

In addition to keeping you on track with your responsibilities, a schedule can help you feel more in control of your time by allowing you to visualize how to spend it. Activity scheduling—a component of behavioral activation therapy—is known to be beneficial for reducing depression symptoms, and could be a helpful tool for addressing anxiety triggers or lifestyle habits.

15. Problem-solve

A substantial body of research supports the use of problem-solving interventions for managing anxiety, so it may be worth incorporating some good problem-solving practices into your anxiety toolkit. After all, anxiety is the body’s way of alerting us to problems. In taking a proactive approach to worrying, you can use anxious thoughts as fuel to enact positive change.

16. Limit screen time

Research has found that screen time is associated with anxiety and other mental health issues—particularly in young people. Try to limit your digital consumption, balancing it with activities and pastimes that help you achieve better mental health, stronger relationships, or personal growth. That could mean choosing to read a book rather than scroll, getting outside for a walk, or calling a friend.

17. Practice gratitude

Gratitude is associated with higher life satisfaction, and research suggests that gratitude practices may provide some modest benefits for anxiety and depression. For anxiety sufferers, a regular gratitude practice may help to combat the negative thoughts that often trigger anxiety and foster a more positive, mindful, and adaptive attitude towards one’s difficulties and experiences.

18. Avoid triggers

Learning to identify and avoid your triggers can be key in keeping anxiety at bay. A core component of CBT for anxiety, this strategy can help you become more aware of behaviors or situations that influence your anxiety levels, both positively and negatively. Journaling, habit tracking, and CBT worksheets can be helpful tools for developing a better understanding of your anxiety triggers.

19. Try therapy

The strategies discussed above can be transformative in helping you manage anxiety, but living with a mental health condition can make it hard to make the changes necessary to keep anxiety at bay. Cognitive-behavioral therapy and mindfulness-based stress reduction are well-validated interventions for anxiety disorders, and may be a worthwhile option if self-help strategies are not sufficient.

Online anxiety support

To get started with therapy, consider connecting with a mental health professional specializing in anxiety disorders on BetterHelp. BetterHelp is an online therapy platform that networks with hundreds of mental health professionals licensed to practice in your state, making it easy to find the mental health care you need.