Need quick ways to calm your anxiety?

Longing to feel less stressed and more peace in your life?

Are you finding yourself constantly worried, on edge, filled with anxiety, or a sense of dread?

Feeling overstimulated or easily irritated?

Trouble focusing during the day or sleeping at night?

Learn how to ground yourself and find calm quickly:

Here are 8 quick tools to implement in your day that can all be done in 5 minutes or less.

Take 5 deep belly breaths.

Breathing past your chest down into your belly will help to slow your heart rate, lower your blood pressure, and calm your nervous system.  Try keeping your shoulders low as you breath and placing a hand on your belly to see if you can get it to rise and fall with your breath.

Use the 5 senses to ground yourself in the present.

Walk through your senses to notice what you taste, smell, see, hear, and feel.  This will help to ground you in the present and let go of anything that isn’t happening right now.

Warm your heart.

Rub your hands quickly together for 1 min to create warmth and then place your hands over your heart and take a deep breath, reconnecting warmth into the most important part of your body.  You can repeat and place this warmth on your head, belly, anywhere that feels comforting.

Turn off social media & news notifications.

Both of these capitalize on sensationalism which can have a negative effect on our nervous system and increase anxiety.  Use app settings to set limits on your consumption and take a longer break if you find yourself feeling anxious.

Step outside.

Even 5 minutes of fresh air, nature, your feet on the grass, sunshine can have profound effects on our nervous system, where anxiety is activated.  Step outside when you get anxious and bring nature inside as much as possible through open windows, plants, or listening to nature sounds in the background.

Use cold to your advantage.

An quick few minutes of an ice pack or cold compress on the back of your neck can slow your heart rate and tell your body to relax.

Move your body.

A quick walk around the block, few yoga stretches, or even getting up and moving yourself to a different room can be a way to help your mind reset by physically moving yourself out of the place you feel anxious in.

Talk kindly to yourself.

Repeat soothing affirmations such as “I am safe,” “I am letting go of what I can’t control,” or “I will get through this.” Say what you would say to your best friend to help them feel calmer.  These can be even more effective when combined with the warm heart exercise, gentle movement, or placing your arms around yourself in a gentle hug.

Therapy and Counseling for Anxiety will provide you with many more tools to manage and cope, as well as address underlying issues that may be contributing to chronic stress and anxiety.

Looking for more tools to address ongoing anxiety and stress?  Contact Jennifer here to book an appointment.

If you’re an international client, visit our Netherlands website here.