Managing Anxiety - The Lowdown on Struggling with Stress

Managing Anxiety – The Lowdown on Struggling with Stress : Everyone feels anxious or stressed sometimes. In fact, 55% of Americans report feeling so stressed on occasions that they are unable to cope with everyday life, according to the latest study from Gallup. Dealing with stress and anxiety can feel overwhelming, but the good news is that you are not alone – and there are lots of great ways to manage stress and anxiety that will get you back on track.

Learning to recognize when you’re stressed

The first step is to figure out your stress and anxiety triggers, and how they affect you. Perhaps you are in a situation it seems like you can’t control, or maybe it feels like you have too much to do and not enough time to do it. Modern life has many demands, and anything that leads to change or conflict will usually result in feelings of sickness, tiredness, sore aching muscles, faster breathing and a rapid heart rate. A little bit of stress can be an aid to productivity, but if you’re finding you’re experiencing these symptoms, that’s a sign that it’s all too much. So, what can you do about it?

Help yourself to feel better

Ultimately, the only person who can make sure you feel less stressed and anxious is you. There are plenty of people and organizations that will offer support and information, but when it comes down to it, you are the one that will need to commit to making changes that’ll improve your mood, wellbeing and circumstances. Think about all the things you could try, and start off with one or two options to see what difference they make.

Soothing stress and anxiety with exercise is a great example. Being active causes chemical changes in your brain that naturally help you feel better, and if you set yourself exercise goals and go on to achieve them, that’ll lead you towards a natural high too! As a bonus, if one of the things that is stressing you out is your health or your weight, it’s likely that exercise will have a positive effect on that as well.

Which leads nicely into another option – challenge yourself. Learn something new, set yourself goals and stick to them, build your confidence, and be productive. If you’re feeling overwhelmed then it might seem counter intuitive to add more into the mix – but actually, learning, gaining knowledge and feeling like you’ve achieved something can help make everything else seem more achievable too. You can do it!

Things to avoid when managing stress and anxiety

It can be tempting to rely on coping mechanisms to manage stress and anxiety, but often, these can make symptoms worse and cause more problems in the long run. Smoking, alcohol and caffeine all have short term effects that might boost your mood temporarily, but you’ll inevitably end up with less money and more issues. It might take longer and feel harder to start making changes that slowly improve your symptoms over time, but ultimately, dealing with the root cause of the problem rather than avoiding the issues and attempting to ignore them is the way to go.

Know where to get support

That’s why knowing where to get support is important. It might be as simple as spending more time with friends and family, or perhaps you’d prefer to seek support from someone you don’t know. There are lots of great organizations that offer help and advice if you’re not feeling as good as you should, so get on the phone, send an email, or pay them a visit, and start your journey to a less stressed and anxious life.

Although it may sometimes feel like you’ll never get your stress and anxiety under control, try taking some small steps (literally, if you’ve chosen to do some exercise!) and see the big difference it can make. With just a little bit of effort, you should feel a lot better in no time.