Shifting Stress & Anxiety Into Calm

Stress and anxiety are the top reasons reported for people seeking therapy and other forms of mental health support. Research findings suggest that the best approach to treating and reducing stress and anxiety is a combination of mental, physical, and lifestyle adjustments and practices.

One thing that people consistently report as invaluable is to have a mindfulness practice: Regularly set aside time to focus on the present moment, deep breathing and grounding.

Another practice that creates positive change for people is an intentional shift in mindset: Cognitive-behavioral techniques can help to identify and reframe fears or worries.

Try this exercise that helps us to reframe and shift our internal narrative about a feeling or situation: Write down the anxious or stress-related thoughts that are going through your mind. Go through the list and objectively assess the validity of each thought. Use these self-inquiry questions developed by Byron Katie...

1. Is it true?

2. Can you absolutely know that it’s true?

3. How do you react when you believe that thought?

4. Who would you be without the thought?

Another beneficial approach is to practice visualization:

Close your eyes and imagine a calming scene or imagine and feel the experience of a successful outcome to the situation causing anxiety. Athletes use visualization techniques to mentally experience successfully completing a task.

Focus on gratitude:

Keep a journal and list things you're grateful for daily. This practice helps shift the attention and narrative from negativity and worry to positivity.

Break tasks into steps to reduce any feelings of overwhelm and heightened anxiety:

Writing down the steps and when you will complete them can make them feel more manageable and provide a plan to stick to.

These physical practices reduce the physiological experience of stress and anxiety:

Deep breathing: Techniques like diaphragmatic breathing (inhaling for 4 seconds, holding for 4 seconds, exhaling for 6 seconds) calm the nervous system.

Regular exercise: Physical activities like walking, running, yoga, or dance release tension and boost endorphins.

Progressive muscle relaxation: Tense and then relax different muscle groups, moving systematically through the body.

Limit stimulants: Reduce caffeine, nicotine, and sugar, all of which can make anxiety symptoms more extreme.

These lifestyle practices have been found to be useful as well:

Establish a routine: A regular schedule provides structure and predictability.

Prioritize sleep: Aim for 7–9 hours of quality sleep. This can work best when there is a set bedtime routine that includes avoiding screens before bed and creating a calming sleep environment.

Maintain connections: Share your feelings with trusted friends, family, or a support group.

Healthy nutrition is calming: Consuming a balanced diet of foods rich in magnesium, omega-3s, and B vitamins supports the body, nervous system and brain health.

Limit social media time and exposure: Time on social media can make us feel disconnected from ourselves and others. Allotting certain times of the day and lengths of time for social media can help us feel more in control of our use and engagement with it.

A digitial detox (see blogpost about this): helps us avoid overstimulation and comparison triggers.

Soak it out: Mineral rich baths (at home or at a hot spring) can do wonders for enhancing a sense of calm and relaxation for the body and mind.

Herbal supports can provide a reduction in feelings of stress and anxiety: Magnesium, L-Theanine, Holy Basil (Tulsi), Lemon Balm, Chamomile, Valerian, Passionflower and several other herbs are wonderful, gentle and effective supports to help manage feelings of stress and anxiety.

Additional Stress Reduction Practices:

Meditation and yoga: Both significantly help to relax the mind, reduce stress hormones, and improve focus.

Spending time in nature: Go for a walk in a park, forest, or beach to benefit from nature's calming effects. We experience an abundance of negative ions when we are around moving water. This naturally stimulating environment automatically increases our serotonin levels, we absorb more oxygen into the blood and our bodies can better filter out toxins.

Art or music therapy: Creative activities like drawing, painting, or playing an instrument can provide an emotional outlet and put us into a meditative state where we are focused on the present moment rather than fixating on worries and concerns.

Professional Support:

Therapy is a great way to help shift out of a pattern of stress and anxiety. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is particularly effective in helping reduce anxiety. Other approaches like acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) or dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) can also be beneficial.

Hypnotherapy is a very beneficial way to get to the source of the feelings of stress and anxiety and release them from your life.

Biofeedback uses frequency and communication between the body and biofeedback device to restore balance in the body's physiological responses, such as heart rate and muscle tension, to reduce anxiety.