According to the National Institute of Mental Health, anxiety disorders are the single most common form of mental illness in the US. Over forty million adults report symptoms of anxiety - that's 18% of the population! However, anxiety is still one of the least talked-about disorders. Anyone who knows me well knows that I have struggled with major anxiety and anxiety attacks for about three years now. Throughout this time, I've discovered a lot about myself and what causes anxiety attacks for me, how diverse anxiety can be among people, and that plenty of people I know suffer from the exact same issues. Here are five tips to quell anxiety.
1. Get your heart rate down, ASAP. The number-one thing that is important about anxiety attacks is that they are so a biological response. You're not going crazy, you're not having a breakdown, but your body is going into a fight-or-flight response and your brain is going haywire. For me, telling my body to slow down means deep breaths to refocus. I have friends that get really hot when they have anxiety attacks, and they've found that sitting under a fan or jumping in a cold shower helps them get back to normal. Whatever the situation, you're not going to be able to calm down while your brain is still telling your body that it's freak-out time. Getting your body back to A-OK status is vital.
2. Distract yourself. By distracting yourself, you focus on something unrelated until you can face a problem calmly and rationally. Sometimes, you absolutely have to take your mind off of the problem at hand. I often find myself stressing over something I have zero control. If that's the case, the anxiety is unwarranted. Even if something is eating at me, I can usually find a way to distract myself. Sometimes that means reading a book, sometimes it's going out to see a movie, and sometimes I can get away with just socializing with friends. Regardless of the method, find a way to get your mind on something else until you can think clearly.
3. Cut caffeine and sugar. Okay, not entirely...but one of the main things I've found is that having a lot of caffeine in me makes me edgy enough already. Combine with my already-established anxious personality, and I'm not a super fun person. I cut soda out of my diet a year and a half ago and noticed a significant decrease in how bad and how frequent my anxiety attacks occurred. Instead of reaching for coffee in the early morning or midday slump, I usually go for icy cold water instead. It's better for me, it keeps me well-hydrated, and it definitely wakes me up!
4. Talk it out. I know a lot of this is specific to my personality type, but I learn and process MUCH better when I talk out loud. Talking out things that I'm anxious about is really helpful for understanding why they make me so anxious. It's not just anyone I'll talk openly about my anxiety to, though - I have a few close friends that I trust to call in the middle of an attack, because they know exactly what an anxiety attack looks like for me and are good at talking me through it. I highly recommend finding someone who knows you extremely well and going straight to them when you feel like you can't handle it anymore. No one should suffer anxiety attacks alone if you can help it.
5. Rationalize. While you're in the middle of an anxiety attack, there is almost no rationalization. It's typical to picture unrealistic scenarios and beat yourself up over things that will never happen. That's why phrases like "calm down" or "stop being so ridiculous" aren't helpful to people in the midst of major anxiety attacks. But, this sort of irrational thinking is what stresses the attack further. Once you've calmed down and feel like you've taken a break from the problem, review your thought process. What did you tell yourself that is a fair statement? What did you tell yourself that is completely unrealistic and will never happen? Train your brain to see the reality in your anxiety, and you will better understand why you think the way you do.
I hope these tips help you better understand anxiety as a whole, and start a discussion about anxiety. It is a very real issue, and it's not just "being stressed out". Embracing and learning to handle anxiety is key, and I hope that everyone who struggles with it learns to manage it for yourself.
