Natural solutions to soothe it
Since the Covid-19 pandemic, more and more people are suffering from anxiety attacks and even chronic anxiety. Here, we offer ten effective solutions and techniques for dealing with these emotions without resorting to chemical medications.
1. Exercise
The first remedy for combating anxiety is physical activity. Physical activity has antidepressant and anti-anxiety effects. It’s not just about walking, but engaging in intense activity that will get your heart pumping and thus stimulate your entire metabolism. This will automatically focus your attention enough to push your anxieties and mental ruminations to the background.
And the more you push yourself, the more you’ll boost your self-esteem. Moreover, intense exercise releases endorphins, which act similarly to opium, creating a sense of well-being.
2. Breathe
Breathing slowly and deeply has a calming effect. You can find many breathing exercises, particularly in Pranayama. They always consist of conscious, deep, abdominal breathing. For example, you can count 4 while inhaling, keep your lungs full for 7 seconds, then exhale for 8 to 10 seconds, and so on.
This conscious breathing will again focus your attention. Moreover, slowing your breathing rate and breathing from the belly provides inner calm and security.
3. Challenge yourself
Setting yourself a difficult routine, even unpleasant at first, will strengthen your willpower and determination. By persisting and progressing, your mental strength strengthens and your self-confidence grows. It’s up to each person to choose their own challenge. For example, you might decide to get up early every morning, when you’d prefer to stay in bed, to go for a walk, a run, or to meditate.
You might choose to experiment with ice showers or baths. This practice is very powerful for strengthening the immune system. It also increases the secretion of endorphins, a source of pleasure and well-being.
It therefore has both a stimulating and relaxing effect. What’s more, the simple act of successfully completing a challenge builds self-confidence. Anxiety will automatically be reduced.
4. Practice benevolent actions
When we’re feeling anxious, we tend to become trapped in our thoughts, which are constantly running through our heads. As a result, we forget that contact with others can bring us joy and comfort. Paying attention to others, smiling at them, doing them favors: all these small acts of kindness are contagious and, in turn, bring us a sense of well-being. Anxiety will diminish, and the love and kindness we radiate will come back to us.
5. Meditate
The practice of meditation is becoming increasingly popular. Indeed, it has highly beneficial effects on both the physical and mental aspects. It is particularly effective in teaching us to regulate our emotions and distance ourselves from our thoughts. Meditation, unlike relaxation, is not about lying in bed listening to relaxing music. Although relaxation can be beneficial, too.
Meditation is practiced in the lotus, half-lotus, or cross-legged position, with your spine upright and your knees flat on the floor. Once positioned correctly, simply breathe deeply, relax, welcome your emotions, and observe your thoughts, letting them pass by like watching a train go by.
Whatever emotion is overwhelming you (anxiety, anger, or fear), the worst thing to do is try to fight it. The most effective thing to do is to welcome it, feel it physically, and breathe. It will then diminish over time. Finally, to be lastingly beneficial, meditation requires being practiced at least once a day, for at least 20 minutes.
6. Practice an art
Practicing an art brings pleasure and joy, and through the concentration it requires, forces us to put obsessive thoughts and worries on hold.
The demands this practice places on us during the learning phase force us to surpass ourselves, and progressing in an art increases our self-esteem.
Moreover, the more we master it, the more practicing an art elevates our soul, bringing us pleasure and joy. Over time, we automatically connect to subtle energies of higher frequencies.
This increases our heart energy. And anxiety is forced to retreat!
7. Improve your lifestyle
People with anxiety should pay close attention to their diet and their lifestyle in general.
When experiencing anxiety, the temptation may be to distract ourselves with alcohol, cigarettes, or even overindulge in coffee. While alcohol can temporarily help us forget about anxiety, it doesn’t solve anything and may even increase it once the euphoric effect wears off. It’s also important to get enough sleep and eat healthily and at regular times. Finally, it’s essential to spend time in nature, which has a balancing effect on our entire body and mind.
8. Essential oils
Shell marjoram essential oil (EO), which balances the nervous system, is effective in combating anxiety. It can be applied to the plexus, the hollow located above the stomach, the point that is the seat of emotions. This is also where we feel a sensation of oppression when we are anxious. Use: pour 5 drops of EO into a teaspoon of vegetable oil (calendula, sweet almond, etc.). Massage the plexus in circles with this mixture for 2 to 3 minutes. Lavender can also be used, which has a calming effect.
9. Qigong
Directly linked to Chinese medicine, the practice of qigong is a veritable treasure trove for improving both physical and mental health. Qigong consists of simple postures or sequences of movements, practiced slowly and mindfully.
It requires deep breathing and relaxation, while listening to your body. Qigong allows vital energy (or qi) to circulate throughout the body, thus balancing and increasing this energy. We emerge both energized and relaxed.
This practice also helps regulate our emotions by reducing their impact. You should quickly feel the benefits, although again, only regular practice can truly improve our health.
It is advisable to learn qigong with a qigong master, who can observe and guide you. Because beneath its apparent simplicity, qigong requires real learning to unlock all its treasures.
10. Acupuncture
If you suffer from chronic anxiety or panic attacks, don’t hesitate to seek outside help to begin your healing process. Acupuncture is particularly effective for treating anxiety. Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) is a holistic medicine that works by rebalancing the individual’s overall energy.
It therefore not only treats the physical aspect but also acts as a regulator of emotions. Indeed, in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), of which acupuncture is a part, each organ is linked to an emotion. For example, the liver is associated with anger (or frustration), the kidneys with fear, the lungs with sadness, etc. Anxiety is primarily associated with the spleen (and stomach). After just a few sessions, you should feel much more relaxed and less anxious. This will give you enough energy to practice the techniques recommended above to maintain this state of mind over the long term.
Covid-19 crisis and anxiety
Since the beginning of the Covid epidemic, psychiatrists have witnessed a surge of children and adolescents suffering from anxiety disorders and various phobias, including the fear of suffocation. Others were in an anxiety-depressive state, where fear was mixed with guilt about transmitting the virus, or the fear of seeing their parents die.
This period has left lasting after-effects, particularly among children and adolescents.
For adults, things are no better, with the precariousness of many professional situations, the fear of losing one’s job, etc.
In short, anxiety has never been so high! What’s more, all the measures taken during this crisis, from wearing masks to self-isolation, have all run counter to solutions to anxiety, as you can see in this article.
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