Chronic stress and anxiety are a national epidemic – but there are ways to help manage it. Noah Rue comes to the rescue with natural ways to alleviate anxiety.
Are you searching for natural ways to alleviate anxiety? Chronic stress and anxiety are conditions both common and detrimental to many people. Not only can a continuous stream of worrisome thoughts cripple to your mental health, but the effects of both worrying and stressing out over everything can also trickle down to your physical body as well.
In fact, anxiety may play a role in causing things like somatic symptom disorder — a disorder characterized by “an extreme focus on physical symptoms” and which has no apparent physical cause — as well as several other chronic physical illnesses including heart disease, chronic respiratory disorders, and gastrointestinal conditions. Apart from the more serious issues, chronic stress and anxiety can also lead to things like:
● Irritability
● Disturbed sleep
● Restlessness
● Headaches
● Fatigue
● An inability to concentrate
While the symptoms of these physical manifestations can be treated, the battle can be all for naught if the underlying stress and strain aren’t addressed as well.
While there are medical solutions to addressing anxiety, there are also many natural ways to supplement a medically-based treatment plan (or avoid the need of it in the first place) that allow the mind to heal from the damage of a prolonged habit of chronic worrying.
Natural Ways to Alleviate Anxiety & Chronic Stress
Here are a number of simple yet effective strategies that can help to combat those anxious thoughts and stressful situations without the use of medicines. Here are six natural ways to alleviate anxiety and chronic stress.
Exercise
Exercise is an age-old way to beat stress. Not only is it good for your health, but getting up and moving has also been proven to be as effective as medication in helping to manage the struggle with anxiety.
Here are a few suggestions for different ways to get some exercise:
● Go for a jog.
● Head to the gym.
● Go rock climbing.
● Join a pick-up sports league.
Obviously, there are many other ways to go about getting some exercise. Whatever your preferences, though, the important thing is that you pick one and do it!
Aromatherapy
Essential oils are a powerful yet natural way to address a lot of different problems in life, and one of the best essential oils of them all is lavender. The oil super-star is very effective in treating everything from sleep deprivation to burns, itches, minor aches and pains, and can even provide allergy relief.
But where it comes in particularly handy here is how it can affect the mind. Lavender essential oil is known as a helpful way to support mental well being. It’s an excellent tool to aid in calming your mind and its ever-racing thoughts. Having a good diffuser and a bottle of lavender essential oils on hand can be the perfect antidote the next time you feel a bout of anxiety coming on.
A Clean Diet
It should come as no surprise that feeding your body the right foods can help alleviate anxious and stressful thoughts. A clean, healthy digestive system leads to a clean, healthy mind. This is pertinent, as one of the major issues with anxiety is the fact that it tends to lend itself to the temptation to overeat. Emotional eating is an extremely common coping mechanism that many take on, but it tends to lead to unhealthy food choices that are then eaten is excess.
If you’re dealing with stress, it’s important to make a conscious effort to choose what you eat carefully. Here are a few suggestions to try to work into your dietary choices on a day-to-day basis:
● Limit your sodium intake.
● Eat more colorful fruits and vegetables.
● Drink more water.
● Avoid processed sugar.
Addressing Cognitive Distortions
One common way to address chronic anxiety and stress is through cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). This approach analyzes various triggers and observes how you react in specific situations. This is done in an attempt to help rewire how your brain approaches situations throughout life.
One key part of CBT is identifying cognitive distortions like catastrophizing or discounting the positive. You can find a helpful list of common cognitive distortions here. Try to identify what ones you might relate to and see if you can catch yourself using them.
Mindfulness
One interesting modern way to combat worry comes in the form of apps. Some of these, like Pacifica, are literally built around the CBT approach and allow you to track and then analyze your mood throughout the day.
The important thing to keep in mind, though, is that you’re not harvesting data in order to help add to the things that you’re worried about. Rather, you should be doing so in order to help you become more mindful of your thought processes as you go through your day-to-day responsibilities and routines.
Beating the Stress
While all of the above options are excellent tools for combating stress and anxiety, it’s important to remember the most important tool of them all: communication. If you’re struggling with feeling anxious, it’s important to talk it out and, if the situation warrants, seek professional help as well.
From a better diet and exercise to digital solutions and everything in between, however you go about addressing your stress and anxiety, remember that you’re not alone in the struggle. As you seek to keep your head above the water, hold on to hope and keep fighting for a better future. If you can keep this kind of mindset, eventually you will, indeed, weather the storm.
If you suffer from anxiety, we’ve created a 30 Day Anxiety Challenge to teach you 30 different ways to manage your anxiety. The only commit you’ll make is the commitment to challenge yourself to complete all 30 days of the program. It will only take a few minutes out of your day, but can potentially reward you with a lifetime of relief. The 30 Day Anxiety Challenge is absolutely free and always will be. Sign up now for the 30 Day Anxiety Challenge.
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