Anxiety disorders are the most common mental illness in America, and it affects up to 40 million people.
Having a little bit of anxiety isn’t a bad thing, but when you have too much it can start to affect every area of your life.
Are you struggling with anxiety? It can debilitate your life and leave you feeling very down. Read on for the best anxiety treatment options to try in 2019.
Exercise
Believe it or not, exercise is a great anxiety treatment.
Not only does exercise help regulate your levels of stress which can make your anxiety even worse, but it also releases endorphins. Endorphins are the hormones in your body that signal the happy feeling you get.
They are also natural pain relievers and can help you to feel relaxed overall.
It may be difficult to start a workout routine, but if you find an exercise you love you will be more likely to stick to your regimen.
Meditate
Meditation is more accessible now than ever. If you have anxiety, you may want to try downloading one of the many meditation apps that are available.
These guided meditations will walk you through learning how to take control of your thoughts and also how to control your breathing which are all things that can help relieve anxiety.
Schedule Time to Worry
This may sound crazy, but it can actually help.
Throughout the day, start training yourself to recognize when you are having an unjustified anxious thought. Catch yourself thinking about it, and then stop.
At the end of the day, schedule 10 to 15 minutes “to worry.” Only allow yourself to worry during that schedule time period, and soon you will start retraining your brain to not worry all of the time.
Focus on Breathing
When we’re anxious, we tend to stop breathing even if we don’t realize it.
However, by focusing on breathing, we let more oxygen into our body which allows us to think more clearly and get rid of unwanted negative and “what if thoughts.”
Breathing deeply tells your brain that you’re okay; you’re not in any danger. Doing this can actually tell your brain to let you relax.
There are different apps that can help guide your breathing by offering images to breathe along to or helping you count.
Seek Help
Anxiety can be difficult to manage and sometimes doing all the things that are listed above aren’t enough to help you manage your anxiety disorder.
If you feel like you can’t handle it on your own anymore, reach out to a trusted family member or friend. Sometimes speaking about it and talk about it with someone can help. It may seem scary to make that first jump, but you’ll be glad you did.
You may also need professional help. You should seek out a therapist or a counselor to help you with that. Studies have been done on cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and have proven very effective in treating anxiety disorders.
Try These Anxiety Treatments Today
These anxiety treatments are just a few things that may help you.
Every person is different and what works for someone else may not work for you.
For more ways on how to improve your mental health, read this blog post.