10 Strategies to Reduce Anxiety

Any normal person deals with anxiety. The thing is that we often make it worse by the way we act and think. Here are some tried and tested strategies for reducing and hopefully eliminating anxiety in your life. It's an ongoing battle, but these strategies work if you apply them.

  • 1. Realize that little things are not small

    Don't focus on your big, far-away goal. Focus on the smallest, immediate task in front of you. Stuff adds up. You get there one step at a time, one day at a time, one action at a time. Just go and start now. 

  •  2. You don't have to have an opinion about it

    Remind yourself about that all the time. You don't have to have an opinion about it. You don't need to say that it's good or bad, fair or unfair. You don’t need to project your thoughts, beliefs, emotions, or perceptions on it. Look at it as an objective piece of information. Let it be and see it as it is.

  •  3. Stop caring what other people say, think, or do

    That's the key to peace and tranquility. The calm comes when you stop caring what others say, think, or do. The calm comes when you care only about what you do and say.

  • 4. Remember that you're lucky to be alive in this moment

    Even if things are crazy and insane and awful, they're also wonderful because you're getting to experience them. Please don't waste this gift you've been given by taking it for granted or being bitter or cynical about it. There's a reason we call it the present. It is a gift. 

     

    Focus on what you can control - your perceptions and opinions about things. Try to accept and be grateful for it; you will find happiness in this moment.

5. Don't stuff your emotions down

Process your emotions; don't pretend you don't have them. Take the emotion when it hits you, observe it, and process it. This is why you should journal.

If you ignore or try to conquer your emotions, it's like putting it on a credit card. You do not have to pay for it now. But eventually, it will come due, and the interest will make it even more expensive. So don't shut your emotions down. Don't be ruled by them. Work on your emotions - face, explore, process and come to terms with them.

  • 6. Don't suffer from imagining troubles

    Seneca said "We suffer more in imagination than in reality."

    All the things we are anxious about, the things we worry about, the things we are hoping won't happen – most of them never happen. 

     

    The reality is you don't control what will happen. You only control the present moment and how prepared you are for the uncertainty of the future. Don’t torture yourself with your thoughts. Don’t give up the present moment because you're worried about what could and almost certainly will not happen.

  • 7. Realize that no one can harm you

    People can hurt you, they can say cruel things, they can attack you. But feeling harmed is a choice. You decide to see yourself as harmed by it. Eleanor Roosevelt said ,,No one can make you feel inferior without your consent."

     

    We are complicit when we feel harmed because we see it that way. Change the story you tell yourself about what happened.

8. Spend more time outside walking

Your mind will break if you don’t let it rest. Walking is a physical activity, but it's rather about letting your mind rest. Leave your phone and work at home. Leave your thoughts at home and go outside and walk. Don't even consider it as physical exercise. It's an exercise for your mind. It's time you spend outdoors. It's time you spend practicing gratitude and appreciation. Do it every day.

  • 9. You can decide how you are going to see every situation

    You can see every situation in a way that disempowers you, that makes you the victim. Or you can  see it as the opportunity for growth, as the thing that will make you better and stronger. 

     

    This idea comes from one of the stoics, Epictetus, who spent 30 years in slavery. He didn't see it as a disadvantage, but a learning experience. A fate he's struggling with that's making him stronger. He said you've been paired with a tough opponent, making you Olympic class material.

     

    So, whatever you experience today, think about this. It always has two handles. Which one am I going to choose? The one that will make me better, or the one that will make me worse?

10. Start journaling

The best way to process your emotions is to start journaling. What is the best way to start journaling? The best way to start journaling is to start journaling. You can go with a journal with prompts or a plain journal, even just a piece of paper, or you can try Joyrnal that is designed to help you to reduce stress, anxiety, worries, and all those toxic roiling emotions that we all deal with.

 

The best time to start journaling was a long time ago. The second best time is right now.

I want to feel better and accomplish more in my life