How To Deal With Anxiety | Buddhism In English

Dealing with anxiety is not easy. One of the benefits of professional help is that it gives you someone to keep you accountable, and provides you with validation that what you’ve done thus far has been working.

It is possible to deal with anxiety on your own. But in order to do so, you have to be able to commit to lifestyle changes, avoid some of the most common anxiety fueling behaviors, and be ready to hold yourself accountable for your changes.

Some examples include:

• Moping Coping with anxiety requires you to take action. But stress makes you want to mope. Spending time alone, in silence, with your own thoughts can be nice once in a while, but often thoughts are your enemy when you have anxiety. Distractions, staying active, and trying to be as social as possible are important.
• Bad Foods Diet does play a role in anxiety. Those with panic attacks should avoid caffeine, because they seem to be a trigger of panic. Fattening foods, refined sugars, alcohol, and fried foods also exacerbate anxiety symptoms. Eating habits don’t usually “cause” anxiety, but they make it worse, and the worse your anxiety symptoms are the more your anxiety will bother you.
• Anxiety-producing Stimuli Anxiety is a cumulative condition. The more anxiety you experience in your daily life, the more your other anxiety symptoms get worse. That means that you should avoid horror movies, dark alleys at night, spending time with people who are reckless – anything that produces anxiety should be controlled, to avoid the anxiety from getting worse.
• xercise/Physical Activity Exercise is not just about getting fit. The overwhelming majority of those that experience anxiety do not engage in enough physical activity, and many experts believe that this is one of the issues that causes anxiety. Physical activity improves the immune system, releases calming neurotransmitters (known as endorphins), tires the muscles, and burns away stress hormones. It’s incredibly important for controlling stress and anxiety, and incredibly important for coping.
• Herbal Tools There are several herbal supplements you can consider to help you cope with anxiety. Chamomile, Kava Kava, Valerian, Passionflower, and St. John’s Wort all produce sedation/relaxation without side effects. Always talk to a doctor though before starting any herbal anxiety treatment.
• Meditation and Yoga Both meditation and yoga have the potential to improve your ability to cope with stress. They teach healthier breathing, and poor breathing is one of the issues that makes anxiety symptoms worse, especially during anxiety and panic attacks. Many people believe the spiritual qualities of meditation and yoga are also helpful for curing anxiety.
  • These things may not cure anxiety on their own, but they will help you learn to control the way anxiety affects you, and you’ll often find that they assist your ability to mentally cope – in some cases enough to cure it completely.
    • https://www.calmclinic.com/anxiety/coping