Struggling to keep up with a fast paced lifestyle can be very draining on both your physical and mental health.
Anxiety is a state of being whereby you are either stuck reliving a traumatic event from the past, unable to cope with the present, or overwhelmed by your ideas about the future.
Anxiety can trigger feelings of stress, breathlessness, butterflies in the stomach or a tight chest. These symptoms, if untreated, can lead to long-term chronic health issues.
To cope with feelings of anxiety, here are a few methods to get you back on track
Pause, take a few deep breaths, come back to the present moment and remember that you are not defined by your past, the future is what you make of it, stress can be shifted by realigning your consciousness to focus on the present moment.
Practice mindfulness. Shift your attention to your environment, feel your body, connect with the earth, take in the beauty that surrounds you, listen to the sounds that exist outside of yourself, appreciate the people around you and know that you are not alone - we are all experiencing the same things in one form or another.
Develop a meditation practice to support your mental and spiritual well-being.
Journal - write your feelings down and as each word hits the page surrender the emotional weight you attach to them.
Verbalise your thoughts. Whether it’s conflict or emotional baggage - by releasing your feelings you are liberating yourself from trauma. Whether it’s to a colleague, family or community member, partner, friend or professional - when we speak our truth we feel understood and alleviate the pressure to contain a plethora of feelings we experience as human beings.
Express yourself through movement. Exercise releases endorphins which promote feelings of happiness. Find your groove - dance, swim, run, walk, cycle, practice yoga. Find something that you enjoy, that doesn’t feel like a chore, something that you look forward to that lifts your spirits. You could even join a group or find an exercise buddy.
Take some sacred space for self such as immersing yourself in nature - allowing yourself to be held by mother earth through earthing techniques.
Take a hot Epsom salt bath with essential oils of lavender/geranium/orange/rose etc.
Indulge in any practice where you feel nourished such as massage, acupuncture, kinesiology, reflexology etc.
Nutrients and herbs can help decrease anxiety and nourish the nervous system – try magnesium, multi B vitamins, passion flower, zizyphus, California poppy, kava and lavender.
Take a break. Remove yourself from your routine. Rest & reset. Experience the healing powers of a week long group retreat in the lush surrounds of Byron Bay.
*If anxiety continues it would be good to see your doctor and get some blood tests to make sure there is no underlying nutrient deficiencies that may be contributing.