Methods for Calming Down, Relaxation & Feeling Better - Please Share!
Hey! I thought it would be cool to have a thread where people can share their ways of feeling better during a bad bit of anxiety! Feel free to share anything that may have helped you!
Something that I really like doing is breathing exercises. They help me calm down before performances and they might help you too! One I really enjoy is either puckering your lips as though you had a straw in between, or folding your tongue if you can to make a smaller air stream. When you breath in, the air should be cool. Hold the air for four seconds, then breath out for eight seconds or as long as you can, whatever comes first. The cool air helps to cool down your body.
Another method I like is tensing up different body parts, starting up at your head, and working your way down to your toes. Tense up each of your body parts for five seconds, and then release. When you have finished tensing and relaxing your toes, tense up your whole body. Relax. This exercise can increase your relaxation. I like to focus on the sensations around me while I do this. The sound of the heater or air conditioner. The quiet buzz of cars outside my window. The sound of birds chirping in the morning. The feeling of the floor on my feet, or my breath coming in and out. This also helps me fall asleep when I have a busy mind.
I hope some of these helped you! They help me calm down a lot! As I said, feel free to add any exercises you like to do to calm down! Stay strong!
Grounding eexercises
Deep bbreathing
candles
yoga
journaling
good music Spotify pplaylists
prayer
ssing
Read
Cook with dinner music
Enjoy nature
Run
calm.com
guided imagery
Draw
Do my nails
Dance
Help a ffriend
Drink Tea
There is some great ones there, @luvtorun
Thank you for sharing!
Which ones are your favourites??
I like to turn on relaxing music light a good scented candle and journal at night.
Grounding exercises yoga Pilates and CBT clearing exerciseswhile I run, eating non processedfood and 7to8 hrs of sleep helpmy anxiety depression and ADHD the most:)
Good list, thanks! What are grounding exercises?
Mindfulness
DBT Skills
Dance
Laugh
Photography
Rereading a favorite childhood book
Using resources on 7cups of Tea
CBT clearing exercises ieI clear all the ways I am sad.... Say yes for 1 min at the end say I cearall of these things and the ways they r connected say yes repeatedly for another min... I do this on afternoon walks and when I run
Thank you for sharing those, @luvtorun
I had a thing when I was first managing my anxiety whereby I would click my fingers as an audible trigger to stop a negative thought. It was surprisingly effective and I was surprised that it didn't take long for the long-standing habit of negative thoughts to stop.
I know that isn't a method for calming down but it is a method for stopping from stirring up.
Hi luvtorun,
I was reading your post and notice DBT skills. What is DBT stands for?
I did a quick search as I was curious too, and DBTstands for "Dialectical Behaviour Therapy." It is meant to help people change harmful behaviours. It is a modified form of cognitive-behaviouraltherapy. I hope that helped!
Hi @luvtorun
As @Made02 asked previously, what is DBT? Thanks :)
A long drive on Friday mornings with good music playing and the hope of good icecream at the end of the drive.
Always helps me to use a breathing way for my anxiety my girlfriend taught me, breathe in for 7 seconds, breathe out for 4 seconds, breathe in for 7, breathe out for 8.
Hypnosis helps.
also my therapist used to say it's a feeling not a fact; reality can be harsh but if feelings are cured, thoughts can differ too.
sometimes you're simply hungry.... Or tired... Not all the time though.
This is when you're rational, if you're in a different world(where I unpleasantly visit every once in a while..), I just find something to do. There's always something to do. Cleaning, washing myself, talking to someone, listing what makes me unhappy. For me it tends to be some sort of guilt of not doing the task enough to meet my own expectations. Or like haven't seen these people for a while(for obvious reasons). Breaking it is the hardest
@goldenFig9322
I like that: "it's a feeling and not a fact"
Thank you! Appreciate it.
For us poor folk who dont have jacuzzis or the chance to buy great wine, I recommend chamomile tea and nice hot baths, incense, music for anxietyon youtube, and breathing and walking. I aggressively combat depression by telling myself I am wonderful amazing and beautiful anytime a negative thought creeps in. I write down my bad thoughts sometimes. I hold my teddy bear. I do nice things for myself. And I avoid negative media saturation.
My favourite part of what you said was "I do nice things for myself." A lot of people forget to schedule time for self-care, and that really sucks! Finding time to do something nice for yourself is so important! Thank you for contributing to the thread ?
Anytime :) :)
Sound scapes (thunder storms, oceans) Playing guitar and singing Bath and a tea Cuddling with my pets Going for a long walk Writing (songs, poems, stories) Laying on the floor (don't ask)
That sounds great! I love tea, what is your favourite kind? Thanks for contributing! ?
Peppermint! How about you?
I love so many kinds of teas :)
Lately a herbal apple cinnamon tea or chai tea, but I frequently mix it up!
Do you recommend different teas for different moods, @RebeccaEmily??
If I'm feeling particularly stressed out and need to relax/sleep, I'll have a chamomile tea; if I need energy, instead of reaching for a coffee, I'll have chai. Apart from that though, not really. I'll just grab whatever I feel like having at that particular time.
Taking a bath with delicious essential oils; talking with a good friend; journaling; candlelight showers or baths; yoga; deep breathing; high intensity exercise to just wear you out; reading Harry potter; sunrise tea time; playing with animals; playing with my friends kids; taking a nature walk at sunset; watching cute or funny animal videos on YouTube and of course, snuggling with my love.
Hey, thanks for contributing! You have a lot of great coping methods! I really like the journaling one! What do you like to journal about?
Basically I do a free write to get all the anxiety out, then I pick one or two things to address, and create a plan. It really helps me fall asleep. And stay asleep! ;)
That sounds lovely! Thank you for sharing ?
I saw you use essentialoils! I'm looking to try some to see if they can give me some relief from my anxiety. I was wondering what brand of oils you use and if you have a diffuser?
Exercising is a great way to manage anxiety. I've been dealing with bouts of anxiety for as long as I can remember, sometimes generalized and sometimes not. I find that when I exercise, it's like I don't have enough 'energy' in me anymore to worry or stress over things. Studies show that regular exercise can actually give you more energy, help you think better and faster, and improve your mood. Exercise really helped to change my life, not just physically but mentally, and I find that when I stop exercising for a week or even a few days, the anxiety gets a lot worse.
You don't have to start by running either or doing hardcore cardio workouts. There are plenty of free 10-min workouts on YouTube that are fun like blogilates.
Another method that has helped me is just writing down all my thoughts. For example, I used to have anxiety about driving, but I wrote down what would happen if I actually got into a car accident/pulled over by police and what I would do... and that has helped.
Hi @Ophie
Thanks for sharing about the exercise, it's a good one for helping with both anxiety and depression :)
I like your point on writing down your thoughts with the possible outcomes and how you will manage them. It takes it away from the grey area that anxiety resides, which is a great tip :)
I highly recommend some type of meditation. I happen to be a Buddhist & practice one particular type of meditation, but I believe any type will be helping. Try Googling "guided meditation" and see what you like.
