What might help
There are a lot of different things you can try to help manage and reduce your anxiety. Different strategies work for different people, so it’s about exploring different ideas and finding something that works best for you. There are some examples of things you could try below.
Introducing a form of physical exercise helps to manage the excess stress hormones that are released in your body during times of excessive stress. Maintain some interests or find new hobbies.
Take control and manage your time by writing down the problem you are worrying about and coming up with as many solutions as you can. It is also important not to over commit yourself, know your limits and to learn how to say ‘No’. It can be useful to prioritise tasks by identifying what needs to be done immediately, in the next week, the next month and so on and whether the task needs to be done by you or someone else.
Keeping a stress diary will help you to manage your anxiety levels. It will help you to identify situations which cause you anxiety. The diary will help you to identify what triggers anxiety episodes and how it effects you, which will in turn enable you to be more prepared and to develop better coping mechanisms.
Improve your sleep routine by reducing your use of electronic devices such as smartphones, tablets and TV’s before you go to bed as they emit blue light that signals our brain to stay awake. Keep your bedroom dark and cool for sleeping and introduce a wind down routine.
Take care of your diet by reducing the amount of processed foods you eat and introducing a proper meal time routine, sitting down to eat and not in front of the TV. Avoid too much caffeine, alcohol and nicotine as they are stimulants and have been proven to increase anxiety levels.
You can learn more about how your lifestyle impacts on your wellbeing in the Lifestyle and Recovery Series which you can access via the courses section of our website.