What exactly does anxiety mean?

Nowadays facing anxiety is so common and it's increasing day by day affecting more and more people With work, social life, and digital distractions, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed these days. Learning to deal with anxiety is important for mental health.

Anxiety can be a stress response. However, it can cause hassle when it remains persistent or feels out of control. It’s normal to feel nervous before a big event. However, if you’re being anxious all the time for no reason, it’s a problem. With the right anxiety management techniques or a bit of help, you can figure out how to cope with it and improve your mental Health.

Practical Tips on Managing Anxiety.

Mindfulness means being in the present moment non-judgmentally. Experts say Mindfulness can reduce anxiety by lowering your stress levels and calming your mind. Start with short meditations and increase the length as you're comfortable doing so.

• Participating in physical activities: This is quite beneficial for treating anxiety, it manages the level of the brain through exercises. Aim for at least 30 minutes of activity you find fun, like walking, jogging, or yoga, most days to reduce stress.

• Eating healthy can help brighten up one’s mood: The food we eat, primarily proteins and fats, can affect our sleep cycle and produce energy. Try to avoid caffeine and sugar as both trigger anxiety and make it worse.

• Quality sleep is key to optimal mental health: Sleeping for at least 7-9 hours every night and sticking to a calming routine after dinner such as going for a walk, taking a shower or reading can help you with anxiety. A bonus tip for quality sleep is not to interact with any electronic device at least an hour before bed.

• Set Healthy Boundaries: Setting healthy boundaries should also be a priority where Saying no and managing your time will prevent you from running out of time and burning out. Organize your tasks to feel less overwhelmed by your responsibilities or divide the task into smaller chunks and achieve it one by one. Too much screen time can increase your anxiety, so take a digital detox.

• Spend a portion of your day without screens: turn off unhelpful notifications to rest your brain. Deep breathing exercises can help your body’s relaxation response and activate it.

• Try the 4-4-4 trick: This breathing technique is a common and effective technique to deal with stress and anxiety where you have to inhale 4 counts, hold 4 counts, and exhale 4 counts. This can be used to relieve anxiety instantly. Here is how you can do the breathing exercise.

When to Get Help?

If your anxiety is affecting your day-to-day life or you experience frequent panic attacks, speaking to a professional may be the next best step. Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) and other therapies are some practices that can help you treat chronic anxiety effectively.