7 Simple Relaxation Techniques for Anxiety

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7 Simple Relaxation Techniques for Anxiety

relaxation techniques for anxietyAnxiety is a powerful mental state – one that controls the lives of millions of people each year. Thankfully, there is much you can do to combat that state and take back your peace of mind.

Remember – stress is a useful tool. Your body uses it to remind you when something is important and keep you on track. Without stress, it would be impossible to accomplish much of anything. However, at a certain point, anxiety and stress get out of control.

That’s when you need to take action.

Here are seven simple relaxation techniques for anxiety that will finally allow you to take back the better moments of your life.

1. Deep Breathing and Meditation

Nothing is more powerful than deep breathing to combat anxiety – it’s been used for centuries by philosophers, spiritual healers and mindful thinkers to cleanse the mind of worry and relax, despite everything that happens around you each day.

The key is practice, and ensuring there is a set time every day to cleanse the mind of worrisome thoughts. The type of meditation you do matters much less than ensuring you do it regularly.

2. Exercising and Energizing

Some people need to meditate and relax to combat anxiety, while others need to get out there and burn off pent up energy. Daily exercise, especially if you work in an office or are regularly sedentary, is a must. Go running, install a punching bag in your garage, or get a gym membership.

3. Mindfulness

Are you fully aware of what causes your anxiety? Sit down once a day and clear your mind of everything to reflect on what feeds your anxiety. By setting a clearly defined time each day, you allow yourself to defer worries throughout the day until that moment of mindfulness.

4. Visualization

Visualization is a powerful tool – not just to find success in every aspect of your life, but also to overcome the effects of negativity. Visualize yourself overcoming anxiety, and feeling comfortable in various aspects of your life, and it will come to pass.

5. Muscle Relaxation Techniques for Anxiety

A “muscle scan” is a powerful tool to release tension. Sit and visualize each muscle in your body. Breathe deeply and visualize a muscle, possibly tensing it in response to your thoughts. Now as you release your breath, release the tension in the muscle and visualize the anxiety flooding from your body through that point.

6. Affirmation

Affirmations allow you to reprogram what and how you think. Sit down for five minutes each day with positive affirmations such as “I am a successful person who overcomes anxiety in every aspect of my life.”

7. Removal from Stress

This isn’t a relaxation technique so much as a strong suggestion. For you to successfully defeat anxiety, you must remove it from your life. All the deep breathing and muscle relaxation in the world do you no good if you are steeped in stressful situations on a daily basis.
Anxiety does not control your life and with the right approach, you will never let it again. Like any aspect of your life, anxiety is a learned behavior – by taking control of how you respond when you feel anxious, you re-teach your body how to feel in these situations. This is extremely powerful and will change how you live your life.