This is anxiety, it is not you and it won’t last forever. Naming your sensations and feelings may help you step away from them. “ I will get through this - one way or another.” “Embrace absolute truths,” says Steven Sultanoff, clinical psychologist and professor at Pepperdine University. In other words, consider recognizing that what you’re feeling is anxiety and talking yourself through it. “When you are in a heightened state of anxiety, you want to disrupt that cycle, and for some people, thought-stopping techniques are effective and as simple as saying ‘stop’ to the internalized messaging that heightens anxiety.” “Name that this is anxiety - not reality - and that it will pass,” says Kim Hertz, a psychotherapist at New York Therapy Practice. Recognizing anxiety for what it is may help you calm down quicker. When you’re experiencing an anxious episode, you may not realize what’s going on until you’re really in the thick of it. Some people find 4-7-8 breathing particularly effective. “When we draw our attention to our breathing and really focus on it, the thoughts that trigger the anxiety start to become more distant, our heart rate slows, and we start to calm,” explains Dawn Straiton, doctor of nursing practice and faculty member of Walden University. It’s also a good idea to focus your thoughts on breathing and nothing else. It may sound basic, but basic is great when managing anxiety symptoms.īreathing deeply and slowly is key to experiencing the full benefits of it. One of the best things you can do when you start to feel that familiar panicky feeling is to breathe. It’s a good idea to learn to recognize the first signs of anxiety and get to work right away before experiencing an episode. When you feel anxiety kick in like this, it’s time to calm yourself down. Your body tenses, your breathing quickens, and you can hear your heartbeat pounding in your ears.

Something sets you off, and before long, you feel stuck in an endless loop of intrusive thoughts, pondering every possible thing that could go wrong.

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