5 Tips for Coping with Anxiety in the Moment

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It is quite common to feel anxious at various points throughout the day or during specific events. Whether you are overwhelmed at home or about to do a work presentation, anxiety may manifest with certain signs. You may feel physical symptoms like a fast heartrate, sweaty palms, shallow breathing, tense muscles or shakiness. Or you may feel it more emotionally with a million thoughts racing through your head.

Either way, anxiety is never a fun feeling to experience, not to mention daily. It usually stems from a feeling of fear and worry and is an emotion just like sadness, frustration, and guilt. But it tends to make things worse because it interferes with our thoughts and reactions rather than helping in a situation.

When we are in the moment, it is hard to think about anxiety being a useless emotion. All we want to do is get through it and move on but sometimes it feels impossible.

The next time you are feeling anxious or a panic attack arising, try these simple tips.

Hand on Heart

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When you are in the middle of a busy day and unsure how to release the impending anxiety, find a private and quiet place. Stand up tall, roll your shoulders back and down and put your hand on your heart. Your heart may be racing but it is also telling you are alive and breathing. Stand there and begin to count to 30 slowly, while deepening your breath. Say, “I am not anxiety. Anxiety does not define me. I am going to be okay. Everything is going to be okay.” Feel your heartbeat begin to slow down. Continue to stand there and breathe as long as possible to relax your nervous system and slow down the anxious thoughts. When we are anxious, we can feel flighty, so the practice of standing tall with your feet firmly on the ground helps to anchor you back into your body. It’s a simple practice when you need a chance to get grounded.

Cold Water Splash

When you really feel panic coming on and can’t seem to escape it, you are sending your nervous system into “fight or flight response”. This releases stress hormones and speeds up your heartrate. To slow this down, go into the restroom and splash your face with cold water three times! It may seem a bit extreme but it’s meant to kick in the “mammalian diving reflex”, which happens when cold water touches a mammal’s face. It activates receptors within the nasal and sinus cavities as well as areas in the face connected to the trigeminal nerve. This activation lets the brain and nervous system know, which results in closure of the airway as well as other physiological changes in order to slow down the heartrate and conserve energy in the body. This is a practice of trusting your body to do what it is meant for in certain situations. Sometimes we get so caught up in technology and feeling like we need to have everything figured out, but giving yourself a simple “wake-up call” can remind you of what is truly important and go back to your natural instincts.

Fresh Air

If you are not able to find cold water, take a step outside. Whether it is cold or hot, the air will allow you to breathe differently than when indoors. It gives you a chance to be in nature, which has many healing effects no matter the scene. It also gives you a different perspective and a break from other people, technology and to-do lists. Try to find an area that you can focus on such as the clouds, stars, trees, flowers, or grass. Explain to yourself which colors you are seeing, sounds you are hearing and anything you are smelling. Go back to your senses and get in touch with nature. This will help you to become focused on the moment and present where you are rather than whatever may have created your current anxiety. Try to get into nature daily to reduce your risk of high-anxiety and stress. It is naturally relaxing without turning to medication, sugar, alcohol or other negative coping skills.

Use Your Nose

Often times when we are feeling anxious, it is hard to focus on the simple things such as using our senses. However, using our senses literally creates a distraction from the thoughts in our mind and helps us to get back into the present. Using your nose is a simple way to also practice breathing, which naturally reduces anxiety. If possible, carry essential oils with you to smell in your car or at your desk. At home you can use incense, candles or a diffuser to incorporate your favorite scents into the air. Take a deep breath in through your nose, hold at the top and exhale through your mouth. Use lavender, peppermint, vanilla and other simple scents to help you feel refreshed and calm at any point during the day.

Write it Out

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When we are feeling anxious, we typically have a bunch of thoughts running through our heads, which can be difficult to comprehend. It is often the same thoughts playing on repeat, which become annoying and irritating. Grabbing a pen and paper and writing down the thoughts you keep hearing can be healing. You can call it a “brain-dump” as you release the words onto the page. There is no need to worry about neatness or grammar; just let it flow out. You can write down your long to-do list, all of your emotions or even a letter to yourself or someone else. When you are finished writing, you can rip it up and throw it away, burn it, or keep it in a journal. You should feel more clear-headed and lighter. It is a good practice before you go to bed at night so you can fall asleep more easily rather than the thoughts floating through head.