5 Tips to Calm Anxiety
Everyone deals with stress and anxiety differently. When it comes to being stuck inside your house for an extended period of time, stress presents itself and is unrecognizable at times. I have found myself at times becoming anxious with situations and tasks in which I typically excel at and even enjoy. When this happens, stop, try to name the feeling, and give yourself compassion and room to breath. Do you feel this happening to you at all? If so, here are 5 ways I try to calm my anxiety and get through the day…
1. Meditate and/or journal everyday.
Start the day off with intention and positive action. Make a point not to check your phone, emails, or texts until you are up and out of bed. Too many times we wake up and are bombarded with things we have to attend to. Start your day off proactive rather then reactive. Take a few extra minutes to journal thoughts, or breath and meditate. My favorite app to help with meditation is, Calm.
2. Make a daily/weekly To Do list or schedule.
Plan out your day or week so that you don’t have to guess what comes next. Once I have my To Do list, I don’t have to decide what to do with my day. It is already planned out for me and I can move seamlessly from one task to the next.
3. Try something new.
Mix it up and do something new. Make a recipe you have been wanting to cook/bake, play a board game, pump up your tires and go on a bike ride. Do anything out of the ordinary, you have plenty of time right now. Life will not always be this slow, so take advantage and make it great!
4. Call a family member or friend.
Call someone who brings you calmness and perspective. This could be a family member or a trusted friend who always makes you smile when you talk to them. Find someone you can talk to who both talks and listens. Be sure you are doing the same for them. Even though we are "physically distanced" from people, this does not mean we need to “socially distance.” This is a wonderful time to reach out to people you typically tell yourself you don’t have enough time to call.
5. Unplug and take a walk.
Leave your phone at home and take a walk around the block. Get away from the noise, turn off those constant notifications, and spend some time with yourself. While you are walking, breath deeply with purpose, try and notice the smaller details of your neighborhood, and say “hello” to those you pass. Give yourself a break from reality and allow your mind to wonder. If you can, schedule two of these walks per day to break, stretch, and decompress.
Exercise is the obvious #6! Being the amazing community that we are, I’m confident we are all doing this to our best ability with BLDRHome. We all have things throughout the day we have to do. Focus on having a few things you do everyday that bring you joy. We are all going through different stressors and all of them are legitimate. Stay focused, stay strong, and we will see you back in the gym in no time!
Coach Emily