Haywood Fitness: Natural Ways to Ease Anxiety

Wednesday, February 12, 2014

Natural Ways to Ease Anxiety

 

 Anxiety really stinks. The worse part if when you have it and people try to talk you into getting on prescription medicine. I am not against prescription medicine. I am however if you haven't already tried natural remedies first. A lot of people on medicine for anxiety claim that the medicine either doesn't help, adds additional symptoms, makes them feel emotionless or like a "zombie". When I heard these things I did not want to try prescription meds. However, I do know people who have had great success with them. I am offering some natural remedies that I have found that have worked for me. I believe that anytime we can heal our bodies naturally that is best. Here are my top eight natural things to try.

Natural Ways to Ease Anxiety:

1. Eliminate or minimize the things that are stressing you out (even if it is temporary)-When my anxiety was at it's worse I had to take a semester off from grad school as well as take a couple vacation days from work. Your anxiety will not get better if you continue to take on too much. Practice saying "no" and allow yourself time to relax and do fun things!

2. Try sipping Tea instead of Coffee- Caffeine can make you more anxious. Instead of drinking caffeinated beverages try drinking Passionflower, Ashwagondha, Eleutherococus, or Hawthorne tea. Also try to eliminate sugar and processed foods. Your diet can have a huge affect on your mood.

3. Exercise-Working out can be as effective as taking an anti-depressant. When you work out it releases feel good brain chemicals which alters your mood in a positive way.

4. Quit watching the news-The news typically focuses on negative things. If you are already feeling nervous, watching the news can make everything seem that much more stressful. If there is a major event going on someone WILL let you know. Turn the news off and only watch positive stuff if at all possible. Avoid reading news articles as well.

5. Meet with a Nutritonist or Chiropractor- They can offer alternative supplements to prescription medicine. Sometimes we have tired adrenal glands, low testosterone, or other hormonal imbalances in our bodies that are causing our anxiety to flair up. Nutrionists and Chiropractors can administer different types of tests to determine what areas we are lacking in order to help get our bodies back on track.

6. Talk Therapy-Sometimes just talking through your problems or the things that are stressing you out can be helpful. Find a counselor who specializes in Congitive Behavior Therapy. This type of therapy can eliminate our negative thought patterns and teach us new ways to view our problems and anxiety.

7. Pray-Not sure if you are a believer or not but if you are-PRAY! Prayer has a way to bring a peace over us and God is the ultimate healer. Just remember that he heals in HIS time not ours.

8. Find a support group-You know the old saying "Misery loves company".  Sometimes just talking to someone else who experiences anxiety symptoms (or has in the past) can be helpful. You won't feel so isolated or "weird". Talking to someone else who has anxiety can be a huge life saver!

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