Anxiety is a physical response in the body to a perceived threat, this can either be triggered by the situation we are in, or the thoughts and emotions we are feeling that the mind sees as threatening in some way. Below are a list of techniques we can use to reduce the level of anxiety we might be experiencing.
Noticing the triggers for your anxiety
As mentioned anxiety is triggered by when there is something the mind sees as a threat to us, either internally or externally. If you notice a rise in anxiety then try and pay attention to what was just happening to you before the anxiety was triggered, this will help to give you some insight into what is causing your anxiety to begin in the first place. Once you know what it is you can begin to try and make sense of what it is about that situation/thought or feeling that is causing you to be anxious.
Progressive Muscle Relaxation
Sometimes anxiety can show itself physically through muscle tension, therefore one of the techniques that can help reduce this is ‘progressive muscle relaxation’ below is a guide on how to practice this:
Sit in a comfortable chair ( or lie on the floor, or on a bed). Ensure you will not be disturbed by other noises. If you become aware of sounds - just try to ignore them and let them leave your mind just as soon as they enter. Make sure the whole of your body is comfortably supported - including your arms, head and feet. (Rest your arms on the arms of the chair, with your feet flat on the floor - if sitting!)
Close your eyes. Feel the chair supporting your whole body - your legs, your arms, your head. If you can feel any tension, begin to let it go. Take 2 slow and deep breaths, and let the tension begin to flow out.
Become aware of your head - notice how your forehead feels. Let any tension go and feel your forehead become smooth and wide. Let any tension go from around your eyes, your mouth, your cheeks and your jaw. Let your teeth part slightly and feel the tension go.
Now focus on your neck - let the chair take the weight of your head and feel your neck relax. Now your head is feeling heavy and floppy. Let your shoulders lower gently down. Your shoulders are wider, your neck is longer.
Notice how your body feels as you begin to relax.
Be aware of your arms and your hands. Let them sink down into the chair. Now they are feeling heavy and limp.
Think about your back - from your neck to your hips. Let the tension go and feel yourself sinking down into the chair. Let your hips, your legs and your feet relax and roll outwards. Notice the feeling of relaxation taking over.
 Notice your breathing - your abdomen gently rising and falling as you breathe. Let your next breath be a little deeper, a little slower...
 Now, you are feeling completely relaxed and heavy. …. Lie still and concentrate on slow, rhythmic breathing….
When you want to, count back from 5 to 1 and open your eyes. Wiggle your fingers and toes, breathe deeply and stretch. Look around the room, becoming more alert as you notice what you see, hear and feel. Pause before gently rising.
Deep breathing
Anxiety is a physical reaction in the body, therefore what you want to do is slow down the body, as when we are anxious everything begins to speed up. One quick and simple way to do this is to control our breathing pattern, below is a simple technique to do that:
Take a deep, slow breath in for 4 seconds and then hold the breath in for 4 seconds. Feel your abdomen expand as you do this. Breathe out slowly, to a count of 4. Breathe in again, make every breath slow and steady and exactly the same as the one before it and the one after it. As you breathe out, concentrate on expelling ALL the air in your lungs. Keep it relaxed for a few seconds before you inhale again.
Colour Breathing
Further to deep breathing a techniques that can also be helpful is colour breathing. Here what you need to do is follow the deep breathing exercise but on top of this , visualise the colour blue when breathing in. This represents the idea of something calm. Then when you breath out visualise the colour red, as if you are letting out all of the inside tension.
Being present in the moment and safe
A lot of the time anxiety is triggered by either past events (memories of times where things haven’t been great, or critical memories we have our ourselves) or anxiety about the future (what if something bad happens, fear of failure, catastrophizing events etc) we tend to find that the present moment is generally quite a safe moment to be in. Therefore trying to be present in the current moment and reminding ourselves of that can be helpful to reduce anxiety.
‘In this moment I am safe and well, my loved ones are safe and well, nothing in this moment is happening to me that is unsafe, my surroundings are safe and I am safe’
If you notice other thoughts about past or future coming in that is normal. Try and practice focusing on the present moment and if those thoughts me in just acknowledge them and begin to focus on the present moment again.
You can even focus on your surroundings to remind yourself that you are okay and safe in the moment.
Further resources on managing anxiety
There are some good apps and websites that can be useful for proving further help if you’re feeling anxious or overwhelmed.
The app Headspace can be really good for guided relaxation. Also on YouTube if you type in ‘guided relaxation’ ‘guided meditation’ or ‘guided sleep’ there are some really helpful videos on there that can help with anxiety and stress. The important bit here is finding one you find relaxing yourself.