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How to Manage Anxiety - Part 4


picture of woman with her hands covering her face while sitting in front of her computer; online counseling in Knoxville, TN; online counseling in Benicia, CA

 

In Part 3 of this series on How to Manage Anxiety , 

we talked about The 5-4-3-2-1 Exercise.

Drop a comment below to share how the exercise helped you or what you noticed when you tried it.

Over the next few weeks, I'm going to share some tips on how to manage anxiety
Maybe you're in a Leadership or Executive Level and you're excelling at your job, but deep inside, every day is a battle within yourself.  Maybe you're a wife, mom, and career woman, and sometimes things just get overwhelming.

Today we'll look at something you can do on a regular basis OR in the moment that anxiety strikes - Exercise/Movement.

You may have heard that exercise releases endorphins, which are natural chemicals in our body that make us feel good.  Endorphins are helpful in reducing stress and anxiety, as well as strengthening feelings of positivity.  It is often considered a natural and healthy "high".  Instead of taking substances to fight your feelings of anxiety, you can exercise regularly.  Better and cheaper!

Exercise has also been shown to help improve concentration and focus.  Physical movement increases the productions of dopamine, norephinephrine, and serotonin levels, and in doing that, our levels of each of these impact focus, attention, and stress levels.  Some of our anxiety comes from being unable to concentrate or focus.  Once we are better able to focus, our levels of anxiety often decrease.

But one of the main ways exercise helps with anxiety is to distract us from all the "crap" that's  constantly floating around in our brains.  All that busy-ness.  Exercise shifts us from hyper-focsuing on our thoughts and feelilngs, to focusing on our physical body.  Basically we are tricking our brains to distraction from the "problem" by distracting it with physical movement.  It helps us focus on the present moment, instead of negative thoughts or feelings.  Research shows that it is effective in helping people cope with anxiety. 

Additionally, when we exercise, we increase our oxygen intake.  The more oxygen our body has, the more our body's healing system is activated.  Increased levels of of oxygen in the brain can singnificantly reduce stress and anxiety.  Think about it...when you go outside and breathe deeply, doesn't your mood improve, anxiety begins to decrease.  And then take it a step further...if you do some exercise, inevitably your oxygen level increases, and when oxygen levels increase, the healing begins.

Exercise doesn't cost anything and you can do it anywhere.  Sometimes it's just a small bit of movement and other times it's a long walk or workout.  And sometimes it's just a few deep breaths.  It's a distraction from the thoughts that are causing you anxiety.  It's simply just a way to shift your focus from your anxious thoughts, giving your brain and body time to wind down.

I encourage you to use exercise the next time you're feeling anxious.  Drop a comment to share how it worked for you.

If you'd like to see Tip #1 - click here.
If you'd like to see Tip #2 - click here.
If you'd like to see Tip #3 - click here.


If you'd like more tips, or more individualized help on dealing with anxiety, please check out my website and schedule a free 15 minute consultation.  


Feel free to ask questions or drop comments below.


And come back next week to learn another strategy for dealing with anxiety.


I provide online counseling for anxiety throughout Tennessee, South Carolina, Florida, & California.


Instagram - @brittaniedmillslmft
Phone - (925) 335-6122
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