4 Tools to help adults deal with anxiety

In a general sense anxiety is a fear of the future and depression is a regret or shame about the past. These two combined can lead to a vicious circle when we think of a regretful thing we did or experienced in the past it can lead to a fear of a repeat of this experience in the future.

However, there are some simple tools and techniques that can help adults that suffer from anxiety (or depression for that matter)

Anxiety can present itself in many forms the most obvious of these are panic attacks, these are also the most severe form of anxiety. They can come out of the blue and can affect our breathing, heart rate, vision and digestion and can be very traumatic as it feels like our life is at serious risk as the symptoms may be similar to those of a heart attack. Anxiety can also show itself more subtly (especially in adults) – not wanting to make that sales call (fear of failure), not wanting to be part of social functions (fear of not fitting in) – these are sometimes so subtle (not debilitating) that we might not even call them anxiety but procrastination, or introversion instead. 

As adults, we have learnt to ignore our bodies signals that tell us when we are anxious because perhaps in the past we have literally had to push past fears and anxiety due to other circumstances and so we feel that if we did that in the past we can do that in the future too – but sometimes this can have the reverse effect. That is, it can create a small traumatic memory or experience that may cause us greater anxiety in the future. However, there are tools available to deal with both the past trauma and the current anxiety.

4 tools for adults to use for anxiety

1.       Focus on your breath – I know, you’ve heard this before!!! But it does work. Our diaphragm is a large muscle that separates our chest cavity from our abdominal cavity and is also attached to the vagus nerve. What this means in practice is that if you consciously control and slow down your breath it’s effects are felt through the whole body via the vagus nerve – which is in charge of calming all body systems (via the parasympathetic nervous system)

2.       Remove excessive stimulation – too many stimuli at one time can be overwhelming for the body and mind. If you reduce your exposure to multiple stimuli then it helps to calm and re-centre you. So, turn off your phone and e-mail alerts at times during the day and focus on one task at the time in a mindful and quiet way. Make sure you limit screen-time before bed – especially those with bright blue lights at least 30-60min before bed.

3.       Use self-soothing techniques – these are varied and many, so try out a few and pick the ones that work for you. Have a warm bath (a hot bath on the other hand is stimulating), lie down in darkened room with relaxing music, do some gentle stretching or yoga, read a book or magazine, cook a meal, complete a simple craft activity etc. Regular time-out is what is needed to switch your body and mind out of constant fight or flight mode and into an active yet relaxed mode.

4.       Anxiety first aid – when the S*#T really hits the fan you need anxiety first-aid. These techniques can be used for yourself or for other people who are suffering from anxiety.

a.       Use your breath – again this is more powerful than you realise. This can be a huge help when helping others with anxiety – remove yourself or the other person to a quiet area immediately – a toilet is a helpful place to retreat to if needed. Focus on your breath and actively slow it down, breathe more deeply and slowly in each cycle. Then use the other first aid techniques below or if working with someone else use the below techniques for them while they work with their breath.

b.       ESR (Emotional Stress Release) is a kinesiology technique that is very simple and works in as little as 5 mins. Simply place one hand flat onto your forehead and hold it there until the stress, anxiety or upset fads. This technique helps to switch the brain from fight or flight mode to calming and problem-solving mode.

c.       Jin Shin Jyutsu – is a Japanese self-healing method. Simply hold each finger and thumb in turn with your opposite hand. Each finger represents a different emotional need or issue and by holding each finger in turn helps to calm your overwhelming emotions

d.       EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique) or ‘Tapping’ – this technique is based on traditional Chinese medicine and utilises tapping with finger tips on the end points of several meridians (see chart with indicated points below). When in the middle of a panic attack or anxiety episode not words are needed just tap the points and keep tapping them until you feel calm enough to be more specific about the issue – then you can use the full version of EFT to address the issue causing distress later.