Anxiety and stress are emotions that can be a natural part of being human. It is important to be aware though when anxiety becomes detrimental to our daily functioning. Some symptoms that can arise if anxiety has become detrimental to our daily functioning are digestive issues, sleep disturbance, chest pain, easily fatigued, rapid heart rate, as well as avoiding completing daily tasks and ruminating on negative thought patterns that keep us from engaging in daily activities.
If these symptoms are occuring on a daily to weekly basis and interrupting your daily functioning, this can be addressed with strategies and coping tools that therapy can be very beneficial for. Some strategies and tools that can be utilized in a therapy setting and be helpful for combating anxiousness are:
Deep Breathing/meditation - engaging in different breathwork exercises, such as box breathing, muscle tension relaxation, and 4-7-8 breath work, as well utilizing visualization techniques and meditation to ground yourself.
5-4-3-2-1 Technique
- identify 5 things you see, 4 things you can touch, 3 things you can hear, 2 things you can smell, and 1 thing you can taste.
CBT - Understanding how your thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are influencing one another. Learning strategies to challenge distorted thinking patterns that could be influencing an increase in anxiety that is impacting daily functioning.
Physical Exercise: Exercise alleviates cortisol within the body, which is known as the stress hormone. It also releases endorphins that help improve mood and decrease anxiety long term.
Other important contributors to stress and anxiety that need to be evaluated due to their negative impacts with increasing anxiety are current nicotine, alcohol, and caffeine usage, as well as sleep hygiene and triggers that increase anxiousness.
At Lexington Counseling and Psychiatry - Office of Paul Dalton - we have providers who can help assist you to learn coping skills to manage your stress and anxiety. Call us at 859.338.0466 to schedule an appointment. Our current offices are located in Lexington, Frankfort, and Richmond, KY. We have been trusted mental health professionals in Central Kentucky for over 22 years!
Supporting Articles:
https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/anxiety-disorders
https://www.apa.org/topics/anxiety
https://www.psychiatry.org/patients-families/anxiety-disorders/what-are-anxiety-disorders
https://www.healthline.com/health/mental-health/how-to-cope-with-anxiety
