Anxiety is a general state of apprehension caused when you anticipate harm. Anxiety is similar to fear as an emotion. Unlike fear, however, anxiety is typically not focused toward any specific object and its direct cause is often unclear. Your anxiety can come about as the combined product of hurts, fears and perceptions from your past that lie outside of conscious awareness. However, there are some methods that you can use to reduce or eliminate anxious feelings, allowing you to move forward without undue distress.
Progressive Relaxation
The progressive relaxation technique is a useful method of removing all tension from your body and mind. Locate a place where you can sit or lay back comfortably. Begin breathing in a slow and steady manner. Center all of your thoughts on the air traveling through your body. Imagine that each time you inhale, you are breathing in pure feelings of peace and comfort. After a minute or two, you should notice an actual sensation of comfort building in your chest. Focus on it and allow it to become more intense. In your mind, assign this sensation a color that, for you, represents absolute tranquility. Next, move the color upward, through your face and neck, until it accumulates at the top of your head. After a few moments, permit the color you have imagined to flow down on all sides, relaxing every part in which it comes into contact. Imagine that relaxation moving through your head and face, neck and shoulders, chest, back, etc. At the moment that comfortable sense of peace and relaxation has encased the very tips of your toes, you should already be in a deep, meditative state. Rest in this experience for up to twenty minutes, if desired. Practicing this daily will not only relieve momentary anxiety, but also give you a more relaxed disposition overall.
Engage
Your mind cannot hold two opposing states at the same time. When you immerse yourself fully in a task, you eliminate the conditions for anxiety to exist. For instance, if you feel some anxiety surrounding an upcoming obligation to speak in front of others, focus your attention on the details of that duty. You will find that your anxiety is removed whenever you are totally engaged in the effort. Practicing this will do more than reduce your anxiety. The act itself will, by definition, make you a more focused and productive individual.
Abdominal Breathing
Abdominal breathing has been utilized for centuries in numerous healing disciplines as a method for centering the mind and body. Place one hand over your abdomen to use as a guide. Slowly begin breathing in through your nose for a full count of four. Exhale in the same manner. Focus on moving the air in and out from your belly as opposed to your chest. This allows you to pull and release primarily from the diaphragm, the most significant muscle used during respiration. Abdominal breathing activates the parasympathetic nervous system, the process used by your body to counteract the effects of stress. Continue to breathe in this way for as long as 10 minutes. You can perform this exercise two or three times daily to reduce anxiety and refocus your thoughts.
