There are many physical and emotional ways to deal with anxiousness, but spirituality is another avenue to help overcome anxiety. Often centering on the development of inner balance, spirituality removes focus from external pressures. Several spiritual approaches that can help with anxiety include meditation, prayer, attending spiritual gatherings or working with a spiritual practitioner.
Meditation
Meditation is a spiritual practice that reduces anxiety but can be done no matter what spiritual affiliation. Dr. Herbert Benson coined the term "relaxation response" for the effect that meditation has on the body. By decreasing the sympathetic nervous system, often referred to as the fight-or-flight response, heart and pulse rates are reduced and anxiety is decreased.
Prayer
Prayer, often thought of as a Christian tradition, can also help with reducing anxiety. An article in Nursing Times noted that researchers who gathered findings from 26 studies found that praying is usually associated with lower levels of depression and anxiety. They did add, however, that faith was just as an important component as prayer in being beneficial for these maladies.
Attending Spiritual Gatherings
Anxiety can also be relieved through attending spiritual gatherings such as church, synagogue or temple. In the early 1990s, researcher Harold Koenig studied 2,969 individuals and their relationship between religious involvement and anxiety. Those who attended church at least once a week were "significantly less likely to have anxiety-related disorders than those who did not attend church regularly."
Working With a Spiritual Practitioner
Although forms of spiritual and energetic work such as reiki, acupuncture, and therapeutic touch are still debated in western medicine, they have provided relief for many people when it comes to anxiety. Patricia Heidt studied therapeutic touch for anxiety in hospitalized cardiovascular patients and found "highly significant reductions in anxiety were experienced by those receiving TT."
