Anxiety is a mental disorder that is characterized by excessive feelings of worry. It can be all-consuming and unfortunately causes everyday, persistent worrying and fear. However, that doesn’t mean there aren’t ways to cope with it. Seeking medical care is always a smart idea, especially if it starts to interfere with your daily life. However, there are also natural remedies that may help ease your anxiety. This includes exercising regularly, eating healthy food, connecting with others, staying positive, and getting plenty of sleep. Read more about these below, try them out, and see if they help you ease your anxiety in your day-to-day life.

Exercise Regularly

Exercising on a regular basis can help ease both anxiety and depression by releasing feel-good endorphins and taking your mind off of your worries. When your body releases endorphins, those interact with the pain receptors in your brain and trigger a positive feeling in your body, which is often called a runner’s high. Because of this, regular exercise has been proven to reduce stress and also ward off feelings of anxiety and depression. It has other psychological benefits as well such as helping you gain confidence and self-esteem as well as helping you to cope in a healthy way. If you have a hard time exercising regularly, try to sign up for a workout class. These workout classes can help hold you accountable to ensure that you’re exercising on a regular basis. They’re also a great way to meet others and keep your mind off of what’s bothering you!

Eat Healthy Food

Creating an anti-anxiety diet can also help to relieve symptoms of anxiety. Research has found that in mice, foods low in magnesium may help a person feel calmer. This includes leafy greens, legumes, nuts, seeds, and whole grains. Anxiety has also been correlated with a lowered total antioxidant state. Therefore, including foods rich in antioxidants might also help ease symptoms of anxiety. Foods high in antioxidants include fruits, berries, walnuts, pecans, artichoke, kale, and broccoli. This information was found on a Harvard blog and you can check out their blog to learn more about nutritional strategies to ease anxiety.

Connect with Others

The definition of a support system means that you have a network of people that can provide you with practical or emotional support. Having a support system can help you reduce anxiety by having people you can rely on and lean on when you’re having a hard time. If you’re wondering how to build a support system, you can try joining a sports team or a workout group and new activities that might introduce you to new people. You should also reach out to the people in your family or friend groups that you feel you can open up to with. Be open to the idea of asking those people for help or for advice. Remember, you don’t have to face your anxiety alone.

Stay Positive

Experts have said that practicing optimism can also help reduce anxiety. Natalie Dattilo, PhD, clinical psychologist, and director of psychology at Brigham & Women’s Hospital, told Healthline that she thinks of optimism as “a mix of positive thinking, feelings of hope, goal-driven behavior, and confidence.” For example, an optimistic person would think they are facing a setback rather than a hopeless future. Try to increase optimism by starting each day with a positive intention, thinking about the people who make you feel good, and surrounding yourself with other people who think optimistically. 

Get Plenty of Sleep

You probably hear this all the time, but yes getting plenty of sleep can do wonders for your body. Sleep gives your brain and body time to heal. Researchers found that specifically getting more deep sleep at night helped people feel less anxious the next day. Some tips to getting better sleep include putting your phone and any other screens down at least 30 minutes before you plan on going to sleep, going to sleep at the same time each night, and including physical activity in your daily routine.

Professional Help

It is always a smart idea to seek professional help if your symptoms persist for more than two weeks or interfere with your daily life. Chriselda Santos works with Life Balance Therapy and specializes in anxiety and depression treatment. If natural remedies are not helping, you can schedule an appointment with her here.