7 SIMPLE WAYS
TO REDUCE ANXIETY

Avoid unnecessary news media. This includes social media and news sources. Get practical information as needed but be aware that it can quickly become a hamster wheel. You can jump on or off of it whenever you choose. Attention is not objective - placing attention on something magnifies it. Programing or activities that nurture enjoyable, calming, or curious engagement will enhance these qualities.

Make a gratitude list. Science consistently backs gratitude lists are the most effective daily tool to subjectively increase wellbeing. Place something to write on next to your bed and make a short list of things that you are grateful for today. If finding gratitude proves difficult, try listing things you don’t want taken away.

Move and walk regularly. Break from mental cycles of thinking, doing and/or judging by stepping outside. Getting in touch with your body is one of the best things you can do for physical as well as emotional regulation. You may try turning your walking experience into a practice of curious observation rather than adding it as something else you have to do.  If you cannot go outside or have limited space, try stretching in place or moving the shoulders, neck, and arms in a chair.

Try a meditation app. Calm and Headspace offer free trials. Insight Timer and Smiling Mind are completely free. If you can get in at least 10-minutes of any type of meditation per day, you will notice a cumulative difference. Remember: meditation has a dosing effect. What you put into it is what you get out of it. 

Find positive influences; avoid negative personalities. Try to put yourself in contact with people and sources who are able to express optimistic and positive viewpoints. If you live with a persistently negative personality, make an effort to reach out on a regular basis to one or more people who are more positive. It is important to acknowledge unpleasant thoughts and realities, just as it is equally important to hold positive possibilities and outcomes.

Notice when and where you feel safe. Our sense of safety can be abruptly uprooted. We can only regulate and wisely respond when we physically, emotionally, and psychologically safe. In a time when things are changing, it is important to notice when and where we feel safe. Notice what makes you feel safe and engage in that.

Negative and anxious thoughts are normal. To help, notice the thoughts when they are and are NOT there, put labels on them (i.e. worry, racing, reeling thoughts), and voice them with somebody or simply speak them aloud. Mindfulness around these states of mind is useful simply by become aware of the thoughts and their movement. Be curious and see if you are able to view them as clouds passing by.