Anxiety can feel overwhelming, like a surge of panic that takes over your mind and body. Whether it’s triggered by a specific event or seems to arise from nowhere, the feeling is often uncomfortable and disruptive. Learning How To Calm Down Anxiety in the moment is a valuable skill that can significantly improve your well-being. Fortunately, there are practical, actionable techniques you can use to regain control and find your center. Here are 11 effective tips to help you calm down anxiety when it strikes.
1. Harness the Power of Breath
Breathing techniques are widely recognized as one of the most rapid and effective methods for reducing anxiety and anger. When anxiety escalates, your breathing often becomes rapid and shallow. This shallow breathing pattern activates your body’s stress response, known as the fight-or-flight response. Scott Dehorty, LCSW-C, from Delphi Behavioral Health, explains that this type of breathing creates a feedback loop that reinforces feelings of anxiety.
Conversely, deep, controlled breathing can interrupt this cycle and signal to your brain that you are safe, promoting a sense of calm. There are various breathing exercises you can explore. One simple yet powerful technique is diaphragmatic breathing, also known as belly breathing. To practice this, inhale deeply through your nose, allowing your stomach to expand as you fill your lungs with air. Then, exhale slowly through your mouth.
Another effective method is box breathing. This involves inhaling for a count of four, holding your breath for four counts, exhaling for four counts, and holding empty lungs for four counts, before repeating the cycle. You can also experiment with a 1:2 breath ratio, where your exhale is twice as long as your inhale. For example, inhale for a count of four and exhale for a count of eight. Practicing these techniques regularly, even when you are not feeling anxious, will make them more accessible and effective when you need them most.
2. Acknowledge Your Feelings
It might seem counterintuitive, but simply acknowledging and naming your emotions can be a powerful step towards calming down anxiety. Allow yourself to recognize and verbalize that you are feeling anxious. Instead of suppressing or dismissing your feelings, try saying to yourself, “I am feeling anxious right now.”
Labeling your emotion and allowing yourself to experience it, rather than fighting against it, can actually reduce its intensity. This act of acknowledgment can help to diffuse the power of the anxiety and prevent it from escalating further. It’s a way of validating your experience and starting the process of emotional regulation.
3. Challenge Anxious Thoughts
Anxiety often brings with it a rush of irrational thoughts, frequently focused on worst-case scenarios and unlikely outcomes. These thoughts can trap you in a cycle of worry and fear, sometimes referred to as the “what if” cycle. This pattern of thinking can be incredibly disruptive and even lead to self-sabotaging behaviors.
When you notice yourself getting caught in anxious thought patterns, take a moment to pause and question the validity of these thoughts. Ask yourself a series of reality-checking questions:
- What is the actual likelihood of this happening? Often, our anxious thoughts exaggerate the probability of negative events.
- Is this a rational thought, or is it driven by fear? Anxiety can distort our perception of reality.
- Has something like this actually happened to me before? Past experiences can inform our present fears, but they don’t dictate the future.
- What is the absolute worst-case scenario, and could I cope with it? Even if the worst were to happen, you likely have more resilience than you realize.
Once you’ve examined your anxious thoughts, try to reframe them into more balanced and realistic perspectives. For instance, instead of thinking, “I’m going to fail this presentation,” you could reframe it to, “I’m prepared for this presentation, and even if it’s not perfect, it will be okay.” Challenging your thoughts is about bringing logic and reason back into the equation to counter the emotional distortion of anxiety.
4. Release Physical Tension Through Exercise
Anxiety is not just a mental state; it manifests physically in the body. Emotional energy, when pent up, can contribute to feelings of anxiety and tension. Engaging in physical activity is a healthy and effective way to release this pent-up energy and calm your nervous system. Scott Dehorty recommends exercise as a way to get emotional energy out, suggesting activities like walking or running.
Physical activity, particularly aerobic exercise, triggers the release of serotonin, a neurotransmitter that plays a crucial role in mood regulation and promoting feelings of well-being. Exercise can act as a natural mood booster and stress reliever.
However, it’s important to choose physical activities that are genuinely calming and avoid those that might inadvertently exacerbate anger or agitation. Activities like punching walls or screaming, while physically exerting, can actually reinforce feelings of anger and anxiety in the long run. Focus on activities that promote a sense of release and calm, rather than aggression.
5. Visualize a Calm State
Visualization is a powerful mental tool that can help you shift your focus and create a sense of inner peace. This technique works best when combined with deep breathing exercises. After taking a few calming breaths, close your eyes and create a vivid mental image of yourself feeling calm and relaxed.
Imagine your body completely relaxed, free from tension. Picture yourself successfully navigating a stressful or anxiety-provoking situation while remaining calm, focused, and in control. Engage your senses in this visualization: what do you see, hear, and feel in your imagined calm state?
By creating this mental blueprint of calmness, you can train your mind to access this state more readily when anxiety arises. When you feel anxious, you can mentally return to this visualized image as a point of reference and a source of inner calm. Guided imagery techniques, readily available online or through apps, can further enhance this practice.
6. Utilize Mantras to Reframe Perspective
Mantras, or calming phrases, can serve as mental anchors in moments of anxiety. Having a personal mantra ready to use in stressful situations can help shift your perspective and regain a sense of control. The key is to choose a mantra that resonates with you and that you find genuinely helpful.
Scott Dehorty suggests mantras like: “Will this matter to me next week?” or “How important is this in the grand scheme of things?” or “Am I going to let this situation steal my peace?” These types of mantras encourage you to “reality test” the situation and detach from the immediate intensity of your anxious feelings.
Anxiety often narrows our focus, making us hyper-fixated on the perceived threat or cause of our distress. Rational thought can become clouded, and we may react impulsively. Mantras provide a mental pause, allowing rational thinking to re-emerge and guide your response in a more constructive direction. The act of repeating a mantra can also be inherently calming, shifting your mental energy away from anxious thoughts.
7. Shift Your Environment and Focus
Sometimes, the most effective way to calm anxiety is to physically remove yourself from the situation or environment that is triggering it. Changing your surroundings can provide a much-needed mental and emotional reset. Step away from the immediate situation, look in a different direction, leave the room, or, if possible, go outside.
Scott Dehorty emphasizes that this change of environment provides time for improved decision-making. When anxiety or anger is high, we are operating in “survival thinking” mode, which prioritizes immediate reactions over reasoned responses. While survival instincts are essential in genuine life-threatening situations, most everyday anxieties do not require this level of alarm.
By changing your focus and environment, you give yourself the space to transition from survival thinking back to “best thinking”—a state where you can access your rational mind, consider different perspectives, and make more thoughtful choices about how to respond to the situation. Even a brief change of scenery can make a significant difference.
8. Employ a Centering Object
When anxiety takes hold, your mental energy can become scattered and consumed by irrational thoughts and worries. A centering object can serve as a tangible focal point to ground you in the present moment and redirect your attention away from anxious rumination.
A centering object can be anything small and portable that holds personal significance for you. Examples include a smooth stone you keep in your pocket, a small stuffed animal, a piece of jewelry like a locket, or even a specific photograph. The object itself is less important than the intention you assign to it.
When you are feeling calm, choose your centering object and consciously decide that you will touch or hold this object when you experience anxiety or frustration. When anxiety arises, reach for your object and focus your attention on its texture, shape, and weight. This tactile engagement can help to ground you in the present and calm racing thoughts. For example, if you feel anxious during a work meeting, discreetly rub a small stone in your pocket or gently touch a locket around your neck.
9. Consciously Relax Your Body
Anxiety often manifests as physical tension throughout the body. Your muscles may become tight, your shoulders may hunch, and you may feel generally constricted. Progressive muscle relaxation (PMR) is a technique that can help you systematically release this physical tension and promote a state of calm.
To practice PMR, lie down comfortably on the floor or a bed with your arms relaxed at your sides, legs uncrossed, and hands unclenched. Begin by bringing awareness to your toes. Consciously tense the muscles in your toes for a few seconds, and then release the tension, noticing the feeling of relaxation as you let go.
Slowly move your attention upwards through your body, tensing and releasing different muscle groups in sequence—feet, calves, thighs, abdomen, chest, back, hands, arms, shoulders, neck, and face. With each muscle group, focus on the contrast between tension and relaxation. This systematic process helps to release physical tension and promote a sense of overall calm and well-being.
10. Drop Your Shoulders to Release Tension
Poor posture is often a physical manifestation of stress and anxiety. When you are tense, you may unconsciously hunch your shoulders, leading to neck and upper back tension. Consciously dropping your shoulders is a simple yet effective way to release this physical tension and promote a more relaxed posture.
Sit or stand tall with good posture. Take a deep breath, and as you exhale, consciously drop your shoulders. You can facilitate this by focusing on bringing your shoulder blades together slightly and then down your back. This action naturally pulls your shoulders down and away from your ears, releasing tension in your neck and upper back.
Take a few more deep breaths while maintaining this relaxed shoulder position. You can repeat this shoulder-dropping exercise several times throughout the day, especially whenever you notice yourself feeling tense or anxious. It’s a quick and discreet way to release physical tension and signal to your body that it’s safe to relax.
11. Explore Acupressure Points for Relief
Massage and acupuncture are well-known for their therapeutic benefits in managing anxiety and stress. These practices work, in part, by stimulating specific pressure points on the body that can release tension and promote relaxation. While professional massage or acupuncture sessions are beneficial, you can also utilize acupressure—applying pressure to these points yourself—for quick anxiety relief.
Acupressure involves using your fingers or hand to apply firm but gentle pressure to specific points on the body. One readily accessible acupressure point for anxiety relief is located on the inside of your wrist. Find the point where your hand creases with your wrist, on the little finger side of your wrist.
Using your thumb, apply firm pressure to this point for approximately two minutes. Breathe deeply and focus on the sensation. Applying pressure to this wrist point is believed to help release tension and promote relaxation throughout the body. While acupressure is not a substitute for professional medical treatment, it can be a helpful self-soothing technique to use in moments of anxiety.
By incorporating these 11 tips into your life, you can build a toolkit of effective strategies for managing anxiety and regaining a sense of calm when you need it most. Remember that consistency and practice are key. Experiment with these techniques to discover what works best for you, and make them a regular part of your self-care routine.
