How to Cure Anxiety Naturally: 11 Tips
In today’s world having anxiety is commonplace. You don’t have to search hard to find someone who is stressed out, anxious or who has a prescription for anti-anxiety medication. While those medications can be helpful, their purpose is to manage symptoms. They don’t get to the root of the problem. They don’t help you handle the anxiety. They mask it and enable you to continue in your life. But what if you could cure anxiety naturally?
Anxiety is actually a symptom, a signal. It’s a message to you. All our emotions are signs of something. We can choose to ignore the message and push down those symptoms to the best of our ability, but in the long run our bodies get tired, and they may end up breaking down on us.
If you are tired of struggling to handle anxiety or tired of taking medication and wondering what you can do read on for some tips. It is possible to cure anxiety naturally, but it requires consistent commitment and often a changing of lifestyle. However, the benefits of working towards these changes will outweigh the drawbacks in the long run.
1. Eliminate Things That Cause Anxiety and Stress
You can’t expect to get rid of a symptom if you don’t remove the things that cause it. Of course, you can’t remove everything in the world that causes you stress but truly noticing and paying attention to what triggers your anxiety can give you clues into what needs to be changed or removed.
Two common things that feed anxiety are alcohol and caffeine. If you are constantly anxious it’s normal to turn to things that tend to “calm you down” like alcohol. Yet, alcohol is an anxiety feeder. It may feel like it’s helping you in the moment, but in the long run it increases anxiety. Get rid of it! At least try it out and see for yourself.
You may feel like you need caffeine to get through the day, but your long-time anxiety could be connected to caffeine. Give it a try and remove it for a couple months to see what happens.
Pay attention to the daily things that you encounter and notice how they affect you. If there are constant triggers, try to minimize or remove them all together. This can be a good first step in curing anxiety naturally.
2. Breathe
I know this seems like a silly one. Doesn’t everyone just know how to breathe? It’s automatic. Surprisingly, good breathing is not always automatic. When we are anxious our bodies show this through our breathing. We can learn how to breathe in a way that brings our nervous system back into its calm state. We should normally breathe through our nose, not mouth. Some breathing patterns that can be helpful are:
Inhale for 5 seconds, hold for 7 seconds, breath out for 8 seconds.
Box breathing: Inhale for 4, hold for 4, exhale for 4, repeat.
Breathe through one nostril while holding the other closed. Alternate nostrils and breathe gently, not forcefully.
3. Face Your Fears
Some classic exposure has a power place in curing anxiety naturally. When you initially avoid something that causes you fear, your brain marks that thing as “something dangerous”. In it’s constant biological need to protect you, your brain labels that thing as something to avoid. If you continue to avoid it, it entrenches the belief that it is something to be feared and avoided.
To break this cycle, you must expose yourself to the feared thing. Expose yourself to the feared thing repeatedly in small doses. Notice what happens when you do the feared thing. It often didn’t have any negative consequences and it wasn’t dangerous.
By doing the thing over and over again that you are avoiding it “rewires” your brain to see that it’s not harmful. Eventually the anxiety will decrease as you become accustomed to it. Yes, it’s uncomfortable to face your fears, but in the long run it will be better and your anxiety will be less.
4. Exercise
Exercise is one of the most powerful natural cures for anxiety. Exercise stimulates the production of endorphins, which are neurotransmitters that act as natural painkillers and mood elevators. These "feel-good" chemicals can help reduce the perception of pain and trigger positive feelings in the body. Physical activity also reduces levels of the body's stress hormones, such as adrenaline and cortisol. Lower levels of these hormones can lead to reduced anxiety and stress.
Exercise also enhances the production and regulation of neurotransmitters like serotonin and dopamine, which play crucial roles in mood regulation and feelings of well-being.
Adding daily mild exercise like walking or yoga as well as several times a week of more intense exercise like running, weightlifting or sports can support you in curing anxiety naturally.
5. Eat Regular Healthy Meals
Skipping meals can contribute to anxiety.
When you skip meals, your blood sugar levels can drop. Low blood sugar can cause symptoms such as irritability, shakiness, confusion, and difficulty concentrating, which can contribute to feelings of anxiety. The body responds to low blood sugar by releasing adrenaline and cortisol to increase blood sugar levels. These stress hormones can cause symptoms such as rapid heartbeat, sweating, and nervousness, which are similar to anxiety symptoms and can exacerbate feelings of anxiety.
Regularly skipping meals can lead to deficiencies in essential nutrients, such as vitamins, minerals, and amino acids. These nutrients are crucial for brain function and mood regulation. For example, deficiencies in magnesium, B vitamins, and omega-3 fatty acids have been linked to increased anxiety.
Proper nutrition is essential for the production of neurotransmitters like serotonin and dopamine, which regulate mood and anxiety. Skipping meals can disrupt the balance of these neurotransmitters, leading to increased anxiety.
Skipping meals also puts physical stress on the body, which can trigger the release of stress hormones. This increased stress response can heighten feelings of anxiety and make it harder to cope with everyday stressors.
Aim to eat three regular meals a day and two to three snacks in between. These meals should be healthy. Eliminate fast food, processed food, sugary drinks. Choose natural, whole, unprocessed foods. These can include vegetables, fruits, eggs, dairy, meat, legumes, nuts, and grains. Your brain needs food that is nutritious to function. It can’t subsist on junk food and fast food without decreasing in function. This is key in curing anxiety naturally.
6. Get a Nutrition Panel and Adjust Your Nutrient Intake
It is essential for mental performance to intake the right nutrients. If you feel like your diet is lacking, you may want to have a nutrition panel done to see what areas could need attention. A nutrition panel can help identify nutrient deficiencies, imbalances, and monitor the effectiveness of supplements and diet changes.
7. Get Quality Sleep
Getting enough sleep can be helpful in lowering anxiety. Sleep helps restore the balance of neurotransmitters, such as serotonin and dopamine, which play a crucial role in regulating mood and anxiety. Lack of sleep can disrupt these chemicals, leading to increased anxiety.
Adequate sleep can help the prefrontal cortex, which is responsible for higher-order thinking, decision-making, and emotional regulation, function more effectively. Poor sleep can impair this area, making it harder to manage anxiety.
When sleep deprived, the amygdala, a brain region involved in emotional responses, especially fear and anxiety, becomes more reactive. Good sleep helps regulate amygdala activity, reducing exaggerated responses to stress.
Sleep also influences the production and regulation of cortisol, a hormone associated with stress. Chronic sleep deprivation leads to elevated cortisol levels, which can increase anxiety. Adequate sleep helps maintain cortisol within a healthy range.
Work to establish healthy sleep patterns.
· Go to bed at a reasonable hour
· Aim to get 7-9 hrs of sleep
· Have screen free time an hour before bed and don’t pick up your phone in the middle of the night
· Use meditation apps to help fall asleep
· Get exercise during the day to encourage falling asleep
Establishing healthy sleep habits can be an essential step in curing anxiety naturally.
8. Remove Yourself from Hustle Culture
Hustle culture emphasizes relentless work, constant productivity, and often glorifies overworking. It can significantly contribute to anxiety. Hustle culture often involves high levels of stress due to the constant pressure to perform and succeed. This ongoing stress can lead to chronic anxiety as the body remains in a state of heightened alertness.
The relentless drive to work harder and longer can result in burnout, characterized by physical and emotional exhaustion, cynicism, and a sense of inefficacy, all of which are strongly linked to increased anxiety.
The culture of overworking often leads to inadequate sleep, which is crucial for emotional regulation and mental health. Lack of sleep can exacerbate anxiety (as we’ve already discussed) as the brain’s ability to cope with stress diminishes.
Hustle culture can also lead to the neglect of self-care practices such as exercise, healthy eating, and relaxation, all of which are important for managing anxiety. The emphasis on productivity often leaves little room for relaxation and leisure activities that can help mitigate anxiety.
The competitive nature of hustle culture can make us feel that our job security is always at risk, leading to constant anxiety about losing our position or not advancing.
Getting out of the hustle culture could be an important step to cure anxiety. Take the time to reevaluate what is important in life and where your job stands in the overall picture. If your job is sucking the life out of you it may be time to transition to a less stressful position.
Set boundaries with yourself to take breaks, rest and have fun. Have open conversations with your employer or clients about your boundaries and work-life balance needs. Avoid working late and take time to engage in hobbies and fun activities. By intentionally shifting your focus to what is more valuable you can get out of the hustle culture.
9. Spend Time Outside Daily
The “biophilia hypothesis” suggests that humans have an innate affinity for nature. Connecting with nature satisfies this intrinsic need, promoting mental well-being and reducing anxiety. Time in nature has been shown to reduce levels of cortisol, the body’s primary stress hormone. Lower cortisol levels are associated with decreased anxiety.
Exposure to sunlight also helps increase serotonin levels, a neurotransmitter that contributes to feelings of well-being and happiness. In today’s world we are constantly consuming information, increasing cognitive stress. Natural environments, on the other hand, are less demanding on our directed attention, allowing it to replenish. This restoration can reduce mental fatigue and anxiety.
Nature exposure also activates the parasympathetic nervous system, which promotes relaxation and decreases heart rate and blood pressure, countering the body's stress response.
If your days are mostly spent inside, consider rearranging your schedule to include some daily time outside. Whether it’s just sitting outside on your lunch break, taking a walk outside after work or intentionally spending longer amounts of time in nature, being outside is a key factor in curing anxiety naturally.
10. Reduce Screen Time
Constant exposure to news, social media, and other online content can be overwhelming and increase anxiety. Reducing screen time limits exposure to potentially distressing information and helps maintain a calmer mental state.
Frequent screen use also often involves multitasking, which can increase cognitive load and stress. Focusing on one task at a time can improve mental clarity and reduce anxiety. Screens often keep the brain constantly stimulated. Taking breaks from screens gives the brain time to rest and recover, reducing mental fatigue and anxiety.
Limiting screen time can decrease distractions, allowing you to focus better on their thoughts, feelings, and surroundings, which can help in processing emotions and reducing anxiety. Reducing screen time also encourages face-to-face interactions and deeper, more meaningful social connections, which can provide emotional support and reduce feelings of isolation.
Reducing screen time allows for more opportunities to engage in relaxing activities such as reading, meditating, or spending time in nature, which can help lower anxiety levels.
Being mindful about how much time you spend on your phone or computer can help reduce your usage. Set limits with yourself by using timers or schedule intentional time without your screen. Limit how much purposeless scrolling you do or how much content you consume passively. Instead of spending time on your phone, try engaging with people, hobbies, or useful tasks around the house.
11. Try EMDR Therapy
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is a psychotherapy technique designed to alleviate the distress associated with traumatic memories and other psychological issues, including anxiety.
EMDR targets and helps reframe negative beliefs and thought patterns that contribute to anxiety. You may be guided to develop more adaptive and positive beliefs, reducing the cognitive distortions that fuel anxiety. By reinforcing positive cognitions and self-perceptions, EMDR helps you build resilience and improve your ability to cope with anxiety-inducing situations.
EMDR can help you develop greater tolerance for distressing emotions. By repeatedly confronting and processing painful memories and emotions in a safe environment, you can become better equipped to handle anxiety-provoking situations in your daily life.
EMDR can also help you gain insight into the connections between their past experiences, current triggers, and anxiety responses. This awareness can empower you to manage anxiety more effectively.
EMDR can be a powerful tool in curing anxiety naturally.
Schedule a consultation with Aloe Trauma Therapy to see if EMDR is right for you.
Conclusion
In today’s world it is common to face anxiety, yet there are many things you can do to listen to the message anxiety is sending you and get rid of it altogether. Each individual thing on this list by itself probably won’t cure your anxiety. But if you begin shifting your lifestyle to include most of these habits, over time your anxiety should be greatly reduced or eliminated. It takes consistency and dedication but curing anxiety naturally can be accomplished.