Anxiety is a feeling we are all too familiar with these days. A sense of restlessness, tension, and intrusive worrisome thoughts can lead to fatigue, headaches, trouble sleeping, and various physical and mental symptoms.
Feeling anxious has always been a natural human response to stressful and threatening conditions. Anxiety is a helpful adaptation designed to mobilize us to escape danger and reach safety so we can return to a calm baseline state. Still, we are not designed to remain in an anxious state long-term, and doing so can cost us our health leading to various types of anxiety disorders.
Since the COVID-19 pandemic, the prevalence of anxiety and depression worldwide has increased by 25%, according to the World Health Organization. Furthermore, our growing tendency to multitask, the 24/7 news cycle, and our addiction to social media is saturating our awareness with perceived threats and a constant sense of urgency. It is hard for our minds to catch a break.
Fortunately, we have the tools to intervene. Meditation is an excellent, natural, and free (or low-cost) way to alleviate anxiety. Read on as we take an in-depth look at several methods you can use anywhere and any time to melt away your worry and promote more peace, balance, and positivity in your life.
Recognizing Anxiety
The first step to alleviating anxiety is to recognize when you are in an anxious state. Here are some signs you might be anxious:
- Restlessness, irritability, or feeling tense and on-edge
- Easily fatigued
- Headaches, muscle aches, stomach aches, or unexplained physical discomfort
- Invasive feelings of worry or dread
- A sense of impending doom or danger
- Having trouble falling or staying asleep
- Increased heart rate
- Hyperventilation (rapid breathing)
- Sweating
- Trembling
- Cravings
- Panic attacks
Meditation for Anxiety
Scientific research tells us that meditation can improve symptoms of anxiety. There are many forms of meditation. The good news is you don’t have to pick just one. Here are a few techniques to get you started.
Deep Breathing
When anxiety takes hold, you might feel powerless to overcome it. Focusing on your breathing pattern is simple to have control over with a few cycles of inhaling and exhaling. Focusing your attention on your breath not only interrupts feelings of powerlessness but also directly affects your nervous system, recalibrating your mind and body. This allows you to feel calm and balanced again. Here is a simple guide to start:
Simply Notice
Start by noticing your breath as it is. Notice how deep or shallow it is without changing anything. Does it seem fast or slow? Notice how you feel in your body. There is no need to breathe or feel a certain way. Simply notice.
Belly Breaths
Next, draw air in through your nose all the way down to your belly. Breathe in as deep as you can without forcing it. Then let all the air out, slowly and with control, through your mouth. You can place a hand on your belly to notice it rise and fall as you breathe.
Use a Pattern
You can continue like this, cycling through deep breaths or adding a pattern. Patterns can help you stay mentally engaged and progress toward deeper breaths. An example of a pattern is 4-7-8: Breathe in deep for a count of 4. Hold your breath for a count of 7. Finally, release your breath for a count of 8. Exhaling slower than your inhale works to help calm your heart rate and relax your body and mind.
5-4-3-2-1 Technique
When you are feeling anxious, it is usually because your mind is fixated on something that happened or could happen. In other words, your mind is located in either the past or the future. To feel less anxious, it is essential to connect your time-traveling mind with your body, which can only exist in the present moment.
The 5-4-3-2-1 technique uses your 5 senses to promote your mind-body connection and help you feel grounded in the here and now. Practice this technique when you feel overwhelmed by thoughts and emotions.
Start with a few deep breaths. Become aware of your breath and invite yourself back into your body. Then start to become aware of your environment by following these 5 steps as you continue to breathe:
- Look for 5 things you can see
- Feel 4 things you can touch
- Listen for 3 sounds you can hear
- Observe 2 scents you can smell
- Notice 1 thing you can taste
Repeat this process as many times as necessary to become present and notice the difference in how you feel.
Guided Meditation
Using guided meditation is also an excellent way to alleviate anxiety. Guided meditation is just what it sounds like: you practice by listening to the voice of a guide. The teacher guiding you suggests breathing techniques and ways to focus your attention.
Many people find guided meditation helpful in staying focused more easily than silent meditation. There are many different themes, formats, and time lengths of guided meditations you can search for. Two resources you can explore to get started are apps called Headspace and Calm. Each has free and paid versions of their app and offers various features for finding peace and serenity.
Headspace offers more traditional guided meditations with the ability to search for specific themes that suit your interest at that moment. Calm provides various programs to help you establish a daily habit and experience a more tranquil atmosphere with features such as curated music options and sleep meditations.
Yoga Class
We know that physical exercise is helpful in reducing anxiety. Yoga blends together physical activity with meditation. During a yoga class, your teacher guides you through a sequence of poses or “expressions.” As you move your body through these poses, the focus stays on your breath and how your body feels in each pose. This is excellent practice for mind-body connection to bring you into the present moment, thus alleviating anxiety.
Yoga teachers often begin their classes by inviting you to set an intention for your practice. An intention serves as a focal theme to inspire your full participation and to remember your reason for practicing when it gets challenging. Setting an intention can be simple. Possible intentions include: to be present, to be grateful, to have compassion for yourself, to embrace change, or to find balance.
Yoga classes are available in person or online. Each option has its pros and cons. In-person classes allow for receiving feedback from the teacher. During class, they can offer individualized suggestions and hands-on adjustments to help each student get more out of their practice. In-person yoga classes are also an excellent way to connect with others in your community. Furthermore, it can be easier to hold yourself accountable here than with an online class at home where no one can tell if you decide to cut it short.
The disadvantage of in-person yoga classes is that you are limited to the yoga studio’s schedule. The style of classes and the times they take place are not up to you. Online courses give you the advantage of choosing any style, skill level, and class length at any time. If you want to do a 90-minute Yin class at 11 PM or a 30-minute Vinyasa Flow class at 5 AM, you can tailor your practice to your own schedule. Online courses are also ideal if you want to practice in the privacy of your home. Yoga Download is a great place to start if you want to take yoga classes online.
Journaling
Like each of the previous methods we’ve discussed, journaling is a meditative technique that also creates a mind-body connection as your hand-to-paper translates the thoughts in your mind.
Journaling is a very personal activity with no right or wrong way to keep one. Try to refrain from judging your writing in any way. Your journal is a safe space to express yourself without a need to filter. Taking time to express emotions, memories, fears, doubts, questions, and ideas in a private journal can allow clarity, balance, acceptance, and letting go.
You can also apply a structure to your journaling. For example, journaling can be a way for you to take time to be thankful. Challenge yourself to begin each day by writing down at least five things you are thankful for. When you take time to be thankful, you train your mind to focus on the positive aspects of your life. It feels good to focus on positive experiences and emotions rather than the things that cause anxiety, so allow your mind to enjoy a regular thankfulness practice.
Tips For Success With Meditation
If you are new to meditation, expect that you may encounter some obstacles and challenges, as you would with any new undertaking. Here are a few tips to help you embrace the process and discover the benefits of meditation.
Expect Your Mind To Wander
Getting started can be one of the biggest obstacles for new meditators. Noticing your restless mind and body when you are trying to simply sit still and focus can be frustrating. Remember, there is no need to “quiet your mind” to benefit from meditation. You might find that your mind wanders after less than a minute of meditating. That is OK! Expect your mind to wander, and you can gently redirect your focus without guilt or judgment when you realize you’ve wandered down a trail of thoughts.
Monkey Mind
Your brain is very good at coming up with distracting thoughts. When you take time to meditate, you will likely notice thoughts of tasks, worries, ideas, and emotions swirling together. This can cause you to feel unsettled, unable to focus, or perhaps even confused or out of control. This is what Buddhists have termed the “monkey mind.”
While the monkey mind is normal and expected, it is currently more pronounced than ever with our increased tendency to multi-task and society’s growing addiction to technology. Try not to be harsh on yourself when you encounter your monkey mind. You might be tempted to say, “what’s the point?” and give up. Instead, see if you can watch how your mind bounces from one thought to the next and let it simply be an observation.
Clouds Floating By
Meditation seeks to interrupt the pattern of you being at the whim of your busy mind, whereby attaching to a single thought, you can end up down a long, unending path of “thinking.” Try to imagine your thoughts as floating clouds in the sky. You do not have to do anything with your thoughts. Just watch them as they come and go.
Again, this is normal if you still find yourself attaching to thoughts. When you notice this happen, gently guide your attention to your focus. Let go of feeling upset about being distracted. The goal here is not perfection. Whether you have to redirect your attention 100 times or you’ve been down a thought trail for 15 minutes before you realize it, what’s important is that you are cultivating mindfulness, and practice is never wasted.
Over time, your meditation practice will allow you to experience more deeply that you are not your thoughts. Instead, you are the observer of your thoughts. As you develop this mental distinction, you will likely feel more balanced and at ease throughout your day.
We’re Here to Support You
We hope the meditation techniques for alleviating anxiety suggested in this article are helpful to you and add to your toolbox for coping with life’s stressors. If you struggle to manage chronic anxiety or think you might have an anxiety disorder, it is important to reach out. You are not alone. At Alvarado Parkway Institute, our dedicated team of professionals is here to provide individualized support in a safe and culturally sensitive environment. Please do not hesitate to contact us at our 24/7 Inquiry and Support Line: 619-333-7050.
