3 Workable Techniques That Help Me Manage Anxiety

When you feel overwhelmed, simple is best.

Photo by DESIGNECOLOGIST on Unsplash

When you’re feeling anxious, complicated advice is often useless and overwhelming. What you need are simple, practical actions.

I’ve suffered from anxiety since my early teens on and off. During my most anxious times, severe panic attacks would appear without warning: rib crushing, chest exploding, throat tightening attacks. Initially, I found them crippling and terrifying. But the last one, I laughed at.

I experienced a particularly bad episode of anxiety just after I left my marriage two years ago. I was having regular panic attacks and couldn’t think straight, eat, or sleep. Almost daily, I felt the familiar vice around my chest as my breath became lighter, shallower— that brain-numbing terror as my “flight” instincts kicked in. But there was no where to run to; you can’t escape your own body.

I needed practical coping strategies.

The best advice — the tips that really work in my most anxious times — have always been the simplest ones.

Here’s what I used:

1. Gratitude alarm

Keeping my anxiety low reduced the number of panic attacks I was experiencing. I set my phone alarm (a calming, gentle one) to…