Anxiety Management/Relaxation Techniques Square Breathing Deep breathing is a simple technique that is also effective because it calms your nervous system, while thinking through the rhythm and pattern of it calms your mind. Start with the suggested timing, and adjust (longer or shorter) to meet your body’s needs. Count in your head while doing the exercise (one-onethousand, two-one-thousand, etc.). Pull up a mental image of a square, and imagine going up one side as you inhale, across the top as you hold, down the other side as you exhale, and across the bottom as you hold. Repeat until you feel calm. Tapping Tapping is another simple technique that works by engaging your body and mind simultaneously. Get a tempo in your head (1-2-3-4), and tap your fingers, hands, or feet, alternating which side of your body is moving with each beat. Bilateral movement—moving both sides of your body—cuts off the production of the neurotransmitters that produce the fight-or-flight response, which is the root of anxiety. And the counting of the tempo is also a distractor. Continue until you feel calm. Progressive Muscle Relaxation Sit or lay in a comfortable position. Tense the muscles for each body area/part listed below, tightly but so much that it causes pain. Hold the tension for 10 seconds, then slowly relax the muscle; pay attention to how different the feeling of the relaxed muscle is from that of the tensed muscle. Progress through each body part/ area, concluding with the entire body. Repeat as needed. This exercise is helpful both in the moment, as a distraction for your mind, but also in that it helps you be more able to be aware of when you are holding tension in your body, and then forcing yourself to relax. Feet Curl your toes tightly into your feet, then release them. Calves Point or flex your feet to tighten your calf muscles, then let them relax. Thighs Squeeze your thighs together tightly, then let them relax. Torso Tighten your abdominal and chest muscles, then let them relax. Back Hold your fists just below your chest and push your shoulders back to tighten your back muscles, then slowly bring your shoulders forward to release the tension. Shoulders Lift and squeeze your shoulders toward your ears, then let them drop. Arms Tense up your arm muscles, then let them relax. Hands Make a tight fist with both hands, then gradually loosen them. Face Scrunch your facial features to the center of your face, then relax. Full Body Squeeze all muscles together, then release all tension. Thought Stopping This exercises teaches you stop unwelcome thoughts by switching to a welcome one; over time, the need to switch will become lessened, and the unwelcome thought can be stopped without the need for an alternative. Our thoughts drive our emotions, how we feel. If we think of something irritating or sad, we begin to feel angry or sad; but the opposite is also true. If we think of something positive and calming, we will feel relaxed. This technique harnesses this power to reduce anxiety. Think of a happy memory, such as a pleasant place, or a pleasant experience. Take your time to recall as much detail as you can—really imagine it. • What do you see around you? What do you notice in the distance? Look all around to take in all your surroundings. Look for small details you would usually miss. • What sounds can you hear? Are they soft or loud? Listen closely to everything around you. Keep listening to see if you notice any distant sounds. • What can you taste? Are you eating or drinking something? What is the flavor? How does it taste? Savor all the tastes of the food or drink. • What can you feel? What is the temperature like? Think of how the air feels on your skin, and how your clothes feel on your body. Soak in all these sensations. • What can you smell? Are the scents strong or faint? What does the air smell like? Thought Challenging Anxiety is magnified and maintained by irrational thinking. For example, the thoughts that “something bad will happen” or “I will make a mistake” may lack evidence, but still impact on how you feel. By examining the evidence and challenging these thoughts, you can reduce anxiety, and over time build up the ability to easily dismiss irrational thoughts, reducing or eliminating their impact. Put a Thought on Trial Choose a thought that has contributed to your anxiety. Gather evidence in support of your thought (verifiable facts only), and against your thought. Compare the evidence and determine whether your thought is accurate or not. Use Socratic Questioning Question the thoughts that contribute to your anxiety. Ask yourself: • Is my thought based on facts or feelings? • How would a friend see this situation? • How likely is it that my fear will come true? • What’s most likely to happen? • If my fear comes true, will it still matter in a week? A month? A year?
