Stress is a natural (daily) part of life, even before the strange, unsettling times in which we live presently.
Now, not all stress is bad. After all, exercise is a form of beneficial stress that actually makes us stronger, more resilient.
But, when stress and anxiety become the norm, it can negatively impact our mental state, sleep, and physical performance. Chronic stress and anxiety also makes us more prone to illness and infection.
Today, we discuss 10 ways to reduce anxiety and help you fight back feelings of stress.
10 Ways to Reduce Anxiety & Stress
Exercise
One of the absolute best things you can do to help lower feelings of stress and anxiety is to exercise.
It’s true that exercise is an acute (short-term) stressor to the body, but grinding your way through a challenging workout can actually help relieve mental anguish.
Research has shown that individuals who regularly exercise are less prone to feelings of anxiety.[1] Plus, exercise also increases “feel good” hormones like dopamine, norepinephrine, and serotonin.
Regular exercise also improves sleep, which also affects feelings of stress in the body.
And, speaking of sleep…
Get 7-9 Hours of Sleep Each Night
Getting sufficient sleep each and every night is paramount to keeping stress in check.
Chronic sleep deprivation leads to elevations in cortisol (the stress hormone), which can make us feel on edge, irritable, and tired.
Moreover, sleep deprivation also impairs cognitive and physical performance, and it disrupts energy metabolism in the body, making you more likely to overeat and store fat around your midsection (which only adds to your levels of stress).
By getting enough sleep each night, you’re setting yourself up for success the following day, whatever it is you happen to be doing.
To help get to sleep each night, try reducing exposure to blue light 2 hours before bed, and establishing some type of nighttime ritual to signal to your body that it’s time to wind down for the evening.
You can also try taking a nighttime sleep and relaxation aid, such as 1UP Beauty Dream or Recharge PM Burner, which contain several nutrients that combat feelings of stress and promote calm and relaxation.
Moderate Caffeine Intake
Caffeine is the most popular stimulant on the planet, widely available in coffee, tea, and pre workout supplements.
It’s effective and (when used appropriately) safe.
Caffeine increases mental alertness, exercise performance, and our ability to just get s*** done during the day.[2]
However, it is possible to have too much of a good thing.
In certain individuals, consuming too much caffeine can lead to increased feelings of anxiety.[3]
But, an individual’s response to varying amounts of caffeine is just that -- highly individual.
Some people can tolerate very high amounts of caffeine, while others can feel jittery from a single cup of coffee.
Caffeine can also disrupt your sleep.
Therefore, be mindful of your caffeine intake as well as when you consume it during the day.
Spend Time Outdoors
Famed architect Frank Lloyd Wright said:
“Study nature, love nature, stay close to nature. It will never fail you.”
Now, it might seem odd that a man whose profession was to design feats of architectural excellence so loved nature, but Wright respected, appreciated, and affirmed the value, importance, and necessity of Mother Nature.
And, he was into something too.
Research shows that spending 20-30-minutes of walking or sitting in nature offers stress-relieving benefits.[4]
Dubbed “nature pills”, these 20-30 minute sessions significantly lower cortisol levels, and researchers suggest they could be a low-cost, all-natural means to reduce stress and anxiety induced by our increasingly indoor, urbanized lifestyle.[4]
Talk to Family and Friends
Social support is vital during these times. Being able to reach out to family and friends can greatly help you get through stressful times.
Research indicates that individuals with the least amount of social interactions are more likely to experience feelings of anxiety or depression.[5]
Part of the reason that spending time with family and friends helps reduce anxiety and stress is that social interaction stimulates the release of the feel good neurotransmitter, oxytocin, which acts as a natural stress reliever.[6]
Thanks to the advances of modern technology, even if you can’t physically be in the same room as your loved ones, you can connect with them on FaceTime, Skype, Zoom, or any one of the other communication mediums readily available.
Listen to Relaxing Music
Music is a splendid thing.
It can motivate you during a tough workout, and it can help you wind down and relax, too.
Even the music of Mother Nature (birds tweeting, crickets chirping, etc) can also have a calming effect on the body.
The best types of music to help reduce anxiety and promote relaxation are usually slow-paced songs with little to no words. Research confirms this too, and notes that Classical music and Celtic music in particular are soothing.[8]
Deep Breathing
Yet another strategy that can be used to relax during stressful situations is deep (diaphragmatic) breathing. Its practice dates back centuries as a means for crushing stress and uniting the body, mind, and spirit.
Research defines deep breathing as:
“Diaphragmatic breathing involves contraction of the diaphragm, expansion of the belly, and deepening of inhalation and exhalation, which consequently decreases the respiration frequency and maximizes the amount of blood gases.”[8]
Deep breathing exercises can help stimulate the parasympathetic nervous system, which runs counter to the sympathetic nervous system (fight or flight response), thereby inducing feelings of relaxation.
The goal of deep breathing is to help “block out the noise” (those things that are making you feel anxious and/or irritable).
During this breathing drill, you focus your awareness on breathing, making it slower, deeper, and more controlled.
As you inhale deeply through your nose, your lungs fully expand, and your abdomen expands. As you exhale through your nose, allow your shoulders to relax, belly to come in, and stressors to leave you.
Practice Mindfulness
Mindfulness is described as the “awareness on the present moment, while calmly acknowledging and accepting one's feelings, thoughts, and bodily sensations, used as a therapeutic technique.”
Essentially, you are focusing on the here and now -- what is going on immediately around you and within you.
So often we’re caught up in things we have no control over, and this endless worrying does nothing but make us feel more stressed and anxious.
Mindfulness is a practice backed by both research and anecdote as a way to improve psychological health and combat the anxiety-inducing effects of negative thoughts.[9,10]
It can help you to focus on what is truly important as well as how to relax your mind and body when anxiety becomes a problem.
And, like many of the other options on this list, mindfulness costs nothing at all and requires no fancy equipment. It just requires you to sit still, breathe, and focus on the now.
Be OK Saying No
As much as we always want to lend a helping hand or be the dependable person in life, sometimes it’s OK to say no.
Trying to walk around as the consummate “yes man” or “yes woman” can lead you to taking on more than you are capable of and thus, feeling overwhelmed, stressed, and anxious.
Learning to say no is just as important as a skill as saying “yes” when the situation warrants it.
Part of saying no is more fully understanding your capabilities, limitations, and availability.
You should be intentional and selective about what tasks you accept as well as which ones you do not.
Staying in your lane and doing those things that you have time for and are capable of are yet another way to reduce undue stress and anxiety.
Supplement Smart
There are a number of supplements that have been shown to reduce stress and anxiety. Better still, these compounds are readily found in nature and don’t come with the dependency or withdrawal issues of medications typically used to combat anxiety.
Standout compounds that have been identified in helping reduce stress and anxiety, include L-Tyrosine, Ashwagandha, and L-Theanine.
L-Tyrosine is an amino acid found in dairy products, meats, fish, eggs, nuts, beans, oats, and wheat. The body can also produce tyrosine from the essential amino acid L-Phenylalanine.
Tyrosine is used to produce several important neurotransmitters and fat-burning catecholamines in the body, including dopamine and norepinephrine (noradrenaline).[11]
Research has shown that supplementing with L-Tyrosine can help reduce stress and improve cognitive performance, during stressful and/or cognitively demanding situations.[Jongkees, B. J., Hommel, B., Kuhn, S., & Colzato, L. S. (2015). Effect of tyrosine supplementation on clinical and healthy populations under stress or cognitive demands--A review. Journal of Psychiatric Research, 70, 50–57. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpsychires.2015.08.014]
Ashwagandha is a root long used in Ayurveda to restore vigor and vitality, both it also has widely been used for its anti-stress effects. The plant serves as an adaptogen in the body.
Adaptogens improve the body’s ability to encounter, react, and recover from stress. Numerous studies have been conducted on ashwagandha and shown it to be effective for reducing stress, anxiety, and even weight loss.[12,13]
L-Theanine is an amino acid present in green tea that is responsible for the calm, smooth energy of tea compared to the more intense, aggressive energy of coffee. The reason for this is that Theanine increases levels of GABA in the brain.[14]
GABA is the body’s primary inhibitory neurotransmitter, and by increasing its concentration, theanine helps promote feelings of calm relaxation without sedation.
All three of these ingredients can be found in 1UP Hormone Support Plus -- a 5-in-1 product formulated for women to support mood, metabolism, hormone balance.
References
- Childs E, de Wit H. Regular exercise is associated with emotional resilience to acute stress in healthy adults. Front Physiol. 2014;5:161. Published 2014 May 1. doi:10.3389/fphys.2014.00161
- Spriet LL. Exercise and sport performance with low doses of caffeine. Sports Med. 2014;44 Suppl 2(Suppl 2):S175–S184. doi:10.1007/s40279-014-0257-8
- Lara, D. R. (2010). Caffeine, mental health, and psychiatric disorders. Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease : JAD, 20 Suppl 1, S239-48. https://doi.org/10.3233/JAD-2010-1378
- Mary Carol R. Hunter, Brenda W. Gillespie, Sophie Yu-Pu Chen. Urban Nature Experiences Reduce Stress in the Context of Daily Life Based on Salivary Biomarkers. Frontiers in Psychology, 2019; 10 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2019.00722
- Cadzow, R. B., & Servoss, T. J. (2009). The association between perceived social support and health among patients at a free urban clinic. Journal of the National Medical Association, 101(3), 243–250. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0027-9684(15)30852-x
- Taylor, S. E., Klein, L. C., Lewis, B. P., Gruenewald, T. L., Gurung, R. A., & Updegraff, J. A. (2000). Biobehavioral responses to stress in females: tend-and-befriend, not fight-or-flight. Psychological Review, 107(3), 411–429. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-295x.107.3.411]
- Jiang, J., Rickson, D., & Jiang, C. (2016). The mechanism of music for reducing psychological stress: Music preference as a mediator. The Arts in Psychotherapy, 48, 62–68. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aip.2016.02.002
- Ma X, Yue ZQ, Gong ZQ, et al. The Effect of Diaphragmatic Breathing on Attention, Negative Affect and Stress in Healthy Adults. Front Psychol. 2017;8:874. Published 2017 Jun 6. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2017.00874
- Keng SL, Smoski MJ, Robins CJ. Effects of mindfulness on psychological health: a review of empirical studies. Clin Psychol Rev. 2011;31(6):1041–1056. doi:10.1016/j.cpr.2011.04.006
- Maxwell, L., & Duff, E. (2016). Mindfulness: An Effective Prescription for Depression and Anxiety. The Journal for Nurse Practitioners, 12(6), 403–409.https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nurpra.2016.02.009
- Young SN. L-tyrosine to alleviate the effects of stress?. J Psychiatry Neurosci. 2007;32(3):224.
- Pratte MA, Nanavati KB, Young V, Morley CP. An alternative treatment for anxiety: a systematic review of human trial results reported for the Ayurvedic herb ashwagandha (Withania somnifera). J Altern Complement Med. 2014;20(12):901–908. doi:10.1089/acm.2014.0177,
- Choudhary D, Bhattacharyya S, Joshi K. Body Weight Management in Adults Under Chronic Stress Through Treatment With Ashwagandha Root Extract: A Double-Blind, Randomized, Placebo-Controlled Trial. J Evid Based Complementary Altern Med. 2017;22(1):96–106. doi:10.1177/2156587216641830
- White DJ, de Klerk S, Woods W, Gondalia S, Noonan C, Scholey AB. Anti-Stress, Behavioural and Magnetoencephalography Effects of an L-Theanine-Based Nutrient Drink: A Randomised, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled, Crossover Trial. Nutrients. 2016;8(1):53. Published 2016 Jan 19. doi:10.3390/nu8010053
