Anxious thoughts can overtake your mind and cause you an extensive amount of fear and worry. Not knowing how to stop them can significantly impact your day-to-day life as you are unable to focus on your main priorities. Symptoms of excessive worrying or anxiety can be an indication of an anxiety disorder. While its symptoms can be troubling to deal with and get in the way of everyday life, there are ways to cope with and even stop anxious thoughts. By learning these strategies, your anxiety can become easier to deal with and prompt you to get further help should you need it. Here are the best ways to stop anxious thoughts.
The first thing you should do when experiencing anxious thoughts is to identify and acknowledge what you are feeling. Many individuals are tempted to avoid or suppress these thoughts, which is a temporary fix. When you use this strategy, the thoughts can come back stronger than before and become more overwhelming. It is best to acknowledge the presence of anxiety and identify why you are feeling it. When you allow yourself to feel your feelings, you can defuse them as you wish, not letting them have power over you. This process can be helped by engaging in “self-talk.”
Self-talk is how you think, perceive, and talk to yourself about your personal experiences. That “little voice inside your head” is your self-talk, which has a significant impact on your emotions. If you engage in negative self-talk, you are more likely to be depressed or anxious. However, you can change this with positive self-talk to boost your mood, be more rational, and think more clearly. Utilizing positive self-talk will give you a new perspective on things to help you stop ruminating on specific problems in your life. If you need help practicing positive self-talk, consider researching some common phrases to practice. You can even write them down and carry them with you to remind yourself of them throughout the day. Remember, one step at a time will get you where you need to be.
Once you are in a more positive state of mind, you can ask yourself why you have these anxious thoughts. By asking yourself if they are helpful or unhelpful to your wellbeing, you can identify how you talk to yourself negatively to try to put a stop to them. The best way to do this is to learn more about the different kinds of negative thoughts. These can include:
If you find yourself engaging in some of these negative thought patterns, ask yourself if they are helpful to your mental health and take steps to improve them if they aren’t.
Once you are aware of specific negative thoughts that you commonly engage in, you can begin taking steps to change them into positive ones. This process will take time, but eventually, you will be able to use positive self-talk as a coping method to calm down. It will be hard at first, but it will become second nature. To help with this process, begin looking at areas of your life that are open to positive changes. For example, you could put uplifting notes around your mirror if your anxiety concerns your perception of your body. If you are frequently anxious regarding work, consider listening to a motivational podcast on the drive there. The small changes can have a significant impact over time, so it is worth giving them a try.
If you begin to become overwhelmed from your anxious thoughts, one thing you can do to help at the moment is breathing exercises. There are various exercises to try, so you can try a couple before finding one that works for your anxiety. Often, people breathe more shallowly than they should. Breathing from your belly can help reduce anxiety by taking slow, deep breaths to relax you. You can also try the 4-7-8 approach, which involves inhaling for four counts, holding for seven counts, and exhaling through your mouth for eight counts. You can repeat this cycle three more times or until you begin feeling less anxious. Try thinking positive thoughts as you are breathing as well to form the habit over time.
Anxious thoughts can be overwhelming and even frightening at times. Stopping anxious thoughts takes both immediate and long-term action. At the moment, you can use breathing exercises to help calm down when anxiety strikes. However, you can begin practicing positive self-talk and being aware of any negative thoughts you engage in that may be impacting your anxiety. No matter what, there is something for everyone that can help people cope with their anxious thoughts. If you ever need additional help, though, NorthStar Transitions is here for you. We help our clients overcome struggles with addiction and mental health by using evidence-based treatment modalities. We tailor our programs to meet your individual needs to provide you with the best chance of recovery. Located in beautiful Boulder, CO, you can be sure to find healing at NorthStar. Call us today to begin your recovery journey at (303) 558-6400 and say goodbye to those anxious thoughts.
