Having anxiety is a scary and frustrating way of life for many people.
Anxiety is intense fear or worrying about a specific event, problem, or situation you’re experiencing. Symptoms include restlessness, pervasive negative thoughts, and even physical symptoms like rapid heart rate, sweating, trembling, or feelings of choking and shortness of breath. Often people feel themselves starting to spiral into a cycle of worrying that they cannot control.
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The good news is that there are simple, practical tactics you can utilize to regain control of your thoughts and end the anxiety before it turns into a full-fledged panic attack. One mom recently took to Reddit to share a quick list of tips that work for herself and her son.
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These tips describe a method called “grounding,” which enables a person to calm and soothe himself without needing medication.
- Look around you.
- Find 5 things you can see.
- Find 4 things you can touch.
- Find 3 things you can hear.
- Find 2 things you can smell.
- Find 1 thing you can taste.
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Not only does each task on this list encourage the person to focus on the experiences they can see, feel, touch, and taste, but it acts as a distraction for a brain that’s working too hard, too fast.
Focusing on sensory feelings encourages the brain to calm down and see things for how they really are, not how you’ve imagined them to be.
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The overwhelming reaction to this mom’s simple list of tips has been positive, with one Redditor sharing further insight:
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Remember these tips next time you feel yourself getting anxious, and you’ll be on your way to feeling mentally free and in charge again!
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