How to Reduce Anxiety Immediately

Are you spiraling right now? Take 3 deep breaths for me. Then tell yourself out loud, “I’m doing something to help with this anxiety.”

Okay – let’s get to it then. I am assuming you just searched for “how to reduce anxiety immediately” because you’re feeling it pretty bad right now. (If you’re actually preparing for the next time you feel that way, so much the better. Preparation is key!)

First of all, remember that you’re going to be okay. You are going to get through this anxiety attack. I know this with confidence because you always have. You are here today now because you have survived any previous encounters with anxiety. You will survive this one too.

Anxiety always feels like it’s going to be there forever and like it’s an emergency to deal with NOW. But the reality is, it’s not going to be there forever – sooner or later, it passes. It’s not pleasant in the meantime. But hold on to the knowledge in your head that it’s going to pass.

That alone might help you get through the current anxiety attack. Let’s go ahead and look at some other therapist-approved ideas for how to reduce anxiety immediately.

1. Breathing

Funny how the most basic bodily function can be so powerful.

There are lots of breathing techniques out there with lots of fun names – square breathing, triangle breathing, 4-7-8 breathing. They’re all variations on the same theme: you mindfully control your breath to calm the system.

For all of them, you want to start by sitting or lying in a comfortable position. Ideally you have a quiet space to do this in. Turn off your phone! (Or put it to silent or whatever – not vibrate! You want to not get pulled back into the world of anxiety here.) Close your eyes, or focus on something neutral – a dot on a the wall, a painting of a plant, etc.

In square breathing you breathe in for 4 seconds, hold for 4 seconds, out for 4 seconds, hold for 4 seconds. The 4-7-8 technique (Dr. Andrew Weil’s version) is in for 4, hold for 7, out for 8. (The rationale is that it’s the exhaling that most impacts the parasympathetic nervous system – the stuff the calms you down.)

2. Grounding

When your mind is flying off to the most stressful places, you can use your body to bring you back to the present moment.

The simplest way to do this is just to pay close attention to your physical sensations. Focus on the weight of your body against the chair you’re sitting in. Feel your feet on the ground. Push down on them a little bit. Anything that recenters you on your physical sensation and takes you out of your spiraling anxiety can help.

You can also hold something in your hands that heightens your sensory experience: an ice cube or a stress ball can do the trick.

Another way to use your senses is the 5-4-3-2-1 trick: look around the room and notice:

• 5 things you can see – pay attention to details, colors, shapes.

• 4 things you can touch – feel textures, temperature, weight.

• 3 things you can hear – notice tone and distance.

• 2 things you can smell – if you don’t smell anything you can call to mind the smells of things you see or think of

• 1 thing you can taste – same deal.

3. The Mammalian Dive Reflex

This one sounds a little more advanced, doesn’t it? It’s not.

Just put your face in a bowl of ice water. That’s it. Take a deep breath and keep it there for 15-30 seconds.

What exactly is this about? It’s the mammalian dive reflex. Basically, all mammals have this reflex that when they are submerged in water, their breathing and heart rate slow down to conserve oxygen. Telling your body that it’s dunking underwater triggers that response.

Getting your body to stop doing that anxious dance it’s doing can help you get back into a calmer place.

Don’t have a bowl of ice water handy? Applying an ice pack to the face (specifically under the eyes) can get the job done.

4. Progressive Muscle Relaxation

You can do this on your own or find a video online that will walk you through it. Basically you start at the top of your head and work your way down through your body, tightening the muscles in every spot and then releasing them. (Some people skip the tightening part and just focus on releasing the tension in every muscle group.)

So you’ll start with your forehead, move to your face, your jaw, your neck, your shoulders, etc. All the way down.

The more you practice this, the easier it will get, and the quicker you’ll be able to run through it in a pinch.

5. Exercise

Go for a run. Right now. Toss on some shoes and jog around the block. Go!

Putting the tension in your body to good use is an effective way to reduce anxiety right away (and it has the added benefit of contributing to your physical fitness!).

Choose your favorite kind of movement. A jog is great if that suits you, but if not, put on an exercise video on YouTube and do some squats with an overly cheerful taskmaster. Or go to the gym. Or dance (upbeat music offers an additional support to boosting your mood).

Get yourself moving and your heart rate up and you're likely to feel better inside too.

Other tricks for how to reduce anxiety immediately?

The truth is that whatever works for you, works. The above strategies have been helpful for many people. They may or may not work for you.

If you regularly struggle with anxiety attacks, these stopgap measures are good to have on hand, but you will probably also get a lot from going to regular individual therapy for anxiety to address the situation in a broader fashion.

You may also benefit from anti-anxiety medication, both as a maintenance plan and on as as-needed basis for anxiety attacks.

There is help available for your anxiety problem. If you need more help, please reach out to us for a free consultation!