Hi loves…it’s been an incredibly tough time for everyone, so I wanted to check in and see how you’re doing. Even if you’re quarantined safely at home, it’s hard not to feel anxious about the current state of the world. I’ve mostly been able to stay positive and hopeful through all of this, but there are times when I let myself think about it all too much and I start to feel anxious and fearful. At one point I even thought I was starting to have a panic attack, and I’ve never had one before…but my heart was pounding and my mind felt like it was spinning out of control. Then I remembered a breathing technique I learned many years ago, and I looked it up online and tried it…and it only took a minute or two for me to feel much better! It got me thinking that I probably know a few tools for reducing anxiety that I could share with you, in case you’ve been feeling anxious or panicked too. 

I was raised with natural and homeopathic medicine all my life because my parents were into it, and as I got older I became very interested in holistic healing. I always say I would have been an herbal doctor in another life 🙂 I’ve been studying natural healing for 20 years and using it to help myself, my daughter, my husband and friends…but please understand that I am not a doctor, so you should thoroughly research any of the supplements I suggest and check with your doctor before trying them. But don’t worry, most of my ideas don’t involve any supplements at all!

Alright, here are my ideas for reducing anxiety and boosting your mood while we’re going through this scary unprecedented time…

Turn Off the News 

I can’t emphasize this enough! I know it’s important to follow what is happening in the world, but let’s face it—things haven’t changed much in the last five weeks, so you won’t miss much if you disengage from the world for a few days. Constantly watching and reading the news will make your anxiety levels go through the roof. And stop checking every minute to see how many new cases there are in the world, in your country, and in your town! Just for a couple days, give yourself a break from it all and focus only on things that make you happy. I allowed myself a week or two at the beginning of the pandemic to go overboard watching and listening to news, but once I realized my anxiety was climbing to panic levels, I had to stop. Now I read news about the pandemic about once or twice a week, and the rest of the week I try to focus on happier things. It has helped a lot.

Create a Calming Environment

If you’re feeling anxious, try to make your surroundings a little bit more relaxing. Dim the lights, light scented candles, and try putting on the “Spa” station on Pandora or Spotify, or whatever music app you listen to. Maybe you can even take time to have a bath, or get your children or husband (or mom or roommate, whoever) to give you a massage. You can also order a lavender essential and just put a couple drops on your palms, rub your palms together, and breathe in the calming scent. Or you can purchase a lavender infused eye pillow. The one I linked can be warmed in the microwave and placed over your eyes to give you all the calming benefits of lavender.

Try the 4-7-8 Breath

This is the breathing exercise that helped me so much the other day. You only need to do 3 or 4 breaths for it to have an effect. I learned about this technique from Dr. Andrew Weil so I will summarize his technique, which you can learn more about here.

1. Place the tip of your tongue behind your upper front teeth. 
2. Close your mouth and inhale through your nose to a count of four.
3. Hold your breath for a count of seven.
4. Exhale through your mouth to a count of eight.
5. Repeat the cycle for a total of four breaths.

Do a Mantra

A mantra is a phrase that you repeat over and over, out loud or in your mind, to help you focus on something positive. You can use a mantra while meditating or while doing something else like folding laundry. If you want to do a mantra while meditating, go to a quiet place and turn down the lights. Lie down on your back, or sit up straight in a comfortable cross-legged position on the floor. If sitting, you can put a small pillow under the back of your bottom and it will help you sit up straighter. 

Whether you are meditating or just going about your daily life, you can repeat whatever phrase resonates with you over and over again, until you start to feel better. I repeat the phrase in my mind, but you can also say it out loud or write it in a journal. Here are some mantras I like for anxiety:

• The universe is watching out for me / God is watching out for me
• I trust the universe to guide me / I trust God to guide me
• This too shall pass
• Everything will be okay
• Everything is exactly as it should be
• I choose health and happiness
• I am grateful for all that I have
• I am healthy, I am strong, I am safe

Listen to a Positive Audiobook 

When I’m feeling anxious or down, the one thing that makes me feel the best is listening to a positive audiobook. I like to listen to Audible because I can easily purchase their audiobooks on Amazon. You can download the Audible app for free and then you have to sign up for an account, but you don’t have to pay for the account. Then you can purchase an audio book through Amazon and listen to it on the Audible app. 

I love listening to audiobooks while I’m cleaning or driving, as it keeps me from getting bored and makes me feel happy! Here are some of my favorite audio books for putting me in a positive mood:

• The Power
• The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success
• Money and the Law of Attraction

Do a Gratitude Exercise 

Thinking about all your blessings can do wonders for your mood. You can list everything you are grateful for in your mind, write it down, or say it out loud. Try listing even the smallest and most basic things that you may take for granted, like a roof over your head, running water, electricity in your house, your personal health, the health of your family, food to eat, that the sun is shining, spring is here, the grocery stores still have food…you get the idea. 🙂

Take a Walk

It seems simple, but if you haven’t been getting outside lately, you need to! Not being able to see friends and family and not being able to do normal things like run out to Starbucks or go to the gym is really taking a toll on all of us. Getting fresh air and moving around will make you feel like you’re alive again and will definitely improve your mood. A therapist once told me that 30 minutes of exercise every single day has the exact same effect on the brain as taking Prozac. He said that you have to get 30 minutes in each day, as the effect only lasts about 24 hours. But if you are feeling anxious or depressed, taking a walk in that moment will help cheer you up and calm your nerves.

Try 15 Minutes of Yoga 

Just 15 minutes of yoga can really relax you and take away anxiety. If you’ve never done it before, try looking up a beginner’s yoga practice on YouTube. Search for “Relaxation Yoga” or “Yin Yoga” to find one that is especially calming. One of my favorite yoga practices for relaxation is here on YouTube – just scroll to minute 36:00 to find the relaxation segment. I love that it’s only 10 minutes long!

You can also purchase a subscription to Gaia.com for $11/month to get access to hundreds of yoga videos. Since you can’t go out and take a yoga class right now, why not try a class at home? I recently got a subscription to this site and I love it! If you end up getting a Gaia subscription, you can find the relaxation segment I mentioned above right here.

Do a Guided Relaxation

Try looking up “Guided Relaxation” or “Guided Meditation” on YouTube. Turn off the lights, lie on your back, close your eyes, and listen to the guided relaxation. This is especially nice when you need help falling asleep at night. One of my favorite guided relaxations is at the end of the same yoga video I mentioned earlier. You can find the video here on YouTube and then scroll to minute 47:00 for the guided relaxation. You can also find that specific segment here on Gaia.com.

Try a Natural Mood Supplement

I’ve tried a few natural supplements for boosting my mood and reducing anxiety, with great success! These are my favorites:

• 5-htp – my naturopath recommended this to me many years ago. After about three days of taking it, I started to feel the effect. Even though it’s all natural, it made me feel euphoric – all day, every day! It may help you if you’ve been suffering from depression during this tough time.
• Magnesium Calm – this drink supplement can work within 10 or 15 minutes to reduce anxiety.
• Bach’s Rescue Remedy – spray under your tongue and it works right away to reduce anxiety. I used this through my entire labor when I gave birth to my daughter at home without medication or an epidural. It definitely helped ease my panic!
• Vitamin B12 – low levels of B12 are known to cause depression and anxiety, so this supplement can improve both if your body is lacking in it.

Watch Comedy 

This is another one that sounds simple, but watching something funny can make you feel better instantly. It will take your mind off your worries, and laughing will release all kinds of good chemicals into your brain. You can try a super funny sitcom like Schitt’s Creek or New Girl on Netflix, or 30 Rock on Amazon Prime. 

You can also try watching one of the stand-up comedy specials on Netflix. Here’s a great list of Netflix comedy specials. Or try one I’ve watched recently, that I can promise is super funny:

• John Mulaney – New in Town
• Ellen Degeneres – Relatable
• Lliza Shlesinger – Unveiled
• Dave Chapelle – Sticks and Stones

I hope some of these ideas work for you and help ease your anxiety. Let me know in the comments below if you plan to try any of my ideas, or if any of them work for you! Also feel free to share any of your own tips for reducing anxiety below.

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