Just breathe.

When we are in a state of anxiety and arousal, the breath has immense power to slow us down and reduce our stress. When we are anxious, we may experience a racing heart, sweating palms, busy thoughts swirling in our mind, shakiness and many other uncomfortable symptoms. Don't underestimate the power of deep breathing! Try taking a deep breath, perhaps counting as you breathe in for 4 seconds, and counting to 6 as you breathe out. Continue doing this UNTIL your heart rate slows. As you slow down your breathing, your brain will send a message to your heart to slow down. You will activate parts of your nervous system that will start to calm you down. When people tell me deep breathing "didn't work" I often ask how long they tried it for. The trick is to continue the slow deep breathing until your nervous system kicks in and responds. Once you notice things slowing down, continue deep breathing! Notice what it's like to be in a state of increased relaxation. The anxiety may not be gone, but you can decrease it through deep breathing, which can then allow you to engage in other strategies to further reduce the discomfort. Deep breathing can often be the first step in shifting your experience. So just BREATHE.

Image by Tim Goedhart on Unsplash