Find Peace With These 7 Natural Anxiety Solutions

Your heart pounds. Your hands sweat. Maybe you feel paralyzed. If you have anxiety, you recognize the symptoms of another anxiety attack.

With almost 20% of the population 18 and older affected by anxiety, it’s the most common mental illness in America.

There’s no shame in having anxiety, but it can be hard to find the right remedy. Unfortunately, many anxiety solutions tend to use medication, and not always in the best way.

There’s been a 400% increase in the use of antidepressants in the last several years. While using medication to get better is between you and your doctor, it doesn’t hurt to have a little bit of extra help.

We’ve got seven great ideas to give your mental illness treatment a little all-natural boost. Find out which one will help relieve your symptoms and bring you peace of mind!

1) Change Your Diet

Ever go on an epic fast food binge and felt not-so-great afterwards? There’s a reason fatty, salty, and sugary food should be an occasional treat.

It’s a no-brainer. If you’re eating a lot of junk food, ditch it – now. Having a fast food hangover isn’t just bad for your waistline, it’s bad for your brain, too.

You’re not yourself if you’re feeling sluggish after eating a huge, greasy hamburger. Keep eating like this long-term and you impact your day-to-day mental well-being.

Go for natural, healthy food. Stick to fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and lean proteins.

You’ll have a spring in your step, might go down a size, and find some clarity of thought.

2) Watch What You Drink

Ok, so you’re watching what passes your lips. Does that include fluids?

Look, we all love to have a jolt of java to get going in the morning. But if it’s making you more jittery than juiced, it might be time to switch to something else.

It’s one of the easiest anxiety solutions – removing stimulating caffeine from your diet. If you love the taste but don’t like the effects, try something like roasted dandelion root or switch to herbal tea.

Still need a little help getting going in the morning? Try exercising first thing after waking up and getting exposed to sunlight as early as possible.

So stimulants are off the table – so are suppressants. It goes without saying that using alcohol to cope with anxiety isn’t the best strategy.

What’s the best thing to drink to help you retain focus and stay healthy? Plain, old water! When you’re properly hydrated, you’ll feel much better.

3) Get Moving

Exercise is among the best anxiety solutions, hands down. But who wants to get sweaty when they’re feeling anxious or depressed?

It’s true that the hardest step of a marathon is the first one out the door, but it’s important to get out there.

It could take as little as 20 minutes to feel better just moving your body.

And guess what? You don’t have to start out running three miles! Slow and steady wins the race.

It’s more important that you just make an effort than take on some crazy weightlifting goal. Even something like a brisk walk can do wonders.

4) Vitamins and Supplements

Along with any medication your doctor feels you should be taking, vitamins and other supplements are amazing anxiety solutions.

Magnesium works well with your nervous system and helps relax your muscles. If you don’t want to take a pill, try taking an epsom salt bath or eating pumpkin seeds.

Anxiety is one of the symptoms of a lack of vitamin B. Try a B6 and/or B12 and see if your mood improves.

5) Tea Time

After taking out caffeine, limiting alcohol, and drinking lots of refreshing water, you might be craving something more…flavorful.

Herbal teas with fruits and spices taste great, but did you know there are some teas that can help you with anxiety? It’s true!

Chamomile is a classic tension tamer. As far as anxiety solutions go, this one is the sweetest and mildest. Try a cup before bed for an easy sleep.

Ready to try something with caffeine but without the jitters? Try a cup of green tea. The lift you get is easy and smooth, with no hard landing.

Have you heard of kava? It’s a spicy herb that can curb anxiety and help you relax.

Its taste is similar to licorice though which is a taste not a lot of people like. Give it a try and see if it makes a difference.

6) Put Things in Order

Sometimes, when we’re anxious, we get a surge of energy that we usually put to bad use. Our mind races with worst case scenarios. Our heart pounds out of control.

Here’s an idea: next time you feel a surge of anxious energy coming, put it to work.

Go on a total cleaning binge. Start throwing out old stuff you haven’t used. Put together a donation bag of old clothes for charity.

Cleaning and organizing will give you a sense of control. You’ll diminish your anxiety and get a clean house!

7) Meditation

There’s a reason mediation is always on the list of all-natural anxiety solutions: it works!

Breathing slowly, clearing your mind, and taking a moment to just be in silence are excellent to help manage anxiety symptoms.

Be warned: you might find meditation even harder than exercising – really! Being able to silence your thoughts is something monks spend their whole lives trying to achieve.

While it might be a struggle, just like with weightlifting, you’ll build your mind’s muscle. The more you do it, the easier it will get.

Try These All-Natural Anxiety Solutions!

Whether you try one of these tips or try all of them, you’ll be sure to see a difference in your life. After all, the first step to getting better is to just start!

Remember this, too – you’re going to have bad days and that’s OK. Don’t beat yourself up if you have a bad anxiety attack.

Life is a marathon, not a sprint. Don’t expect everything to work the first time and don’t be afraid to keep trying!

Are you ready to take steps to manage your anxiety? Pick a tip and let’s go!