I know a little something about anxiety. I’ve struggled with it for years. Until recently, I’ve never been on long term medication or attended professional therapy. But I do have seasons when I struggle enough that it impacts my daily life. I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t getting to me right now in the middle of this novel coronavirus pandemic.
A little over 10 years ago I had my only full-blown panic attack. Extremely high blood pressure, chest pain, shortness of breath, hyperventilating, uncontrollable muscle clenching, the whole deal. I’ve also broken out with hives a few times, and I’ve had a lot of near-attacks since then. Although my anxiety has improved immensely in the past few years, it still hits me occasionally, particularly in times like these.
Fear Not
The Bible tells us not to be afraid 365 times. Unfortunately, hearing that oh, so helpful fact doesn’t make fear go away. I can read every single one of those passages in a single sitting, and still be afraid. I’m human. My faith isn’t perfect. That’s why the tagline on my blog includes the word doubt.
I’m writing this on Holy Saturday in 2020. It’s a day when I’m reminded that even those closest to Jesus struggled with doubt. Jesus told them multiple times that he would be killed and would rise again. But on the day after he died, and the day before he was raised, not one of them waited in hopeful expectation. They stopped believing everything Jesus told them about who he was. Everyone struggles with doutbt.
For me, doubt gives rise to anxiety. Usually, I can’t even tell you specifically what I’m anxious about. I just know that things aren’t going the way I want them to, and I know that I have little, if any, control. When I get stuck in these anxiety loops, there are some things that help me. Maybe they’ll be able to help you. If you’re looking for a silver bullet, I’m sorry, but there isn’t one. This post doesn’t include any quick fixes or magical rituals that immediately banish anxiety. What it does include are 12 actions with time-tested and research-backed results.
1 – Limit News
This is good advice for all people, all the time, but it’s especially pertinent right now. I read a blog post by best-selling author Cal Newport where he suggested that we “check one national and one local new[s] source each morning. Then – and this is the important part – don’t check any other news for the rest of the day.” That is probably going to be a big help for most people.
Or you might be like me. I’ve found that I have zero tolerance for news right now. Even just a couple of minutes once a day is enough to increase my anxiety noticeably. I had to stop watching, listening, or reading anything COVID-19 related. Ralph Waldo Emerson had some good advice on this topic.
Shun the newspaper, shun the spawn of the Press on the exciting topics of the day, for these things you shall learn in the street and in the stagecoach and save your time and your temper.
Ralph Waldo Emerson
I’m not saying you shouldn’t be informed. But if something important happens, you’ll find out about it without watching the news or reading news websites. There’s no need to artificially increase your anxiety by going in search of bad news. Instead, make it a point to expose yourself to good news. I highly recommend John Krasinkski’s Some Good News YouTube channel.
2 – Limit Social Media
What does social media have to do with anxiety? There are a lot of recent studies on this topic, and most of them show that there is almost no good reason for the average person to use social media…at all…ever. One study showed that even limiting consumption and being intentional with how you use social media doesn’t help much. No matter how much or how little time you spend using it, and no matter what you’re using it for, Social Media will lower your happiness.
This is a difficult one for most people to deal with. Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram have become so ingrained in our lives that most of us can’t even conceive of giving it up completely. We can rationalize it easier than most of our other vices. It’s how we know how our family and friends are doing, right? No, it’s not. If the people you follow on social media are truly important to you, then you should be checking on them in other ways.
If you’re struggling with anxiety, fear, depression, or general unhappiness right now, give this a try. Go on a social media fast until the stay-at-home orders are rescinded. You won’t regret it.
3 – Call people
Pick up the phone and check on your loved ones. Better yet, don’t call to check on them, just call to chat with them. Use apps like Facetime, Duo, or Zoom to get as close as you can to face-to-face interaction. Less texting. Less Snapchat. Less Marco Polo.
While we need to keep ourselves physically isolated from others, we don’t have to remain socially isolated. Stay in touch with your community. Pick up the phone and call your loved ones. It will make you feel a bit better, but more importantly, it will probably make them feel better.
4 – Guard Your Heart
I’ve mentioned this before. What comes out of you depends mostly on what you allow in (Proverbs 4:23). If you’re struggling with anxiety right now, there’s a good chance you’re filling yourself up with things that are feeding that fire. Stop watching Outbreak and Contagion. It’s not helping.
Watch comedy. Listen to uplifting music. Read something inspirational. Fill yourself with hope. Hope is what everyone needs right now. The more you fill yourself with it, the more able you will be to spread it around to others. And trust me, they need it badly.
5 – Sleep
If you aren’t sleeping 7-9 hours a night, then you’re going to have higher levels of anxiety, stress, and depression. Any less than 7 hours, and your body and mind don’t have adequate time to recover from the day’s activity (even if that activity was minimal). Any more than 9 hours and you’re putting yourself at higher risk of depression.
I know this time is unusual. The days are running together because we’re all stuck at home. There’s probably a temptation to stay up too late and lay around all morning. Don’t. Stick to a relatively consistent schedule that gives you the opportunity to get a full night of sleep every night.
Stay away from sleeping pills. People dealing with anxiety sometimes have trouble sleeping, so sleeping aids can seem tempting. But they actually prevent restorative sleep. If you need help improving your sleep, follow the other recommendations in this list. They will all help improve your sleep.
5 – Exercise
Everyone knows that they need to exercise. But the nice thing about exercising for anxiety is that it doesn’t even have to be strenuous. Even just a half-hour walk once or twice a day is enough. In fact, I’ve read that walking is better for anxiety than just about any other exercise you can do. Yoga is also great.
I strongly encourage exercising with no additional stimulation. No music, no podcast, no audiobook, no phone calls. Just walk, or run, or Yoga and let your mind wander. If it starts to wander somewhere that increases your feelings of anxiety, stop it and find something new to think about. It will take some practice, but it’s really helpful.
6 – Eat Well
Captain obvious here again. The adage that ‘you are what you eat’ has a lot of merit with regard to anxiety and stress. If you eat like crap you’ll feel like crap. I’m not going to make any specific suggestions with regard to what you eat. You know what you should and should not be consuming. Just listen to what you know you ought to do.
I think fasting is a practice that deserves some consideration as well. Most people can handle a 24 hour fast every once in a while. Disclaimer – I am not a doctor, and you should probably talk to one before embarking on any sort of fasting regimen, especially if you have chronic conditions.
I’ve adopted routine fasting into my life, and it’s helped me to lose weight, lower my blood pressure, and I don’t get sick nearly as often as I did before. Combine fasting with meditation and prayer, and it can lead to profound psychological improvements in your life.
7 – Journal
People have been keeping journals for well over 2000 years. There are tons of cognitive benefits to writing in a journal, but the biggest may be anxiety reduction. It doesn’t even matter what you write. I know a lot of experts and highly successful people who swear by the practice of journaling. It helps your moods, it can improve sleep, it can make you more introspective and grateful. It can really help with worry and anxiety.
Don’t make it complicated. Just sit down with a pen and write whatever. Start with 5 minutes if that’s all you think you have time for. To start, use whatever medium is most likely to work for you. But there are studies that show pen and paper works best. If you really can’t think of anything to write, do a web search for journaling prompts and you’ll find plenty of suggestions.
If you really want to level it up, try using a fountain pen. I’ve been using a fountain pen for a few years now, partly because I like older ways of doing things, but mostly because I’m a nerd. There’s just something about a nice notebook, a fountain pen, and a fun ink color that make the whole process more enjoyable.
9 – Meditate
I’m not talking woo-woo meditation, trying to find your chi, or sitting in the Lotus position making funny ooooom sounds. I’m talking basic mindfulness meditation coupled with deep breathing exercises. Find an app or a YouTube video. There are tons of options out there today.
This is the one that I struggle to be consistent with. Making time for meditation is hard because it feels like a waste of time. I even fall asleep a lot when I do it. But it helps. Even just 10 minutes a day can drastically improve your mood. Start with once a day and if you notice an improvement, try to make it 2 or 3 sessions a day.
10 – Take a Bath
Women, here’s your excuse. Men, I know it feels weird. You’re a grown @!$ man. You don’t take baths. Baths are for women and children. Men need to shower with heavy-duty soap that has small rocks embedded in it. Sorry guys, but not if you deal with anxiety.
I started taking baths most evenings about a year ago. I didn’t notice much improvement immediately. It felt nice and I would generally come out of the tub a bit more relaxed than when I started. But over time I found that taking a bath could lower my blood pressure as much as 10 points on both numbers. I also noticed that my anxiety would start to pick back up again if I got out of the habit for too long. Just try it. It helps. You can skip the Epsom salts and the bubbles if you want, but don’t judge me if I use them.
11 – Pray
Wait, you’re a Christian, shouldn’t this be the first item on the list? I debated starting the list with this, but I included it toward the end because it’s something that should be a part of every other item on the list. Everything we do should be infused with prayer.
Remember when I said to exercise without any additional stimulation? I use that time to pray a little and listen a lot for God’s voice. I enjoy journaling, and most of my entries are me talking to God. Meditation gives me an opportunity to clear my mind so I’m more receptive to actually hearing from God. Laying in a warm bath is a perfect opportunity to say some prayers and spend some time talking to God.
But I also want to encourage you to pray in ways you’ve never prayed before. Try some new things. Pray out loud. Kneel. Lay prostrate. Put yourself in a posture of humbleness. As my pastor often recommends, open up your hands in a posture of receiving. But above all else, be honest with God. If you’re mad at him, tell him that. If you’re scared, tell him that too. If you need to yell at him a bit, 1 Peter 5:7 tells us that’s okay, too. God can take it, and you’ll feel better for it.
12 – Create
Create More, Consume Less. Jeff Goins wrote about this in a post he released shortly after this pandemic was announced. Seth Godin has been writing about this idea recently as well. I’m going to jump on the bandwagon. I’d like to challenge you to ask a difficult question during this season. It’s one I stole from Michael Hyatt. “What does this make possible?”
This is a terrible situation. It’s easy to dwell on the bad. While many of us are in physical isolation at home, there’s also going to be the endless temptation for taking it easy. Watching some Netflix. Maybe reading some books. We lead busy lives and there’s certainly an opportunity for slowing down a bit and getting some much-needed rest.
But don’t let that be all you do right now. We have an opportunity in the midst of this trial. Let’s balance that consumption with some creation. Go heavier on the creation if you can.
If you have the privilege of working from home during this pandemic, don’t waste that opportunity. See if you can make the work you’re doing right now the best work you’ve ever done. Take advantage of that commute you’re skipping right now. Maybe you’re taking vacation days, you’re furloughed, or find yourself unemployed due to the economic impact of this catastrophe. Find ways to create anyway.
What have you always wanted to start and never have? Start that website, write that book, create that painting, take that class, learn how it would be possible to start that business. You don’t have to invest any money to check out a book from the library or watch a free online course from Harvard or MIT. You can start that book using Google Docs. There are plenty of free options for trying out blogging. Just pick something and act.
Final Thoughts
This is a serious illness that has impacted the entire world. I never imagined we would see something like this in my lifetime. If it’s inspiring anxiety in you the way that it is in me, then try some of these suggestions. They’ll help. And if these tips don’t help enough, then reach out to a counselor or a doctor.
There’s never a bad time to get professional help with your mental health. You might need some counseling or some medication, and there’s nothing wrong with that. I’ve spent some time working with a pastor at my church, and I’ll probably seek out counseling again soon. I’ve recently started taking medication to help me get through this season. There’s probably never going to be a more justified time than now to ask for help. Go get the help you need.
Remember, this is for now, not forever. Remember to hope. We’ll get through this. It likely won’t be pretty, and it certainly won’t be easy, but we will get through it. Using some or all of the suggestions above can help us get through it well.
If you’re a Christian, then you already know how the story will eventually end. If you’re not a Christian, then maybe this Easter season is the time you should consider becoming one. I believe that Jesus speaks to all of us at different times and in different ways. Hopefully, he’s been using this pandemic to speak to you in new and meaningful ways. If he’s been speaking to you, then take that next step. Don’t ever let fear or doubt stop you from following Jesus when you feel the nudge. Even his closest disciples doubted at times, but they still chose to follow.
