3 Simple Ways to Reduce Anxiety and Find Calm in Your Daily Life
Anxiety is something so many of us carry every day, and it can feel overwhelming, sometimes showing up as racing thoughts, restlessness, or even physical symptoms (upset stomach, chest pains, and headaches, just to name a few). While there’s no one-size-fits-all answer to managing anxiety, there are small, intentional practices we can incorporate into our routines to find calm and regain a sense of control. Here, I’ll share three simple strategies to help you ground yourself and gently ease anxiety as it arises.
1. Practice the “5-4-3-2-1 Grounding Technique”
When anxiety hits, our thoughts often speed up and pull us out of the present moment. Grounding yourself using the five senses is a quick way to re-center. The 5-4-3-2-1 technique is a favorite among therapists for good reason—it’s easy to remember and incredibly effective.
How it Works: Find five things you can see, four things you can touch, three things you can hear, two things you can smell, and one thing you can taste. Focus on each sense individually, with intention and purpose.
Why it Helps: This technique brings you back to the present, calming your body’s stress response and helping you feel more connected and less overwhelmed.
Try this next time you feel anxiety creeping in. It’s also helpful to try to make this a daily practice, as grounding exercises because we would like this to become a natural response to stress over time.
2. Schedule “Worry Time”
It may sound counterintuitive, but giving yourself permission to worry—within set boundaries—can prevent anxiety from taking over the rest of your day. Choose a specific time each day, perhaps 10-15 minutes in the late afternoon, as your designated “worry time.”
How it Works: During this time, write down any worries that come up without judgment. You can also keep a running list during the day… when a worry pops up, put it on the “Worry List” to think about during your scheduled “Worry Time”. During “Worry Time” it can also be helpful to look at your list and identify things that are productive and unproductive. Is there anything that you can do to solve this problem? Is the problem in your control? At the end of the scheduled time, close the notebook and mentally “set aside” your worries until the next day.
Why it Helps: Scheduling worry time helps you contain your worries instead of letting them leak into every moment. It also encourages you to focus on what you can control.
3. Cultivate Daily Gratitude
It’s easy to overlook the small positives when we’re feeling anxious. Practicing gratitude—intentionally taking time to notice what’s good—can create powerful shifts in your mindset and provide moments of calm.
How it Works: Each morning or evening, write down three things you’re grateful for. These could be anything from a kind gesture to a warm cup of tea. Focus on the feelings these moments bring up.
Why it Helps: Shifting attention to gratitude gently trains your brain to recognize positive things. Studies show that gratitude can reduce stress, improve sleep, and increase overall feelings of well-being.
Anxiety is part of the human experience, but it doesn’t have to run our lives.
Small, mindful practices like grounding exercises, worry time, and gratitude can add up over time, helping you build resilience and find calm even in the midst of anxiety. Start with one practice that resonates with you and see how it feels—these small changes can make a big difference.
If you’re interested in diving deeper or need support with anxiety, don’t hesitate to reach out. Healing is a journey, and you don’t have to do it alone. You can start by joining this month’s Webinar for Navigating Holiday Stress. Click here for more information.
