Thursday 12 June 2014

Our top tips to relieve anxiety


Avoid caffeine containing drinks such as coffee, energy drinks, and black tea.
Drink chamomile tea its high in magnesium and calcium, which help to relax you, make it strong with two tea bags and leave to steep for 5-10 minutes. A nice addition is 4 drops of the Bach Flower Rescue Remedy.
Avoid alcohol; alcohol has been linked to anxiety states because it raises lactate levels which in turn can increase the production of the neurotransmitter noradrenaline that in excess can cause anxiety.
Drink ginger tea and use ginger as a spice in cooking. This reduces the release of noradrenaline lessening anxiety. Also, drinking soda water increases the body’s carbon dioxide which can also have this effect.
Avoid refined and process food and bad fats such as trans fats found in processed foods.
Eat a wholefood diet full of whole grains, vegetables, seeds, nuts, beans, good quality oils (extra virgin olive oil) and free range / organic meats.
Eat foods high in the amino acids phenylanlanine/tyrosine/tryptophan, which support beneficial brain chemistry. These include beef, chicken, soy beans, fish, eggs, cottage cheese, baked beans, almonds and milk.
Avoid smoking, recreational drugs and talk to your doctor about evaluating any pharmaceutical medication you are taking, e.g. steroids can exacerbate anxiety.

Breathe to relieve
Here is an anxiety relieving exercise:-
- Sit with your arms held loosely at your sides and with hands resting limply in your lap. Both feet should be flat on the floor. Now breathe in through your nose for the count of five. Hold your breath for three counts. And then slowly breathe out for the count of seven. Repeat three times.
 If you become anxious – bring your attention to your breath paying particular attention to your exhale making it long and even. Another trick to bring yourself out of a panic is to look around you and name things in your environment – i.e. chair, picture etc – this brings you out of your head and hopefully out of the immediate anxiety state.



Get moving – exercise decreases anxiety symptoms
It has been shown that exercise has the power to modulate anxiety sensitivity, which is the fear of anxiety-related symptoms and is a major predictor of panic attacks. The study found that both low and high intensity exercise decreased general anxiety symptoms whilst high intensity exercise only reduced fear of anxiety-related symptoms. Also, exercise has been shown to prevent the occurrence of panic attacks.

A few things to consider:
·      Physical therapies – acupuncture helps to increase your opioid levels (decreased opioid levels can contribute to anxiety). Massage would also be a great way for you to relax.
·      Counselling – talk it through, chat to your doctor to see if you are right for the mental health care plan, where sessions can be had with a psychologist under Medicare.
·      Bath in Epsom salts – use 1 kilo in a bath, drop some lavender in and soak for 30 minutes with your shoulders and neck under water.
·      Lavender steam showers – drop 3-4 drops in your shower – make it nice and hot and put your foot over the plug hole for a minute whilst the lavender gets gives off its relaxing aromatherapy.
·      Meditation – download a meditation app / listen to it on your commute, before you sleep, in your lunch break.
·      Get enough sleep – give yourself enough winding down time before bed – turn off the t.v, make yourself a cup of chamomile, have a hot bath/ shower, meditate etc, avoid stimulants such containing caffeine and alcohol.



Last, but not least – nutritional and herbal medicine.

A Sydney, Health & Fertility we are truly blessed to have a dispensary of lovely calm giving herbs including lemon balm, oats, damiana, St. John’s wort, lavender, vervain to name but a few, these work wonders to calm and soothe. Nutritional medicine is also fantastic; magnesium for an anxious person at the right dose is life changing. 

If you want to know more about how we could help, book an appointment with us and let us tailor make a herbal remedy that would suit you.