New Year, new me. Anxiety can be exhausting and make your life ten times harder. Sometimes, anxiety stops you from living your life to the fullest. But with the new year here, it is time for a change, and a time for a new you, and here are a few things you can do to beat anxiety in 2016.
1. Write/paint/or play an instrument. Letting out your feelings through art can be beneficial. It is very relaxing and it’ll calm you down while possibly creating some of your best works ever.
2. Meditation. Just like deep breathing it allows you to come back to reality,. Meditating allows you to become one with your mind and soul and live a peaceful life. There are many apps or websites that you can use. My favorites are calm.com and thequietplace.com.
3. Deep Breathing. Deep breathing is one of the best forms of meditation. It will allow you to come back to reality and prevent you from doing something irrational
4. Exercise. Exercising every day can help prevent anxiety attacks. It is a healthy method of taking control of your life. Exercising releases endorphins which are the ‘happy pills’ your body produces. It might be hard to start working out, but if you keep working towards it, you won’t regret it in the long run!
5. Take a hot shower or a bubble bath. Pamper yourself. Long hot showers or bubble baths can be absolutely relaxing. It’s just you and the water. Sometimes taking a bath can be the best gift to yourself , especially with all the different bath bombs from Lush.
6. Drink Tea. Â Drinking tea has so many benefits. It is a calming, healthy way of handling anxiety. It can help reduce stress and produce serenity. The best teas to drink are chamomile to reduce nausea and it has calming properties, passion flower also has a calming atmosphere with muscle relaxants, green tea for mental alertness, and lemon balm reduces anxiety.
7. Create a to-do list. Anxiety can be caused by the overbearing amount of work that needs to be done, or even the thought of the future. It is best to just take time out of your day to create a list of everything that needs to be done which will help reduce procrastination which will then reduce stress.
8. Take a break. No matter what you do, you are the best you that you can be. Life can be exhausting, sometimes you need to  put a pause on working hard to watch your favorite movie, or an entire series on Netflix. Sometimes you have to put yourself first.
9. Have sex. sex can help reduce stress, rewarding the trigger center of the brain. Having sex can be great and stimulating. It is pleasurable for you and your partner. Sex can be rewarding for both you and your SO.
10. Be your own best friend. You might be the only one around, but giving yourself a pep talk might just bring you back to reality. You are allowed to love yourself and compliment yourself. It is completely normal to take care of yourself and put yourself first.
11. Listen to your favorite music. Music is life. Without it in my life I have no idea where I would be. It allows you to shut out the world, especially on the bad days.
12. Indulge yourself in nature. Nature is also one the best gifts given to humans. The sounds and sights of nature is absolutely beautiful. Get lost in the woods, on top of the mountain, having the entire world in front of you is the most rewarding part about this beautiful life we get to live.
13. Play with puppies. Who doesn’t love puppies, or animals in general? Puppies have this strong energy that you can constantly feed on. They will love you unconditionally and be your best friend. Puppies are just meant to be in our lives.
14. Read a book. Reading a book can be so enriching and relaxing. You can get lost in an entirely different world. It is also a form a meditation for the mind, a way for the world to pass by, and it’s a time where you are invested in something you actually care about.Â
As the new year progresses the only thing that matters is your mental health. With these tips, you will be able to limit  and control your anxiety and be the best you that you can be. Anxiety is rough on everyone, but you aren’t alone.
Featured image via Sr. Ileandro on Pexels
