Calming Your Mind: How To Worry Less.
Take a deep breath in. Hold it for a second, then sigh as you exhale it out. Repeat this breathing exercise 5-10 times and then try to notice if you feel any different than when you began.
Breathing exercises are one way to relax and bring calm into your mind and body. In an ever changing, fast-paced world, it is often difficult to find moments of calm. In this article, we talk about how worrying affects both our body and mind and how to slow down enough to be able to create your own sense of calm in a chaotic world.
Mind/Body Connection
When you feel worried, do you ever experience physical reactions as well? That’s not uncommon. Our thoughts, feelings, and emotions can positively or negatively affect our biological functioning. But it’s important to remember that the impact of body and mind goes both ways and that our physical body (what we eat, how much we exercise, how we are sitting etc) can also impact our mental state.
This results in a complex interrelationship between our minds and bodies. The mind/body connection is one reason it is so important to find ways to feel calm and balanced in our day to day life.
How Worry Affects Wellness
Have you ever heard the phrase, “worrying is like a rocking chair, it gives you something to do, but it gets you nowhere”? Worrying not only gets you nowhere, but has more serious physical and mental disadvantages. While a healthy hint of worry can be constructive or motivating, it can easily become overwhelming, drain energy, and instill fear. Some of the negative side effects of stress and worry that The American Institute of Stress found include:
- Disrupted Sleep
- Headaches
- Difficulty Concentrating
- Heartburn or Nausea
- Muscle Tension
- Exhaustion
- Irritability
When worrying begins to feel like it’s persistent and uncontrollable, it may be time to take notice and make changes to your life. It is never too late to change your approach and take steps towards achieving a calmer mind, body, and lifestyle.
Calming your Mind & How to Worry Less
When worry finds its way into our lives, we often dismiss it and just keep pushing through. We know how to be stressed, but do we know how to be calm?
Eliminating worry from your life completely is most likely impossible (unless you are a monk living in the woods, which if that’s you, feel free to stop reading) but there are ways to find balance and mindfulness to create relaxation and effectively lessen worry. Here are a few actionable strategies to try next time you need to calm down:
Breathing
Breath focus is a very common component of many techniques that evoke a relaxation response (like yoga, meditation, or breathwork). When you are angry or worried, you tend to take quick, shallow breaths. Deep breathing is a powerful way to reduce stress levels and send the message to your brain: SLOW DOWN! Check out ten breathing exercises provided by Healthline. Inhale calm, exhale worry.
Mindfulness
Mindfulness is being profoundly conscious of your surroundings, observing things exactly as they are. Mindfulness is a powerful tool that can help you understand, tolerate, and deal with your emotions in a healthy way. It helps alter your habitual responses by allowing you to pause and choose how to act from a place of calm instead of from a place of worry.
Self-talk
So much of our worry is made up of stories we create in our heads instead of reality. Negative self-talk can lead us into a downward spiral of worry. Talking to yourself in a positive way can be helpful and encouraging, bolstering confidence and calming stressors. Positive self-talk can have huge impacts on wellbeing and lead you closer to a calm mind.
Movement
Remember the mind/body connection? Even just five minutes of exercise (a brisk walk counts) can bring more calm to your mind and body. It releases endorphins throughout your body, which are chemicals that make you feel good and can improve mood and focus. If cardio isn't in the cards, yoga or stretching are powerful calming and centering tools as well.
Creativity
Activities like painting, pottery, reading, cooking, or scrapbooking are a great escape for an overwhelmed mind. Repetitive action, like filling in a coloring book, is a great way to redirect your thoughts and tune out the buzz of worry in your head. It’s not about the result, but instead the soothing process. Let that inner child play!
Self-care
Your self-care journey is a totally unique formula that is individual to you. Taking a solo trip, having a personal spa day or eating chocolate might be a part of your self-care ritual. Our Decadent CBD Chocolates are a wonderful pick me up if you are going the chocolate route! Lean in to whatever self-care rituals feel best and lead to a more relaxed state. If you need a mind/body recharge, check out some of our ideas here.
CBD Can Help
Some days are harder than others, and occasionally we need a little help to get back to our balanced and relaxed state. CBD interacts with our endocannabinoid system in a way that helps restore balance to your mind and body when things get out of whack. Introducing a CBD supplement to your daily routine like our CBD oil tincture or our CBD gummies can help you find your balance when you need it most.
On the Path to Calm
Cultivating calm doesn't mean we will be happy all the time. In fact, being mindful and present means being aware of the worry that invades us. Whatever your approach, know that you're not alone. We all worry sometimes, what’s important is not to let that worry overtake us. We got this!
Have any advice for calming the mind? We love to chat! Leave a question or comment below, or reach out to us directly at support@venacbd.com.
