5 Most Proven Methods to Relieve Anxiety

Last Updated on January 28, 2025 by Chris Roberts

By: Chris Roberts, MACP, LPC-MHSP (Masters of Arts in Counseling and Psychology.  Licensed Professional Counselor with Mental Health Service Provider designation) Two Trees Counseling Nashville.  Relational Psychodynamic Therapy Certified Therapist Trainer and Consultant.

WHAT IS ANXIETY ANYWAY?

Obviously there is the technical definition and attributes of anxiety that can be found in the DSM-5TR.  You can look those up on your own.  But, in layperson’s terms, and in way too simplistic and basic language, anxiety can be defined as: an event that has a very low PROBABILITY of occurring, but our minds experience the event as urgent, highly probable, and needs to be acted on quickly.  This quick and dirty definition can be a tool you hold in your back pocket to start to measure, and therefore decide, if the thing you are worrying or stressing about is worth spending your time and energy engaging.  As a general rule, anxiety will NEVER stop spinning in your mind, because it (anxiety) will always and ultimately ask the question, “But are you SURE the event isn’t going to happen?”  It is why I use the phrase “a very low probability of occurring,” because what anxiety will always prey on is the POSSIBILITY it can occur.  And when we are stuck in an anxiety loop, are brains are tricked into thinking that if it can occur, at all, then it must be worth worrying about and giving our attention to it.

THE 5 WAYS OF DEALING WITH ANXIETY IN A HEALTHIER WAY

1. Recognize that it is, indeed, anxiety.
2. Remember that anxiety will never go away by arguing with it, or using logic against it.
3. Anxiety is a headspace, like a sports arena, and it plays by rules that are different than regular life.
4. Remembering that anxiety will go away on it’s own, if we let it.
5. Redirecting our attention to something else is the best (though least gratifying) way of dealing with anxiety.

COUNSELING IN NASHVILLE, TN IS NOT NECESSARY, BUT IS A GREAT HELP IN DEALING WITH ANXIETY.  WHY?

Counseling, or therapy, or psychotherapy, in Nashville, TN is helpful in dealing with anxiety, because you will be working with an expert who has spent (oftentimes) a majority of their life studying, working with, and helping people deal with their anxiety.  This is important, because our friends and family (and even self-help books) have the best of intentions, but their methods and advice for dealing with anxiety can often be lacking in long-term experience of watching people struggle with its exhausting effects.  A mental health therapist who has been working in the field for a decent amount of time has had real world experience in experimenting with different methods and theories, and can speak with confidence about those models that actually work with a multitude of people.

BUT OUTSIDE OF WORKING WITH AN ANXIETY THERAPIST, HERE ARE THE 5 BEST METHODS I KNOW THAT WORK WITH CLIENTS:

1. Recognize that it is, indeed, anxiety. If we don’t know we are dealing with anxiety, we will believe the alarms bells going off in our head are real, and we must do something about the anxiety immediately.  And not only that, but we must give it our full attention.
2. Remember that anxiety will never go away by arguing with it, or using logic against it. Anxiety does not exist in the realm of logic.  It exists in the realm of fear and emotional reasoning.  It goes like this, “There is this event that is scary.  Because it is scary, it is real.  Because it is real, it could happen at any point.  Because it could happen at any point, we must focus on it right now!”  There is no logic in this world that can break that logic.  It is sealed tight.  However, it twists reality.  It uses just enough of the “truth” that it misleads us into thinking we are dealing with reality.
3. Anxiety is a headspace, like a sports arena, and it plays by rules that are different than regular life. This is similar to the one above, but we must recognize that when we are in an anxiety headspace, the regular rules of life, and logic, do not take precedence here.  It’s like playing by the rules in baseball.  The rules in baseball make sense, and are logical, but only when we are on the field and playing an actual game of baseball.  Nothing else in life (generally speaking) plays by the rules of baseball.  But, this is so hard to grasp when dealing with anxiety.
4. Remembering that anxiety will go away on it’s own, if we let it. If you have read this far in this article on dealing with anxiety, then you might not have heard of this one.  This one sounds crazy!  Especially if you have dealt with anxiety for some or most of your life.  As noted above, anxiety creates its own set of rules, then tricks us into thinking its reality, then demands that we play by its rules.  But, having all of that awareness still doesn’t make anxiety go away and leave us alone.  All the studies and research and literature I have read in my 17 years of doing this work all come down to this basic reality: anxiety is a storm that catches our attention.  But just like in real life, we can’t control the weather.  All we can do is hunker down and wait for the storm to pass.  Or, if the storm isn’t a tornado or hurricane, go about our regular life as best we can until the storm passes.  And, like storms, they will always pass.
5. Redirecting our attention to something else is the best (though least gratifying) way of dealing with anxiety. If number 4 was disheartening, then number 5 is just completely unsatisfying.  However, if all we can do is wait until the storm passes (a harmless storm like heavy rain and/or thunder and lightening in this case), then the best thing we can do is try to focus on something else while the storm passes.  The more we focus on, or think about, or fret about the storm, the more it will decrease the quality of our life.  Unlike storms, in almost all cases, anxiety does not actually pose a threat and cannot harm us.  (Yeah, I know.  That sounds like the biggest lie you’ve ever heard.)

DO YOU OFFER THERAPY OR COUNSELING TO HELP WITH ANXIETY?

I have over 15 years of working with individuals and couples who are affected by anxiety.  I have an office on Music Row near downtown Nashville, close to Belmont and Vanderbilt’s campuses.  I am currently seeing clients both in-person and online.  My therapy style is collaborative, compassionate, and pushing.  I will question your current beliefs and strategies, but also hold on the notion that your current strategies for dealing with anxiety are borne out of real-life experiences.  And those experiences matter.  If you have any questions, or would like to schedule an appointment for counseling with me, you can reach out at: chris@nashvillecounselor.net, or call anytime at (615) 800-9260