Our lifestyle choices will have a direct bearing on the levels of stress and anxiety that we experience. There are some anxiety-triggers that happen in our lives over which we have no control, but I want to discuss today how our lifestyle choices impact our levels of anxiety.
Arts and Crafts
Involving yourself in some creative activity – making music, pottery, painting, photography … or any of the creative arts and crafts will calm levels of anxiety. Engaging the creative part of the brain focuses attention away from your stress bucket and allows your subconscious to process some of that stress, outside of your consciousness.
Exercise
We all know that exercise is good at keeping our bodies in good shape, but it also helps keep our minds well balanced. Our ancestors spent a lot more time moving their bodies, and so our brains are built to expect the chemicals that come with a lot of movement. When we lead a sedentary life, the brain chemistry suffers.
Healthy Diet
The way your gut works has a direct impact on the levels of stress and anxiety that you suffer from. Choosing a diet that contains a wide variety of plants and reduces the amount of ultra-processed foods seems to be the way to go.
A Good Night’s Sleep
Sleep is the time that our brain gets to process all that stress we are under, so getting a good night’s sleep will diminish the content of that stress bucket that we all carry with us. It largely happens when we are dreaming – our memories of stressful events and anticipated stresses that might happen in the future are consolidated. Some are thrown out and we will never remember them again; others are simply calmed down a bit.
And the Proof?
This is not simply wishful thinking. There is scientific evidence that supports these lifestyle choices and links them to a change in anxiety levels (see references below).
And Finally …
If you find difficulty controlling your levels of anxiety and would like some help, please Contact Me. I use hypnotherapy to help my clients get back in control of their lives. I work out of my clinic in Fleet, Hampshire, as well as online.
References
Pathways linking organ and brain health, and impacts to mental health revealed
https://mdhs.unimelb.edu.au/news-and-events/pathways-linking-organ-and-brain-health,-and-impacts-to-mental-health-revealed/_recache
Arts and crafts boost mental wellbeing – study
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cx2yr0d3m1no
Photo courtesy of Mental Health Foundation / Steve Somerset