Managing Stress and Anxiety..
In this crazy pandemic, maintaining our physical health, and managing increased stress and anxiety is so important. Here are some tips to help you cope with increased stress and anxiety.
- Exercise releases positive endorphins in your body that help you mentally feel better. Get outside and go on a walk/run if you are able. Try some yoga or pilates. These practices also teach breathing techniques that are so important as well.
- Healthy Diet is also very important, decrease sugars/caffeine as these substances can increase anxiety. Avoid tobacco/alcohol as these can also increase anxiety. THC containing cannibis products have been shown to increase anxiety in many people and should be avoided. This is such a good time to research healthy recipes, and try them out while we are spending a lot of our time at home.
- Adequate sleep is so important in helping reduce stress and anxiety. Trying to get at least 7-8 hours at night is optimal. There are various over-the-counter options if you are struggling with getting to sleep/staying asleep. Melatonin gummies (5-10 mg) can be very helpful for sleep maintenance.
- Counseling is a very helpful tool if feeling too anxious or overwhelmed. Contact your insurance company and get a list of in-network providers, and reach out to start initiating a relationship with a counselor/therapist.
- Control what you can control. It can be very helpful to realize that we cannot control everything that is going on in the world, but we can control our response to it. Utilize tools such as FaceTime or Zoom to touch base with friends/family.
If the above tips/tricks are not helping to decrease your anxiety/stress levels, please contact us, as we are dedicated to helping you feel your best.
Author
Lainey Rosenberg, APNP
Lainey is a Nurse Practitioner at Phases for Women and Physicians for Women, Madison, WI
