Managing Anxiety - Practical Tips for Men
Date: Friday 18 Mar 2022
Feeling anxious is pretty common. Fortunately, there are several ways to manage it and get back on track. Here are some tips for men to manage anxiety.
Medically reviewed by Dr John Ogrodniczuk, PhD – Written by Caroline Sutton and the HeadsUpGuys Team.
"Feeling anxious is pretty common. Fortunately, there are several ways to manage it and get back on track."
Anxiety is a common experience for many men, especially when a lot is going on in life. To some extent, anxiety can be useful as it cues us to important things in our lives that need attention. However, when anxiety becomes excessive and lasts a long time, it reflects a more serious issue and shouldn't be ignored.
Anxiety can affect guys in different ways:
- Feeling restless or tense, out of control, irritable, or angry
- Rapid heart rate, shortness of breath, trembling/shaking, or body aches
- More intense symptoms can also include panic attacks – episodes of feeling scared, nauseous, and struggling to breathe – which guys often don't recognise as anxiety right away
- Oftentimes, guys deal with anxiety by avoiding certain activities, having a short temper or 'blowing up' more often, or using substances like alcohol or marijuana
While a lot of guys tend to feel alone in their experience of anxiety, it's actually quite common. Approximately 30% of adults will have anxiety during their lifetime.
Anxiety can interfere with your daily life activities, work performance, career, academics, and personal relationships, so it's really important to manage anxiety and get support.
Here are 10 practical ways to manage anxiety:
1. Shift your focus
If you're feeling overwhelmed by anxiety, try switching gears and focusing on doing something you enjoy. It could be going for a run or working out, preparing a nice (and healthy) meal, spending time in nature, listening to music, watching a funny movie, playing a game… whatever helps get your mind off things.
2. Get physical
Physical activity can be a great way to work off the tense feelings that come with anxiety. Endorphins released during exercise can help you feel more relaxed and clear-headed.
Make sure to start slow and be consistent if physical activity is not already part of your routine. It's important to listen to what your body needs to prevent injury – it will adjust and get stronger over time. If all you have the energy for is a 5-minute walk, start there.
3. Limit caffeine and other substances (like alcohol and marijuana) that can make things worse.
Caffeine increases your heart rate and can make anxiety worse. If you love the taste of coffee, try drinking decaf instead.
Guys often use alcohol to unwind and relax, but alcohol can increase anxiety within a few hours of consumption and make existing anxiety issues worse. Guys who regularly use alcohol to ease their anxiety are more likely to struggle with alcohol abuse and dependency, which can result in many serious health issues.
Some substances, like marijuana, might make you feel more relaxed in the short term, but are not a long-term fix, and will usually make things worse. Some guys who use marijuana products high in CBD feel that it improves their anxiety symptoms temporarily (whereas marijuana products high in THC may make symptoms worse). Still, long-term use is not well studied, and heavy use can lead to dependence. Especially among young and frequent users, marijuana products are associated with an increased risk of developing psychosis.
It's important not to mask your anxiety with the temporary relief that alcohol and other substances may provide. Instead, getting to the bottom of the issue will help you feel better in the long run.
4. Practice deep breathing
A simple way to help your body relax, even when your mind and heart are racing, is to focus on your breath. Slow, deep breathing activates the part of your nervous system that shuts down the fight-or-flight response. You can do this anytime, anywhere.
Breathe deeply into your stomach and chest for 4 seconds, hold for 4 seconds, breathe out for 4 seconds, and hold for 4 seconds. This technique is called 'box breathing', and will help to lower your heart rate and give you a moment to collect your thoughts.
5. Practice being mindful
There are many ways to practice mindfulness.
When you're feeling anxious, take a breath, make a mental note of what's causing it, then put it aside and get back to your day. This way, you're acknowledging your stresses, rather than ignoring them, which can lead to burnout and more anxiety. Try thinking, "Okay, I'm stressed about work, I've set aside time to think about that later", or "I've already thought about that enough for now, I'll move on with my day".
Sometimes it helps to visualise putting your thoughts in a box, closing the lid, and moving them off to the side to reflect on later.
Mindfulness meditation can be great for slowing down and allowing time to collect yourself, especially if you're struggling to contain emotions like frustration and anger. It can also help you get more in tune with how you feel and where you carry stress in your body.
When you feel calmer, try reflecting on what was causing your anxiety. Journaling can be a good way to keep track of and identify your sources of anxiety.
6. Focus on what you can change, and strengthen your mindset with gratitude
Sometimes anxiety comes from worrying about things that haven't happened yet or might never happen. It's important to put things in perspective and remember that, even though unpredictable things happen in life, you can always choose how you react to and face challenges.
Practice using your anxiety as a source of insight that can help you identify and let go of fears. Check in with friends to see if the amount of anxiety you are dealing with is in proportion to the situation you are facing – oftentimes it won't be. It helps to practice shifting your mindset to gratitude for what you have, rather than getting caught up in anxious thoughts about how things could go wrong.
For example, if you are worried about losing your job, talk to a friend or co-worker to see what they think. If there are areas where you can improve, take steps to do so. If your worries aren't really in line with what others are seeing, try shifting your thoughts to gratitude for the job you have.
7. Talk about your difficulties with someone you trust
This could be a family member, a close friend, or a mentor. Whatever is causing your anxiety, it's important to talk about it with someone – bottling things up does not work. Sometimes just talking about things releases some of the pent-up stress that's underlying anxiety.
Often, when we're anxious, things can get blown out of proportion as we get stuck in negative thought loops. Talking with a friend can give you an outside perspective and a better sense of what might be going on and how to manage it.
8. Get to the bottom of it
It's great to add tools to help you manage stress in the moment, but it's also important to address the underlying issues. Make time to check in with yourself and examine your stressors and symptoms.
Talk about it with someone you trust, like a close friend or therapist.
9. Start therapy
Psychotherapy, or talk therapy, is a very effective way to treat anxiety. Therapists come in many forms, such as psychologists, counsellors, and clinical social workers, each with different training backgrounds, specialisations, and therapeutic approaches. It may take a few tries to find a therapist who is a good fit for you (many therapists have free consultations), but the effort is worth it. Even for guys who were reluctant to try therapy, afterwards they often say it's the best thing they've ever done for themselves.
10. Consult your doc
If your anxiety is overwhelming, it's a good idea to also make an appointment with your doctor to let them know what's going on. They may be able to provide more resources for support near you, prescribe medications that can help with your anxiety, or refer you to a psychiatrist.
Content source: https://headsupguys.org/managing-anxiety-practical-tips-men/