We’ve all been there before. You wake up to feel the tender hooks of anxiety prod you awake. You don’t want to wake up, but you know you have to rise and face the day. You roll over. Your thoughts scatter as you feel the sheet rise and then settle back down gently. But just as quickly as you move to your favourite sleeping position. So to do those undesired feelings crawl under the duvet to greet you, again. 

You stretch your legs and feel the cells and sinews tingle as your body remembers your thoughts. Breathing out you take your thoughts back into that beautiful dream state. Willing yourself back to that place you fall asleep – quickly. Only to be reminded minutes later that no matter how hard you try to outthink your feelings, they always come back.

We’ve all experienced stress in one form or another. Whether it be a work incident, a disagreement with your partner or a challenging conversation with a child or sibling. You never can tell where the next trigger will come from. One minute you can be perfectly calm enjoying the moment. And then in the next, a stream of consciousness will appear disarming your peaceful state. These thoughts and words can be yours or another’s. The source of which really doesn’t matter. What matters is how you choose to manage those thoughts in recognition of how you want to feel.

In my work as a Purpose Coach & Mentor I am constantly guiding my clients to a place of greater fulfilment and ease. We are all on a unique journey in life but one common experience discerned by all my clients is how quickly they can come back to a state of inner peace and flow.

When you’re feeling stressed out and anxious and on the verge of serious chaos – tuning out from the outside world is the fastest way to regain your desired state. But we all live in the real world and what can you do when you don’t have time to book that sabbatical to India or a week at that health retreat, you need results and you need them now. 

Here are 5 simple steps to help relieve your inner anxiety and help you tune into your inner wisdom.

1. Create space in your day. 

Every day pick a time when you won’t be disturbed, turn your phone to airport mode and set a timer for 10 minutes. Take off your shoes, close your eyes and sit with your back straight in a chair. Make sure that your feet touch the floor. Now breath in for 5 secs, hold for 5 secs, and breath out for 5 secs. Keep breathing in this cycle and bring your awareness into your heart space. Once you begin to feel the shift in energy (and you will) drop your shoulders and really breath into your whole body. Visualise all the stress and tension leaving your body as little grey particles floating out from your skin, moving out towards the rays of the sun and vanishing in the light. Once you feel the tension leave you keep gently breathing and feel a beautiful sense of calm come over you as you experience this state of detached awareness. Once the timer is finished sip a glass of water and gently enter back into your day.

This is a beautiful technique that I teach all my clients. Once you become familiar with the practise you may bring in some personal affirmations or power statements. Think of these of powerful positive words that remind you of your greatness and fill you up with a feeling of great love. 

Turning inwards is the fastest way to tune out anxiety and the stresses from living a modern life. Click To Tweet

2. Spend time in nature 

Take your amazing, beautiful body outside. The sad truth is that we spend way too much time curled up in front of our screens. Never underestimate the power of a walk around the block to clear your thoughts and bring you back into a clearer state of mind. I like to walk for at least 30 minutes every morning and when I don’t I literally can feel the difference. My anxiety increases and I know that I need to find a release for that built up energy. Nature is a natural healer and the sooner you begin to spend time amongst the grains of sand or the leaves of the trees you will instantly feel better.

3. Hydrate

This is such a simple but profound strategy. In our coffee infused cultures in the western world we must all learn to adequately hydrate ourselves. 80% of the worlds population suffers from chronic dehydration which disables your ability to think clearly and concisely. Drinking too much coffee is wreaks havoc on your adrenal system and induces a state of mild anxiety. Don’t get me wrong I love my cup of black coffee made with sacred ground beans and filtered water. But I always make sure I drink at least 2 litres of water a day, sometimes more if I know I am going to have a later night. 

4. Breathe

Most of us completely disregard the power of own breath. Just taking 10 deep breaths can immediately induce a more relaxed state. Take into account the fact that most of us never take the time to deep breath and we know as a society we’ve got work to do. Each morning when you wake up, and start gently moving about your day and especially when you wake feeling anxious take 10 deep breaths and raise your arms above your head in the in breath and bring them back down to your sides in the out breath. Never underestimate the simple things we can do to alleviate stress and anxiety in our lives. 

5. Create a Morning Routine

The most successful people in the world have a specific morning routine that they follow to the letter. This year I have been experimenting with different routines and I have been staggered at the varied results I have experienced. There is never one size fits all approach, but the general consensus is that your morning routine has the power to completely transform your life. If you can start gently and start incorporating different elements in until you have found the right mix. I’ve written a post exclusively on this topic which I highly recommend reading. 

Remember we are all on our own journey this lifetime, but there are many things that we can incorporate into our days to make our lives easier, sweeter and calmer. 

Now I’d love to hear from you, — how does anxiety stop you from truly shining? And what is one thing you are going to do next time you catch it sneaking in? 

As always, thank you so much for being here. I am thrilled that we are on this journey together. Please share your thoughts in the comments below. Hundreds of people visit these posts each week and you never know when your wisdom could be exactly what another person needs to hear!

And remember, Live With Purpose!

Brooke