Work anxiety can really affect your quality of life and leave you feeling exhausted as soon as you start your shift. Having at least 8 ideas for decreasing work anxiety out of several can be a lot helpful than having none at all.

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Everyone has experienced anxiety at some point in their life. Whether it is mild or severe – it can still affect a person’s ability to work. Anxiety is basically unwanted nervousness followed by a feeling of worry. And if your anxiety is severe, then these symptoms can get a bit more intense if you know what I mean!

In a workplace, the environment can be either fast or slow, or even in between. Regardless, it can be a bit of a struggle trying to cope with anxiety while you are in a working environment.

8 Ideas to knock out anxiety at work:

1. Use essential oils. Essential oils can have a major relaxing effect on a person’s body. There have even been different studies on aromatherapy that actually calms the nervous system. Cool right? I mean, who knew oil could have so much power? I am sort of obsessed with them.

Essential oils can be used in several different ways such as baths, chest rubs, diffusers, direct application, inhalation, etc. There’s an option literally for whatever floats your boat. Essential oils and their supplies can be a bit pricey but you can’t really put a price on reducing anxiety.

2. Write it out. All of the thoughts that are inside of your head, write them down on a sheet of paper, journal, diary, etc. Writing helps you express yourself, except it is not verbal. Writing in a journal can simply help you understand your thoughts and emotions more clearly which could help improve your mental health. You are then able to analyze and process them.

3. Avoid triangles. Many workplaces are built on gossiping about coworkers or venting about others. Don’t get me wrong, I know that entertainment is needed at some point during the workday but all that does is build up tension and stress. It’s unhealthy and no one wants to work in that type of environment.

4. Say a prayer. Depending on your view of God, prayer can really have a positive effect on your health. It can bring peace to your heart in a matter of minutes – at least in my experience. Also, if you haven’t tried bible journaling, I strongly suggest you try it out. I recently started doing this and fell in love. I think it is a great way to help decrease anxiety.

5. Tune people out. Depending on your job, if someone is triggering your anxiety or just annoying you. Tune them out. Act like they are not even there – or as I like to say, put yourself in a bubble and stay inside of it. I do this all the time and it is great for when you just don’t want to be bothered.

6. Positive Thinking. I suggest writing affirmations down on a piece of paper or you can just quietly say them to yourself. The goal is to make yourself feel good about yourself and decrease anxiety and stress. Positive thinking will also help with overcoming negative self-talk and thoughts. With anxiety, you may sabotage yourself all day and night for more than likely unnecessary reasons. It just happens. Being at work, you may already have stress from that so beating yourself up over something will only make things worse. If that happens, then soon it will affect your mood and emotions.

7. Take Breaks. Don’t overwork yourself. Go outside and walk around and breathe in some fresh air. Clear your mind while you’re at it and focus on positive thoughts. I don’t think people realize how important breaks are when it comes to working on the job. Whether you work 8-hour shifts or 12-hour shifts, have a mental illness or not, your body itself needs a break. Sure, we are all capable of working straight through to some degree, but it is not healthy. Just like our bodies need sleep; our bodies also need breaks. Give yourself some time to relax. Don’t overdo it.

8. Breathing Techniques. My favorite technique is box-breathing. Box breathing is slow deep breaths that force your body to take control and calm down. When you feel your anxiety starting to trigger, take a moment to go through a couple of breathing techniques. This will definitely help you feel more relaxed than before. Like I stated previously, taking breaks can help decrease anxiety in the workplace. While taking a break, you can practice your breathing standing or sitting. If you work at a desk, you can even practice this technique there if you feel comfortable doing so. Click here to try it out.

Learn how to properly manage anxiety

Anxiety can most definitely leave us questioned.. but we don’t need to let it take over us completely. That is easier said than done but it is totally worth a try! When in a work environment, it is important to focus on your job tasks only but sometimes anxiety can interfere. It can easily affect your routine at work which would obviously become a problem for not only you but your co-workers as well. So why not try as many things as possible to decrease your anxiety and to just maintain your mental health all together in the workplace?

Related: How to maintain a good mental health in the workplace

A clear mind is a happy mind, and I want that for you.

Some of these ideas work better for others and vice versa but I promise it doesn’t hurt to try. You never know, you could find something that actually helps you get through the workday without any complications. These tips are not guaranteed to make your anxiety go completely away during work but it will definitely help minimize it. Keeping a healthy state of mind in the workplace is the goal to strive for!

references: https://www.maimonidesem.org/blog/box-breathing-technique-nbspnbsp