2545: 6 Natural Ways to Calm Your Anxious Heart by Rachel Shanken of Mind Body Wise on Anxiety Advice

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[00:01:32] slash podcast to learn more. This is Optimal Health Daily, episode 2545.

[00:01:39] Six Natural Ways To Calm Your Anxious Heart by Rachel Schenken of mindbodywise.com.

[00:01:45] And I'm Dr. Neal, your host and narrator. Hi there and welcome to another Tuesday edition

[00:01:50] of Optimal Health Daily. This is one of many podcasts where we read to you from blogs for free

[00:01:55] so that you don't have to read them yourself, except on Fridays. That's where I usually answer

[00:02:00] your questions. Now to check out our other shows where we read articles to you,

[00:02:04] just search for Optimal Living Daily wherever you're hearing this.

[00:02:08] And with that, let's get right to it and start optimizing your life.

[00:02:17] Six Natural Ways To Calm Your Anxious Heart by Rachel Schenken of mindbodywise.com.

[00:02:25] There are natural ways to calm your anxious heart. No medication necessary.

[00:02:30] There you are, having a normal day when suddenly you start to notice your body taking over.

[00:02:36] Your heartbeat begins to quicken. Your breath gets short and tight. You feel a little tingly

[00:02:43] and fluttery inside but not in a good way. Your thoughts are racing and then you realize

[00:02:49] I'm anxious. At this point, you start going down a mental rabbit hole of inquiry, frustration,

[00:02:55] and fear. You want to know why you're anxious. Nothing specific happened to trigger you and in

[00:03:02] reality nothing is wrong but your body is telling you a different story. A story you don't

[00:03:08] want to fall into because it's so darn uncomfortable. By now, you're deep in your head

[00:03:14] about it all yet your body is continuing its alarm system. An anxious heart equals an anxious mind.

[00:03:22] In order to slow your heart and mind down so you can function at your optimal level,

[00:03:27] you need to include both your mind and body in the process. Of course, there are medicinal

[00:03:33] options that may help but if you want something that comes from the inside out and is accessible

[00:03:39] all the time, well here you go. 1. Relabel it. Labeling your anxiety as anxiety is honest and

[00:03:47] helpful initially. However, once you know what it is, consider calling your anxiety by another name

[00:03:54] that has less heaviness and upset to it. In essence, you're changing how you relate to

[00:04:00] your anxiety by relabeling it. For example, if you name your anxiety as old friend or even

[00:04:08] butterflies, it has more of a familiar less intimidating connotation thus easing its heavy

[00:04:14] grip on your heart and your whole body. 2. Observe your experience. Without judging the

[00:04:21] feeling as good or bad or I don't like this, try practicing a non-judgmental,

[00:04:29] mindful observation of your experience. By moving from being in it to observing it,

[00:04:36] you switch on a different part of your brain and you shift the experience.

[00:04:41] Use your curiosity to guide you. For example, ask yourself questions such as,

[00:04:47] what does this sensation feel like? Where do I feel it? What color is it? What shape, texture,

[00:04:55] temperature? What does it remind me of? What is my body wanting me to know?

[00:05:01] 3. Let it be what it is. Instead of trying to change it, let your anxiety be.

[00:05:08] The act of trying to push against what is is what leads to more of it because what you resist

[00:05:14] persists. It's hard not to fight against it, but if you can lean into the discomfort of the

[00:05:20] experience, it often releases its painful grip more readily.

[00:05:25] 4. Take long exhales. Longer exhales signal your body into a relaxation state versus an activated state.

[00:05:35] Play with doubling the length of your exhale, so if you inhale for four counts, try doing a slow

[00:05:41] exhale over eight counts. Even if you don't make it all the way to doubling, the slow exhales

[00:05:48] will slow your anxious heart and ultimately, your anxiety. For an extra benefit, while practicing

[00:05:54] this breathing technique, try putting your hands on your belly or your rib cage to tactically feel

[00:06:00] your breath. This helps bridge your mind and body, which helps with alleviating an anxious state of

[00:06:05] being. 5. This too shall pass. Remind yourself that no matter how horrible you feel,

[00:06:13] and no matter how fast your heart is pounding, nothing lasts forever, and this experience will pass.

[00:06:20] Often it's the fear that the anxiety will never go away that amplifies the experience.

[00:06:26] Just like most everything else in life, it's not a permanent state. I suggest you say to yourself,

[00:06:32] it will feel different later, or this too shall pass.

[00:06:37] 6. Say thank you to your body. Bring your hands to your heart and send your body a mental message

[00:06:44] of love and appreciation. Your body is trying to do its job in protecting you from perceived

[00:06:50] threats of discomfort, danger or pain. So your body may be quicker on the gas pedal than

[00:06:55] you'd like right now, but it's actually looking out for you. Instead of alienating your body

[00:07:01] by sending it messages of anger, try thanking it instead. Befriending your body during anxiety

[00:07:07] may sound bizarre, but making it an enemy is sure to backfire. It's not your fault if you feel your

[00:07:14] anxious heart beating and your body going into warning mode. It's actually an opportunity

[00:07:19] to reconnect with yourself and get present. You just listened to the post titled,

[00:07:28] Six Natural Ways to Calm Your Anxious Heart by Rachel Schenken of mindbodywise.com,

[00:07:35] and I'll be right back with my commentary. Dr. Neal here for my commentary.

[00:07:40] Dr. Kelly McGonigal, a psychologist has an amazing TED talk. In it she explains when our

[00:07:46] heart races and when we feel anxious or stressed, it's actually the body preparing us to get

[00:07:52] this perform at our best. Think about the physiology of stress and anxiety. As Rachel explained in

[00:07:59] today's article, when we experience stress and anxiety, our heart races, our blood pressure

[00:08:05] increases, we start to sweat, our muscles tense. All of this is preparing us to perform better.

[00:08:13] Let me explain why our heart rate and blood pressure go up to supply oxygen and nutrient

[00:08:19] rich blood to our muscles, our eyes and our brain. This then allows us to run faster,

[00:08:25] see more clearly and think more quickly, all of which are important for performing our best.

[00:08:32] We sweat because it's our built in air conditioning system and that allows us

[00:08:37] to run or fight longer. Even our eyebrows are built to wick away the sweat from getting

[00:08:43] into our eyes. Our muscles tense to allow us to be at our strongest. So if we can train our brain

[00:08:51] to see anxiety and stress as something that's helpful rather than harmful, we can turn these

[00:08:57] feelings into something that actually helps us be at our best. In fact, Dr. Kelly McGonigal,

[00:09:03] the psychologist I mentioned with the TED talk has found through her research that when individuals

[00:09:08] change their attitudes about stress and see it as something natural and positive,

[00:09:14] they are more likely to live longer. But she explains it so much better, so if you haven't

[00:09:19] yet, definitely check out her TED talk. That's it for today's episode. Thank you so much for

[00:09:24] listening. Thank you for sharing the show with someone. That's one of the best ways to keep

[00:09:28] the show going. I thank you in advance for doing that. I hope you have a wonderful rest of

[00:09:33] your day and I'll see you back here tomorrow where your optimal life awaits.