There are always things that scare us in life. It’s just a fact. Being scared isn’t a problem until it is. Anxiety issues can creep into your life without your knowledge and start to take control. If you suffer from panic attacks, nerves, or fears that change how you interact with the world, it’s time to make a change. You can overcome your anxiety issues if you have the right tools. There are seven steps.

1. Recognize Signs of Anxiety

The first step to stopping your anxiety issues is to recognize when it happens. Telltale signs of panic include a racing heart, flushing face, or mental confusion. If you are shouting, saying unreasonable things, or feeling like you need to run away, those are signs that panic has you in its grip.

2. Breathe Deeply

Once you recognize that you’re in the middle of a panic attack, the first step is to take a few deep breaths and try to get it under control. Deep breathing helps to calm your body and burn off the adrenaline that spawns when you panic. Slow down, count to ten, and focus on breathing in and out deeply.

3. Pause

As you’re breathing deeply, take a moment to pause and step back from life. Brew a cup of Happy Tea and while you’re enjoying it, really think about what is stressing you out. Analyze it and see if it deserves your anxiety or if you can let it go.

4. Take Responsibility

Unless you’re in immediate or direct danger, take a moment to take a look at what is upsetting you. Analyze the situation and see if what are causing your anxiety issues are really as big of a deal as they seem. Take control of your anxiety and try to think your way around it.

5. Check the Facts

Sometimes our anxiety can be caused by situations or information that isn’t true. Whenever you feel panic start to creep in, ask, “Does the source I’m listening to have something to gain by making me panic?” or “Is there a real or immediate threat?” When you can take a step back and look at the situation objectively, you can halt your anxiety issues in their tracks.

6. Take Action

Controlling your fear requires you to take action and make changes. If you’re anxious about your health, set a plan in action that will help you work out more often, eat healthier, or head into the doctors more often. Taking action can help you control your anxiety, so it doesn’t control you.

7. Change Your Outlook

Anxiety causes you to look at all the negatives of any situation, and when you focus on everything that can go wrong, you forget about everything that is right. As soon as stress and worry try to overwhelm, change what you’re looking at. Think of all the possible great outcomes that can change your life for the better and see yourself as successful.

Whenever you’re in a scary or upsetting situation, teach yourself how not to panic and to handle the problem efficiently with the steps above. You can learn to control your anxiety issues so that they don’t control you.

Image via Pinterest