Anxiety has been the cause of great unhappiness and personal despair for millions of sufferers across the globe. The important thing to realize, however, is that by acquiring thorough knowledge of the subject and potential treatments, it is possible to emerge from the darkness and conquer anxiety permanently. Use the advice in this piece, and start changing things for the better.

Avoid leaning on drugs or alcohol to treat your anxiety, as this will only lead to other problems. Anxiety should be treated professionally, or dealt with in a manner conducive to your well being. In addition, relying on substances to get over anxiety will cause you to become addicted and even worsen your anxiety.

Proper breathing is essential to reducing sudden feelings of anxiety. Using a count to control your breathing can be an effective way to reduce anxious feelings. Pick a count, such as 3 in, and 3 out. Repeat this pattern, until the feelings of anxiety have resolved, and passed.

Do not feel embarrassed or ashamed to seek professional help if your anxiety has become something that you cannot effectively deal with on your own. It will help you to talk to a doctor and let those feelings out. They will then, be able to prescribe you something that can help you, if that is what is needed.

Learn to exaggerate your fears. This may sound crazy, but it has been proven to work. If you are afraid you will trip when walking down the stairs at an event, imagine yourself not only tripping, but rolling all the way down the staircase and taking other people down with you. Make it a funny, extreme mental picture, and you will feel your anxiety melt away quickly.

It may seem like alcohol helps with anxiety, but it really is the opposite. Even though when you have a few drinks you anxiety seems to vanish, when you become dependent on it you actually create more anxiety. This is because you have to find ways to get more, and eventually become more sick than you were.

Ensure that you have someone in your life that will talk you through your anxiety and worries. There is nothing more important to an anxiety sufferer than a good support system. Talking about what is causing your stress can help your chronic anxiety, compared to keeping it inside.

Always keep your promises to yourself, as well as, to others. Anxiety can come on from feelings of inadequacy because you make promises to yourself or others that you fear you cannot live up to. If you promise yourself a vacation, for instance, do not let fear and doubt about going, cause you to break another promise to yourself. This will only lead to more anxiety.

Learn how to meditate. There are many different ways to meditate, and they all have the effect of releasing your mind from anxious thoughts. Meditation is not something that you ever conquer, so do not worry about doing it right. An easy way to practice meditation is to light a candle and gently gaze at the flame for 10 minutes. Sit quietly, and just let your thoughts pass through your mind without stopping them.

Reward yourself, if you do things that have a positive impact on your life, in your work or someone else’s life. Giving yourself the proper acknowledgement for minor accomplishments will lead to greater success in your life. When you begin to see the positives about yourself, you begin to diminish the negatives.

If you have a problem trying to relax, in order to release all of your anxiety, you should consider aromatherapy. There are several herbs and flowers that can ease moods, once the aromas are inhaled. Essential oils containing peppermint, bay, anise, and thyme, are a few examples of the scents that you may find effective.

If you suffer from anxiety frequently, try exercising. Regularly exercising helps to keep your mind and body fit. As a result, your anxieties can be kept at bay. Try walking, swimming, aerobics or some other type of sport. You will be surprised by how much exercising can help minimize your anxiety.

Take more Vitamin C. Did you know that humans are the only ones that can not make their own Vitamin C? In contrast, when many animals are under stress, their bodies produce large quantities of Vitamin C. So, if you are under a lot of stress or experiencing high anxiety, take a supplement that is high in Vitamin C to help.

Learning how to deal with stress is the key to reducing anxiety. Many people experience something known as floating anxiety because they are unaware of where the stress is actually coming from. This can be dealt with by finding the source of stress through professional therapy or other similar methods.

Have you ever enjoyed listening to music and singing out loud? If you suffer from an anxiety attack, try playing your absolute favorite music and singing it as loud as you can. This is very helpful, and it will put a smile on your face. Try this next time during an anxiety attack.

When you are starting to let anxiety get on top of you, use visual anchors. This means when you are feeling anxiety creep in to your thoughts look up to the clouds, or try to find some water to look at to calm you down. You could even use a stress ball.

What is causing your anxiety? Can you find a way to face these fears? Confronting and dealing with the source of your anxiety will take time and effort, but in the end it is better than avoiding it for the rest of your life. The therapeutic benefits of realizing that you can overcome anxiety will propel you into more changes in the future.

There is no doubt that anxiety has been the cause of untold misery and stress in the lives of countless individuals. Sufferers should take note, however, that all is not lost. By acquiring a better understanding of the condition and possible ways to address it, there is a high probability that anyone can reverse the tide of suffering. Apply the tips in the preceding article to your daily life, and you will have the power to achieve real results.