The Three Best Natural Treatments for Anxiety

At some level, anxiety is something everyone has experienced. However, anxiety in the medical sense is more than just some nervous feelings. Those with anxiety disorders cannot let go of their worries, no matter how irrational they are. The patient is usually aware that their worry is unlikely or nonsensical, and sometimes the anxiety may not even have a defined source.

Despite this, the feeling of anxiety is often so intense that it is paralysing, preventing sufferers from doing necessary tasks. It is often caused by a false triggering of the “fight or flight” mechanism, so those with anxiety disorders may literally feel as though their life is in danger, even when they logically know they are safe.

The condition is often treated with medications, but these do not work for everyone. Others simply hate the idea of psychiatric medication. Whatever the reason, it is important to be aware of some non-pharmaceutical treatment options.

#1 Best Natural Treatment for Anxiety: Acupuncture

While the current medical field is only beginning to research the full applications of acupuncture, anxiety is one area where there have been undeniable results. One rigorous study on mice showed marked reduction in chronic stress or anxiety levels with the use of acupuncture alone. Acupuncture treatment directly affected the levels of certain hormones within the brain, including repressing the chemical responsible for the “fight or flight” mechanism mentioned above. When people with anxiety get similar effects from their acupuncture treatments, their anxiety is much more manageable and they have fewer panic situations.

#2 Best Natural Treatment for Anxiety: Cognitive Behavioural Therapy

Anxiety is caused either by chemical imbalances or by harmful thought patterns, or a combination of the two. Cognitive behavioural therapy is a specific type of counselling where a therapist or psychologist will help the patient learn how to change harmful thought patterns and construct new thought patterns that are more helpful and healthy.

this type of therapy gives most patients a mental toolkit to turn to when their anxiety flares up. And often, with each anxious situation they successfully navigate, their panic response becomes less likely to overreact the next time a situation arises.

#3 Best Natural Treatment for Anxiety: Relaxation Techniques

This can cover a pretty broad spectrum, but generally includes obvious things such as meditation, visualisation, and yoga. Learning these techniques helps people with anxiety understand their bodies and therefore how their body is reacting to an anxiety-inducing situation. They can then calm the physiological reactions, such as a racing heartbeat or hyperventilation, and this in turn will lead to a calmer mental state. Regular meditation or physical activity like yoga also helps most people to have a less anxious outlook on life in general.

The best part of these natural solutions is that you don’t have to choose just one. They are not like medications, which can have harmful and dangerous reactions with each other, and where patients have to choose whether the side effects are worth the benefits. These natural treatments involve no chemicals and no side effects, and work perfectly well with each other. In fact, therapists often encourage other types of self-care like scheduling acupuncture sessions and teach some visualisation techniques as a way to reorder thinking.

If you find yourself frequently becoming anxious over small issues or becoming so anxious that you cannot complete small, necessary tasks in your daily life, you may have an anxiety disorder. Medication is an option, but if you’d rather avoid pharmaceuticals, there are plenty of natural treatments for anxiety. Acupuncture in particular has been shown to be effective, and is highly recommended.

If you live in York & you’d like help to ease anxiety, contact Tiziana today to schedule an acupuncture appointment.