Relieve Your Anxiety: Three More Ways to Get It Done

Last week’s Anxiety-Schmanxiety blog post was titled, Five Ways to Relieve Anxiety You’ve Never Thought Of, and included unique suggestions like playing with Play-Doh and teaching yourself to juggle. When I originally made the list of unusual ways to relieve anxiety, the list included eight suggestions, not the five that made it to print. Leaving those three suggestions off just didn’t feel right to me, so here are three additional ways to relieve anxiety.

Relieve Your Anxiety via Distraction

1. Organize a Handful of Coins by Date

I carry a handful of coins in my pocket at all times. I am secretly worried I’ll be locked in a room that costs seven dollars to leave, but the lock is coin operated.

Dropping those coins onto a table produces a unique sound and focusing on it will take your mind off anxiety. Moving the coins back and forth from hand to hand creates an interesting sound, too, as well as unique physical sensations.

Finally, just focusing on sorting them from pennies to quarters, one at a time, in the order of their denomination, takes energy and focus. Don’t underestimate the escapism of this task. It really can relieve anxiety.

2. Do the Laundry

If you are home when anxiety strikes and you are able to move, forgo the walk or running on the treadmill and tackle household chores. For me, the laundry is almost always the last thing I choose to do. Focus on the individual steps of laundering your clothes, towels, and sheets. For extra bonus points, sit and watch the washing machine spin your clothes around. It relieves anxiety and really can be majestic.

3. Dance Like No One Is Watching

The Internet is filled with nonsense and time wasters. But every now and again, the most ridiculous sounding advice is actually pretty good. I’m not talking about the tortured kitten hanging onto a limb with the words “Hang in There,” either. The fact is that dancing like no one is watching is the hidden gem of silly advice.

Shut your doors, close your blinds, dim the lights and turn up the tunes. Stand up and throw your arms in the air like you just don’t care -- and don’t care. There is no reason to care. This is about you and no one else. Jump around, move around, and shake what your mama gave you. There are no rules; if you are up and moving, you are doing it right.

What Do You Suggest to Relieve Anxiety?

There are as many different ways to relieve anxiety as there are people, some usual and many unusual. Feel free to use the comments section below to share ways you relieve anxiety that are uncommon or even downright weird.

You can find Gabe on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, LinkedIn, and his website.