Tools for Anxiety

Anxiety is future-focused fear. Your brain simulates threats that have not happened yet. The best tools interrupt that simulation and bring you back to the present.

Grounding (5-4-3-2-1): Name five things you see, four you can touch, three you hear, two you smell, one you taste. This pulls your senses into the present and breaks the anxiety loop.

Reality testing: Ask what evidence there is that the feared thing will actually happen. The gap between fear and reality is usually huge.

Box breathing: Inhale four counts, hold four, exhale four, hold four. This calms your nervous system. Navy SEALs use it under combat conditions.