Have you ever done a Google search for “anxiety management tips”?

You will find a bewildering number of results. Over 4 million, in fact. (Protip: if your anxiety stems from information overload…well, searching for anxiety management techniques on this massive internet of ours might make things worse…right?)

So…if you’re looking for effective anxiety management techniques, where should you start? What should you click on? Do you click on the very clinical-looking PDF document from a large university’s psychology department? Do you check out the tips on a local therapist’s website? Do you check the Psychcentral Library? The NIMH website? Should you read something written by a doctor? A psychiatrist?

I’m neither a doctor nor a psychiatrist. I’m just a plain old anxiety sufferer like the rest of you. Why should you care about what I have to say?¹

ON AUTHENTICITY

Now, let me say this: I think there are some fantastic resources out there that are written by mental health professionals. Many of those resources are right here on Psychcentral. A therapist’s perspective on anxiety management and recovery is invaluable.

But earlier this week, a few of my Twitter followers were left a bit stymied by this blog post about dealing with anxiety. Several said that the advice didn’t feel authentic or realistic. One friend on Twitter said the advice felt “simple and condescending.”

So, for today’s video, I set off to cherry-pick the best of the best anxiety management techniques from a few different Psychcentral blog posts (including the “simple and condescending” post mentioned above).

Now, I do realize that “best” is a very subjective word — but, as an anxiety sufferer myself who has tried virtually every type of therapy under the sun, I feel uniquely positioned to gossip about which tips are overrated and which have actually helped me to improve my own mental state.

I’m decidedly chatty in today’s video…so grab a delicious hot beverage, pretend we’re hanging out at the local coffee shop, and let’s have a conversation about how we handle anxiety and worry. I’ll tell you my anxiety stories if you tell me yours!

Here you go:

¹ I care about what you have to say, too. A lot, in fact…so, please share! Which of the above tips do you find to be most effective?

Further reading:

• http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2012/07/25/anxious-about-everything-6-ways-to-cope-with-anxiety/
• http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2009/10/19/ten-more-ways-to-lower-anxiety/
• http://blogs.psychcentral.com/parenting-tips/2012/07/americans-get-the-gold-medal-for-anxiety/
• http://psychcentral.com/lib/2011/accepting-and-overcoming-anxiety/

photo credit: sean dreilinger

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    Last reviewed: By John M. Grohol, Psy.D. on 28 Jul 2012
    Published on PsychCentral.com. All rights reserved.