Social/ Emotional Wellness
The following calming strategies and images are from the website LIONSROAR.COM. On this website there are several calming meditations you can practice to help reduce anxiety.
Always remember to breathe! Deep breathing is one of the most important, and underutilized, coping strategies there is.
Breathe in for the count of four, hold for the count of four, and then breathe out for the count of four. Do this several times and feel your heart rate slow down as your body relaxes.
In the case of extreme anxiety, I find the 5-4-3-2-1 method extremely helpful.
First you need to practice your breathing, and then:
Find 5 things you can see (I usually focus specifically on 5 different colors, or 5 different shapes, etc)
Touch 4 different textures; focus on how each texture feels against your skin.
Listen and find 3 different sounds.
Focus and smell 2 different scents (I usually will smell some different lotions, perfumes, or even better essential oils).
Lastly, you can taste 1 thing (this is good if you have some water around you since drinking water is a rapid reset). If there is nothing around you that you can taste I will change this one to "Identify one emotion you are feeling."
Click here, or the image to the left, for additional resources relating to coping strategies, calming the mind, grounding yourself, meditation, relaxation, etc (many beneficial resources for calming yourself).