With the stress of day-to-day life as well as important events, relationships, and our fast-paced world in general, it’s no surprise that many people deal with anxious feelings from time to time. The good news is there are simple ways to relieve occasional anxiousness and keep your calm.*
Here, we’ll share natural approaches to managing your anxious feelings, including herb blends that can help you stay feeling balanced.* Even if you can’t quite identify the cause of your stress and anxiousness, these tips will help promote a sense of calm in your mind and body.*
Natural Support for Occasional Anxiousness
Below, we’ll share a few pointers for adjusting your lifestyle to help you manage anxious feelings when they arise.
However, since you’re on the lookout for natural ways to relieve occasional anxiousness, we’ll mostly focus on stress-support herbs that can promote a sense of calm.*
Stay Active
If you don’t enjoy exercising, then staying active may be the last thing you want to do when you feel nervous and tense. But moving your body is worth the effort and impacts your mind as well.
Not only can exercise help by getting your mind off any worries, but it can also help by releasing feel-good endorphins that can help you maintain your sense of well-being.
Spend Time Outside
Getting out into Nature can also help promote calm feelings, regardless of whether or not you’re exercising. In fact, there’s an approach called “forest bathing” that can help you unwind.
Although we would love to take credit, we didn’t come up with this concept ourselves. Forest bathing started in Japan several decades ago; though, of course, humans have been enjoying the benefits of Nature for thousands of years.
The idea of forest bathing is to leave civilization behind for a moment and soak in the sights, smells, and sounds of Nature.
Interestingly, cortisol, a stress hormone, is affected by forest bathing. One scientific review states that forest bathing can positively impact cortisol (and, as a result, stress) levels.1
Practice Mindfulness and Breath Work
Practicing mindfulness and breath work are two other ways to help manage your anxious feelings naturally. They are simple practices, but our busy lives can tend to crowd out these powerful tools.
Mindfulness means focusing on the present moment and gently bringing your awareness to your thoughts, emotions, and bodily sensations. This can include meditation, eating without distractions and savoring your food, and stretching and tuning into your body.
Try just a few minutes of pranayama, the yoga practice of controlling your breath. Or, start by simply pausing a few times a day to focus on taking full, slow, and deep breaths. You can do this anywhere and anytime.
Why is measured breathing so powerful? It literally sends messages to the emotional centers in the brain to relax!
If you’re not sure where to start with mindful breathing, there are many apps with guided breathing exercises that allow you to simply follow along.
Care for Your Body
Keep in mind that your body is a complex machine with many systems that all work together. So, when you’re looking for a natural way to relieve occasional anxiousness due to stress, remember to care for your body in general. When one part of the well-oiled machine is off, it can throw others off, too.
Eat well, get enough sleep at night, spend time laughing with loved ones, and seek professional help if you feel that you need it.
That said, we’ll now share a few herbs that can help support your body and mind when you experience those occasional anxious feelings.*
Turn to Herbs for Occasional Anxiousness*
We’ll introduce you to a few of the herb blends that we love to use for circumstantial stress and occasional anxiousness to promote calm days and restful nights.*
Calm A.S.A.P.®
Embrace serenity with Gaia Herbs Calm A.S.A.P., formulated to support a calm response to life’s trying moments.* Take three capsules once a day on an as-needed basis.
This herbal supplement is made with a harmonious blend of Passionflower, Chamomile, Vervain, Lavender, and Holy Basil to help provide relief from occasional anxiousness and support during times of circumstantial stress.*
It also contains two herbs that are grown on our very own farm: Skullcap and Oats, which are extracted fresh immediately after harvest to preserve full spectrum compounds for optimal potency.*
At Gaia Herbs, we are firm believers that the quality of an herbal supplement can only be as good as the quality of the herbs that go into it. That’s why many of the herbs in our products are grown on our Certified Organic farm in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, where we can cultivate them exactly the way we want.
For plants used in our supplements that we cannot grow on our own farm or in the quantity that we need, our network of organic and sustainable communities allows us to source herbs from where they grow best.
To learn more about the herbs used in your supplement and where they come from, visit meetyourherbs.com, the world’s first herb traceability platform. Here you will discover the origin of your herbs; learn how they were grown, harvested, and extracted; and see validation of your product’s level of purity and potency.
We verify at every stage of the Gaia Herbs seed-to-shelf journey because you deserve to know exactly what’s in your herbal supplement.
Stress Response®
Gaia Herbs Stress Response is an herbal supplement popular among those feeling run down to optimize energy levels.*
Stress Response contains a synergistic blend of four adaptogens—Rhodiola, Holy Basil, Ashwagandha, and Schisandra—along with the nervine Oats to support different facets of the stress response and bring the body into balance.*
To learn more about adaptogens in general, read our article here.
Sleep & Relax™
When you’re dealing with occasional anxiousness, sometimes neither your mind nor body will allow you to wind down at night and get the rest you need.
To promote a sense of calm and help prepare your body to sleep, practice deep breathing and turn to Gaia Herbs Sleep & Relax.* This USDA Certified Organic supplement contains a calming blend of Lavender, Lemon Balm, Passionflower, California Poppy, and Valerian.
Take two capsules one hour before bedtime.
Sleep & Relax Herbal Tea
Take your bedtime routine to the next level by stopping to relax and sip on a warm cup of herbal tea before getting ready for bed.
The act of drinking Gaia Herbs Sleep & Relax Herbal Tea is not only calming in itself, but the herbs can also promote relaxation to set the stage for a sound night’s slumber.*
Passionflower, Lemon Balm, Licorice, and Chamomile make up this USDA Certified Organic herbal tea blend. All you have to do is pour one cup of freshly boiled water over a tea bag. Cover, steep for 10 minutes, and drink your tea one hour before bed.
For additional support, combine this tea with the Sleep & Relax™ capsules we just mentioned.
Gaia Kids® Calm Support
Your kids may not be paying bills or going to work, but they have their own stressors. We don’t want to leave them out!
GaiaKidsⓇ Calm Support was formulated especially for children by a Pediatric Naturopath and features a blend of herbs used to support a calm and relaxed feeling.*
Whether it’s the first day of school or jitters before attending a party, this great-tasting liquid extract can help your little ones maintain a peaceful day.*
It’s made with California Poppy, Lavender, Passionflower, Vervain, Lemon Balm, and Skullcap and absolutely no artificial sweeteners, corn syrup, colors, or flavors. Simply dilute the appropriate dose in water or juice and use this supplement up to three times a day.
Help Calm Anxious Feelings Naturally*
We all feel anxious from time to time. No matter the root of your worry, there are ways to manage these feelings naturally.
Turn to the recommendations for relieving occasional anxiousness mentioned in this article. Support your body and mind with lifestyle changes like staying active, spending time forest bathing, practicing mindfulness and breath work, and caring for your body overall.
Finally, add herbs for occasional anxiousness to your routine.* Blends like Gaia Herbs Calm A.S.A.P., Sleep & Relax, and others can promote feelings of tranquility and help your mind and body to wind down so you can get the rest you need.*
With the right lifestyle changes in addition to the right herbs, you can keep your cool and stay balanced.*
REFERENCES:
1. Michele Antonelli, Grazia Barbieri, Davide Donelli, “Effects of Forest Bathing (ShinrinYoku) on Levels of Cortisol as a Stress Biomarker: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis,” International Journal of Biometeorology 63, 8 (2019): 1117-1134, https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31001682.