6 Best Brains Hacks That will Boost Your Mental Health

Later, I learned how to control feelings that commonly led to anxiety. I learned that anxiety is often the result of fears (mostly based on things that haven’t happened yet) I may have about uncertain situations, places, and even people in my life.

This is a serious issue facing working professionals and entrepreneurs everywhere. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, anxiety disorders are the most common mental illness in the U.S., affecting 40 million adults, a whopping 18 percent of the population.

You can reduce anxiety with these helpful brain hacks if anxiety is beating up on you.

Here are Tips to Boost Your Mental Health

1. Calm down

The most commonly suggested way to manage anxiety is to calm the nervous system by using diaphragmatic breathing (deep breathing). Doing it for a few minutes sends the brain the message that you’re not in danger, and in return, it will kick your body into relaxation mode instead of fight-or-flight. If any part of your brain sends signals that you’re under threat (and in reality, you’re not), kick the fear by gently talking yourself out of it. Convince that part of your brain sending you into fight-or-flight mode that you are just fine.

2. Shift from the negative to the positive

If you’re feeling anxious, take your mind away from what’s bothering you. Try taking a brisk walk outside and focus as you walk on positive thoughts that will make you feel safe, accepted, loved, and honored. When you’re at homeostasis, reflect on how fortunate and blessed you actually are.

3. Write down what you’re feeling

Journaling about your fears and worries helps you process how you really feel, which can be healing. Most importantly, write down any thoughts you’re having in anticipation of or during a situation that causes anxiety. What are you telling yourself? Is it true, or does it come from irrational fear? Once you get clarity on the situation, you can determine what actions to take to move forward.

4. Release control

Often, worry is the direct result of trying to control people, things, or situations that are beyond your control. Understanding that you can’t and shouldn’t control everything and releasing your worry will help you manage your emotions better. Focus on the things that are in your control, slow down, and take one thing at a time. Now you can refocus on what’s immediately in front of you and go from there. Releasing your attempt to control will help ease some of the discomforts you’re experiencing from your anxiety.

5. Expose yourself to whatever you fear

By exposing yourself to whatever it is you fear, it loses its power and control over you. No matter what you fear, if you submerge yourself in it for a long enough period, the illusion of fear (because there’s no such thing as fear–it’s all in our minds) will eventually be gone. I used to fear the feeling of taking ice baths at the local gym and submerging my body inside a 50-degree water tank.

After the first few first dips, my mind acclimated to it and I now enjoy the health benefits that come from it. Whatever it is you fear, once you expose yourself to it, that weakness becomes your strength. Determining what you fear is usually the most important thing you need to make yourself successful in life.

6. Stop overthinking

Being a leader requires decisiveness and quick thinking. However, overthinking every decision will not serve you well. Overthinking causes us to get stuck in a cycle of inaction, which triggers analysis paralysis.

Now you’ve entered the terrain of stress-induced anxiety, as worry becomes debilitating and causes you to move backward, not forward. Embrace uncertainty instead. Acknowledge its presence and accept the fleetingness and brevity of the situations you’re facing. Be of the mindset that uncertainty will bring with it some benefits, like unleashing your creativity and helping you to be more resilient.

Becoming more aware of your daily bad habits requires patience and compassion. Your bad habits are there because they are easy, simple and requires no effort to perform. They stick around because you think they provide you value.

But, you cannot let your old habits hold you back. Start building these simple yet essential habits for a happier and more productive life.