Anxiety is one of the most common complaints of our modern culture. Most of us live such high pressure lives, it’s not surprising. Common symptoms of anxiety include feeling afraid or worried much of the time, racing thoughts, repetitive negative thoughts, racing pulse, inward trembling, rapid shallow breathing, sleeplessness and overwhelm. There are other causes that could be the basis for these problems, such as hyperthyroidism, cardiovascular disease and/or adrenal imbalance. Once these have been ruled out, natural medicine can really help.

The first aspect to consider is whether you have a stable blood sugar level. The way you can achieve this is by making sure you have a protein-based breakfast, preferably saving the coffee or tea for the afternoon, and then continue to have small balanced meals and a snack during the day. That being handled, a great tool for anxiety is to practice diaphragmatic breathing. When you push your lower belly out to deeply inhale, this causes the diaphragm to stretch down flat within your abdomen, and causes a reflex in the autonomic nervous system to calm down the brain. Take five deep breaths in and out through your nose, first thing, anytime you feel anxious, and when going to sleep. Nasal breathing can increase nitric oxide, lower blood pressure and create calm.

The next most important thing to do for anxiety is to increase GABA levels. GABA, or gamma-amino-butyric-acid, is a neurotransmitter that allows for calm focus, filtering of extraneous information, and productive sleep. Some natural ingredients that provide precursors to boost the body’s own production of GABA are Theanine, Taurine, Glutamine, 5HTP, and Casein Tryptic Hydrolysate along with DHA to increase GABA receptors. For repetitive negative thoughts, one should additionally consider Kava Kava Root Extract.

In order to optimize GABA, consider going on a gluten, oat and dairy free diet as recent studies show gluten mediated auto immunity can reduce GABA in the cerebellum where it is mainly produced.  Dairy can also be an anxiety trigger if you’ve had frequent swollen glands in your throat. This can indicate an underlying chronic low grade infection in which bacteriotoxins contribute to anxiety.

Regular exercise, meditation, deep diaphragmatic breathing and consistently going to bed by 10 p.m. also greatly reduce anxiety.