2. Schedule relaxation. “Sit down and look at your schedule,” says Katherine Raymer, MD, ND, associate clinical professor of naturopathic medicine at Bastyr University, Seattle.
“Is there a time to put in a half hour to do whatever you do that is relaxing?” Dr. Raymer asks. That can be a walk, meditation, yoga, tai chi or anything you find relaxing.
Researchers trying to help shy men with social anxiety found that a period of relaxation helped them, lowering their heart rates after they interacted with people.
3. Take GABA. The supplement GABA, sold online and in health food stores, may help calm anxious people, Raymer says.
Short for gamma-aminobutyic acid, GABA is a brain transmitter that counteracts the action of another neurotransmitter, glutamate that increases your excitability.
Researchers found that individuals who ate chocolate enriched with GABA before tackling an arithmetic task were less stressed after completing it than those who didn’t have the GABA-infused chocolate.
It is important to remember that supplements such as GABA can interact with medications, so it’s crucial to check in with your doctor before taking them on your own, she says. “Get your doctor’s permission, even if you are not taking other medication.”
4. Try lavender. Try lavender essential oil to calm yourself, Raymer says. “We have people put a drop of it on their collarbone,” she says. “The smell wafts up. The odor is very relaxing.” Or, you can rub it gently into your temple, she says.
RELATED: What It’s Like to Have an Anxiety Attack
In a 2012 study of women anxious about having a medical procedure, researchers found that those who inhaled lavender a half hour before the procedure were calmer than those who did not.
Again, don’t forget to check first with your doctor before using the essential oil lavender, Raymer says.
5. Ground yourself. When anxiety hits, ”do something tangible,” says John Tsilimparis, MFT, a marriage and family therapist in Los Angeles and adjunct professor of psychiatry at Pepperdine University.
“Take your house keys out, run your fingers along the keys,” says Tsilimparis. “That sensation will give you ‘grounding.’ Pick up a paperweight, hold it in your hand. Or, get an ice cube. Hold it as long as you can do it.”
Why does this work? “Your brain can’t be in two places at once,” he says. The activity distracts you from the anxious feelings. “Your mind will shift from racing, catastrophic thoughts [that accompany anxiety] to the cold ice cube in your hand,” he says.
According to some research, using a virtual reality distraction system can reduce anxiety during dental procedures. Patients immersed in VR — a computer-generated realistic environment — reported less pain and anxiety than when they didn’t use it.
6. Face the fear. “If something makes you scared, face it,” says Cassiday. If you feel shy, go out to social functions, she says. Scared of clowns? Go to the circus.
It can help, too, to understand that when you worry about what might happen — such as no one will talk to you at the party — your anxiety just rises. Your anxious worry is about the uncertainty, she says. “What a worrier really wants is a promise that everything is going to be OK.”
But uncertainty is part of life, she says. Exposure therapy, or facing the fear, helps you learn to live with risk and uncertainty.
Anxiety Basics
Anxiety disorders are common. In fact, diagnostic interview data from the National Comorbidity Study Replication (NCS-R) suggests that an estimated 31.1 percent of US adults experience an anxiety disorder at some point in life.
Although the term “anxiety” is often used to describe any disorder that involves excessive worry or panic, there are numerous different types of anxiety disorders. These include:
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Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD)
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Social anxiety disorder (SAD, or social phobia)
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Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
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Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
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Panic disorder
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Separation anxiety disorder
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Phobia-related disorders
The specific symptoms of anxiety can vary from one disorder to another.
Anxiety disorders are typically treated with behavioral therapy, medication and changes to your habits and lifestyle.
Some anxiety medications, such as antidepressants, start working gradually over the course of several weeks or months.
Others are absorbed quickly by your body and provide relief from the symptoms of anxiety in just a few minutes.
Instant Relief Anxiety Medications
Most instant relief anxiety medications belong to a class of drugs called benzodiazepines (also called “benzos”).
Benzodiazepines work by increasing levels of gamma aminobutyric acid (GABA), an inhibitory neurotransmitter.
GABA slows down certain functions of your nervous system and lowers the severity of many anxiety symptoms.
As well as anxiety disorders, many benzodiazepines are prescribed to treat insomnia, seizures, agitation and other conditions.
Common benzodiazepines include:
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Diazepam (sold as Valium®)
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Alprazolam (Xanax®)
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Clonazepam (Klonopin®)
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Lorazepam (Ativan®)
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Triazolam (Halcion®)
Benzodiazepines are absorbed quickly and provide rapid relief from anxiety. For example, the common anxiety medication diazepam is absorbed by the body in a few minutes and reaches peak concentration in the bloodstream in approximately one hour.
This means that when you use benzodiazepines, you’ll generally feel relaxed — both physically and mentally — fairly quickly.
The results aren’t necessarily instant, but they’re faster than other medications used to treat and manage anxiety.
Your healthcare provider may prescribe a benzodiazepine if you’re prone to acute symptoms of anxiety, such as sudden, severe feelings of worry or panic attacks. Some benzodiazepines are intended to be used several times a day to control anxiety symptoms.
Learn about Buspar vs Xanax here.
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Downsides of Benzodiazepines
Although benzodiazepines are effective at controlling anxiety in the short term, they have a few downsides that make them less ideal as long-term treatments for anxiety.
The first downside of benzodiazepines is that they can become less effective over time. Some people who take benzodiazepines need to increase their dosage in order to maintain the same effects over the long term.
Because of this, benzodiazepines usually aren’t prescribed for chronic anxiety. Instead, they’re generally used as a short-term form of treatment for controlling anxiety levels.
Benzodiazepines can also cause dependence. If you’re taking this type of medication, you must consult with your healthcare provider if you need or wish to stop.
Benzodiazepines can cause withdrawal symptoms or a return of anxiety if stopped suddenly, and should be tapered under the guidance of a healthcare provider.
Another major downside of benzodiazepines is their side effect risk. Many benzodiazepines can cause adverse effects, including the following:
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Drowsiness
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Tiredness
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Dizziness or light-headedness
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Difficulty concentrating
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Talkativeness
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Dry mouth
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Irritability
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Increased salivation
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Appetite and/or weight changes
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Changes in sex drive and/or function
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Constipation
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Joint pain
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Nausea
Many benzodiazepines can also cause dangerous drug interactions, particularly when used with pain management medications.
The National Institute on Drug Abuse has highlighted the dangers of using benzodiazepines and opioid painkillers.
Since both medications produce sedation and slowed breathing, they can lead to overdose deaths when used together.
These risks recently prompted the FDA to add a boxed warning — the most prominent drug safety warning — to the packaging of benzodiazepines.
Because of these adverse effects and drug interactions, it’s important to inform your healthcare provider about any medications you use or have recently used before using benzodiazepines to manage your anxiety.
Other Fast Acting Anxiety Meds
In addition to benzodiazepines, other medications are also used to manage anxiety. If you have performance anxiety, your healthcare provider may suggest using a beta-blocker to control your physical symptoms.
Beta-blockers are medications that are used to treat tachycardia (rapid heart rate), hypertension (high blood pressure) and other cardiovascular health issues.
They work by lowering your heart rate and promoting physical relaxation.
Taking a beta-blocker is a quick, simple way to treat the physical symptoms of anxiety, such as a pounding heartbeat, shaking or trembling.
However, this type of medication won’t treat the psychological symptoms of anxiety, such as any feelings of worry, fear or being out of control.
One beta-blocker that’s often used to treat the physical symptoms of anxiety is propranolol (sold as Inderal®).
Our guide to propranolol for performance anxiety explains how it works, as well as how it’s commonly used as an as-needed anxiety treatment.
Other Options for Treating Anxiety
Benzodiazepines and beta-blockers both work quickly to treat anxiety as needed, but both types of medications have significant downsides.
For benzodiazepines, it’s often the loss of effectiveness and dependence. For beta-blockers, it’s the fact that although they’re effective at managing anxiety’s physical symptoms, they do little to help with the psychological side of most anxiety disorders.
Luckily, numerous other options are available for treating anxiety, including medications, therapy and habits that you can use to stay in control of your symptoms.
Antidepressants
In addition to treating depression, many antidepressants are also effective at controlling anxiety symptoms.
Antidepressants work by increasing the levels of certain chemicals, called neurotransmitters, in your brain.
Medications of this type are usually slower to work than benzodiazepines, but can often treat anxiety without the same issues.
If you have anxiety, your healthcare provider may suggest using a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) or serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor (SNRI) to treat your symptoms.
Our guide to depression medications goes into more detail about these medications and how they work as anxiety treatments.
Buspirone
Buspirone (sold as BuSpar®) is another type of medication for anxiety. It’s used to treat anxiety that lasts for six months or longer.
Buspirone is effective for many people, but it can take three to four weeks to start producing improvements.
Related post: Does Buspar Cause Weight Gain?
Psychotherapy
Like other mental health disorders, anxiety often improves with psychotherapy, either on its own or in combination with medication.
Several types of psychotherapy are used to treat anxiety, including cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), which involves learning new ways to think and react to situations that cause anxiety, and exposure therapy, which involves directly confronting the factors that make you feel anxious.
Our guide to types of therapy explains more about different therapy used to treat anxiety disorders.
Lifestyle Changes
Many habits and lifestyle changes can make anxiety less severe. Some of these changes can even produce immediate improvements by distracting you from the thoughts or situations that make you feel anxious. Try the following habits and techniques for anxiety relief:
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Exercise regularly. Research shows that exercise, and particularly high-intensity forms of exercise, helps to treat anxiety. Keep yourself physically active, whether this means a walk around your neighborhood, a bike ride or an intense workout.
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Try mindfulness meditation. Other research has found that anxiety often improves with meditation. Try spending five to 15 minutes meditating each day to calm your mind and focus on the present.
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Try natural anxiety treatments. Although research is mixed, some natural treatments may help to treat anxiety. Popular natural remedies for anxiety include CBD, chamomile and lavender oil.
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Quit smoking. While the nicotine in cigarettes can have an immediate calming effect — it’s only temporary and anxiety can (and usually does) return. If you’re a smoker, try your hardest to give up smoking to improve your physical and mental health.
In our guide on how to calm anxiety, we share other techniques that you can use to deal with anxiety symptoms and improve your quality of life.
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Getting Instant Relief for Anxiety
Anxiety is a treatable condition, but many anxiety medications that offer instant relief also come with risks and side effects.
If you think you have an anxiety disorder, it’s best to reach out to a mental health provider. You can do this by asking your primary care provider for a mental health referral or by using our online psychiatry service for an evaluation to get anxiety medication online.
You’ll receive a personalized treatment plan and, if appropriate, medication management with evidence-based medicine.
Since anxiety can differ from person to person, there isn’t a one-size-fits-all medication that works best for everyone. Your healthcare provider will work with you to select a medication that gets your symptoms under control while minimizing side effects and safety risks.
15 Sources
Hims & Hers has strict sourcing guidelines to ensure our content is accurate and current. We rely on peer-reviewed studies, academic research institutions, and medical associations. We strive to use primary sources and refrain from using tertiary references.
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