Anxiety Relief Tips and Tools That You Don't Hear About

I gotta breathe. Gotta breathe. Gotta breathe.

I want to talk about anxiety.

This wasn’t planned. It wasn’t on the books. It just felt right to sit down and talk about it because I’ve been open for years about having anxiety, and people have asked what I actually do to manage it.

I’ve had anxiety for a very long time. It comes and goes. It’s not a constant state of being. But when I came back recently and talked about anxiety around business and that weird mix of pressure and apathy, I realized it was time to share more of my real tools.

This morning was one of those mornings. I woke up feeling warm, a little on edge. Getting back into the groove of things after a break can bring back that early-stage shock feeling. You get used to putting yourself out there, and then after time away, it feels new again.

So I paid attention to what I did to calm down. And it worked.

Before I get into my own anxiety relief tips and tools, I want to share something that helped me today.

Recognizing Catastrophic Thinking

I randomly came across a trending clip of Jesse Eisenberg talking about the power of anxiety. I didn’t search for it. It just showed up. It felt serendipitous.

One thing he talked about was recognizing catastrophic thinking.

That hit me.

One of the biggest signs my anxiety is peaking is when I get self-critical and start worrying about what everyone else is thinking. I’ll convince myself that my neighbors are secretly upset with me. Or that someone didn’t respond to my email because they don’t respect me. Or that people are talking about me behind the scenes.

When those thoughts start stacking up, I know my anxiety is rising.

It may take me a minute to connect the dots, but once I do, it helps. The thoughts don’t instantly disappear. But understanding that they’re not reality takes a huge load off.

You aren’t your thoughts.

Your thoughts move fast. Some are helpful. Some aren’t. They pass through. You don’t have to identify with every single one.

That simple awareness helps me manage anxiety before it spirals.

Being in the Eye of the Storm

I love the visual of tumbleweeds.

In one VR meditation I use, you’re in the desert, and you see tumbleweeds rolling by. Each one represents a thought. You just watch them move past you.

That’s how I try to see anxious thoughts.

I’m not the storm. I’m in the eye of the storm.

The deadline, the public speaking event, the awkward social moment, the thing I’m worried about. Those are tumbleweeds. They roll by. I don’t have to grab them.

Normalizing panic helps too. Anxiety makes sense. There’s a lot happening in the world and in our lives. Feeling on edge sometimes is human. When I stop fighting that fact, I regain a little control.

Now let me tell you what I actually do.

My Go-To Tool: VR Meditation for Anxiety

This might surprise you.

One of my biggest at-home anxiety relief tools is a VR headset. I use the Oculus Quest 3 mainly for meditation. That’s it.

When I’m feeling anxious, I’ll put it on and choose an environment. Sometimes it’s a night sky with fireflies and crickets. Sometimes it’s a bright desert landscape. Sometimes it’s the top of a mountain in full sunlight.

I used to live in Phoenix and loved the expansiveness of the desert. You could see forever. Now I live in the Pacific Northwest. It’s beautiful, but it’s dense and green and often dreary for months.

Visually placing myself in a bright, open space helps me feel less tight in my body. Less cramped. Less claustrophobic.

One meditation in the desert slowly moves you forward while tumbleweeds pass by. At one point it rains. You hear the rain hit the sand. It feels like everything is washing away.

It helps me separate from my anxiety.

The app I use most is called TRIPP. I use it almost every time I log in. You can choose the visuals and the meditation topic. Gratitude. Compassion. Accepting your humanity. Whatever you need that day.

I’m not pretending it’s real. I know it’s VR. But mentally and emotionally, it shifts something. It creates space.

For me, VR meditation has been one of the most practical anxiety management tools I’ve found.

Sound Bath and the Power of Auditory Calm

Another thing I do regularly is attend a sound bath class once or twice a week.

There’s something about sound. Crystal bowls, low tones, high tones, rain sticks, little bells. It’s immersive. It feels like your nervous system is being tuned.

Your ears can calm you down just as easily as they can stress you out. We all know what harsh noise feels like. The opposite is also true.

When I can’t go to class, I use apps. I’ve used the Aura meditation app. I don’t use it daily, but when I’m stuck in traffic or away from home, I’ll pop in my earbuds and listen to something calming.

Hypnosis tracks. Tibetan bowls. Guided meditations. Breathwork.

Meditation, breath work, and auditory sound. Those three things show up again and again in how I manage anxiety.

Breathing When Anxiety Peaks

Sometimes I don’t even realize I’m doing it.

I’ll just sigh.

When I feel tension building, I exhale hard through my mouth like steam escaping. It physically feels like pressure leaving my body.

Breathing through your nose stimulates your vagus nerve and helps regulate your nervous system. But even just that forceful exhale helps me.

It’s simple. It’s free. And it works.

If I’m tight in my shoulders or upper back, I’ll stretch. Upper body yoga. Opening the chest. Expanding this area.

Movement helps. Walking outside helps. Being in nature helps.

Nature, Oxytocin, and Anxiety Relief

When I took time off, I spent most of it outside.

Gardening. Watching birds. Rolling around on the ground with my dog, Charlie. Playing with my three-year-old.

That emotional lift you feel when you see something cute or hug your child. That’s oxytocin.

Oxytocin helps counter anxiety. I’ll actively think, I need a dose of oxytocin, and go grab my daughter and start playing. Or scratch Charlie’s belly.

Even certain music can trigger it.

If you don’t have kids or pets, find your version of that feeling. We all know the sensation. That warm expansion in your chest. Replicate those feelings and give yourself a little oxytocin dose.

Anxiety management isn’t just reacting when you’re overwhelmed. It’s building soothing practices into your life consistently. When I stop doing the things that calm me, I feel the difference.

Regular meditation. Sound baths. Breath work. Nature. Oxytocin. VR. All of it works together.

Hopefully, something in here helps. Managing anxiety is ongoing. It’s practice. It’s awareness. It’s breathing.

And sometimes, it’s just recognizing that the tumbleweeds are rolling by.