What to Do When Getting Anxious? 10 Coaching Practices to Try
Describe almost anything you are working through and IX Coach finds the practices whose real-world fit is closest. For What to Do When Getting Anxious, these are the strongest matches in the current practice library.
Practices that may help
- Engage with the present moment
Once the edge comes off, redirect attention fully into an activity or your surroundings.
The DARE Response to Anxiety, Made Practical - Use grounding before anxiety peaks, not after
Start the technique at the first sign of anxiety — not once the wave is overwhelming.
The 5-4-3-2-1 Grounding Technique - Run toward the feeling
Actively invite more of the anxiety rather than waiting nervously for it to pass.
The DARE Response to Anxiety, Made Practical - Rehearse the response before you need it
Learn and practice the four steps in low-stakes moments so they are available under pressure.
The DARE Response to Anxiety, Made Practical - Allow the sensations without resisting
Let the physical feelings of anxiety be present instead of bracing against them.
The DARE Response to Anxiety, Made Practical - The 5-4-3-2-1 grounding technique
Name five things you see, four you hear, three you feel, two you smell, one you taste.
The Anxiety Toolkit, Made Practical - Interoceptive awareness
Practice noticing and naming body sensations neutrally, so they stop reading as alarms.
The Anxiety Toolkit, Made Practical - Balanced, compassionate self-talk
Talk to yourself as you would to a friend — accurate and kind, not harsh or falsely cheery.
The Anxiety Toolkit, Made Practical - Map your safety-behavior inventory
List every action you take to prevent feared outcomes in anxiety-provoking situations.
Safety Behavior Fading, Made Practical - Rapid relaxation: achieve a relaxation response in 20–30 seconds
Deploy a practiced, condensed relaxation sequence the moment anxiety begins rising.
Applied Relaxation, Made Practical
Does this sound like the set of challenges you might be facing?
- Even once the worst of it passes, I can’t get back into the room
- I always wait until I’m already in full panic to try to calm down, and by then it’s too far gone for anything to work
- I spend my days bracing for the next wave of it, scanning my body, dreading the moment it shows up
- I only ever try a new way to handle this once I’m already deep in a full-blown wave, and by then I’m too far gone to think
- The second I feel my heart pound or my chest tighten I clench up and try to force it to stop, and the fighting just cranks it higher
Related concerns
- What To Do When Anxiety Strikes
Once the edge comes off, redirect attention fully into an activity or your surroundings.
Engage with the present moment
- How To Deal With Rising Anxiety
Actively invite more of the anxiety rather than waiting nervously for it to pass.
Run toward the feeling
- How To Stop Anxiety Dead In Its Tracks
Start the technique at the first sign of anxiety — not once the wave is overwhelming.
Use grounding before anxiety peaks, not after
- How To Stop Anxiety Immediately
Start the technique at the first sign of anxiety — not once the wave is overwhelming.
- How To Stop Anxiety In The Moment
Start the technique at the first sign of anxiety — not once the wave is overwhelming.
- What Not To Do When Anxious
Start the technique at the first sign of anxiety — not once the wave is overwhelming.
Describe your situation in your own words to search the complete practice library.