The Perfect Daily Routine for Managing Daily Anxiety

There’s a cinch of tension between your shoulder blades at all times. The last time you remember your body feeling relaxed was that beach vacation. 

Two years ago. 

Sometimes your fast heart beat and whirring thoughts help you keep all the plates spinning. 

Other times it feels like your body is spinning out of control, and all the plates crash. 

We get stuck wondering things like,

•  “Why can’t I just calm down?” 

• “It’s not that big of a deal.” 

• “My coworker/partner/friend handles all of their stuff, why is this so hard for me?”

When you’re unsure what to do or what will help, it’s hard to move forward. And I’d bet my bottom dollar that you’ve been trying to solve yours anxiety like it’s a part time job. You’re an overachiever after all! You work hard.

The good news is, you can easily bring order to the chaos by creating a daily routine that manages your daily anxiety without creating another thing on your to do list. 

In this post, I’ll outline what fuels daily anxiety and provide 3 micro routines that will regulate your nervous system and foster a sense of calm throughout your day. 

What is the perfect daily routine for managing daily anxiety?

The main fuel for daily anxiety is stress - no duh. 

But managing daily anxiety is not about stress reduction or stress management. I know that sounds odd, but stay with me. 

The stress you experience in your body is different than the thing that is stressing you out. Stressing things happen throughout your day, so you need support throughout your day.

Soothing the stress in your body in little bursts a few times a day gives you consistent energy and prevents burnout, even if the situations causing stress take years to resolve.

So the perfect daily routine for managing daily anxiety? It’s actually three mini routines. Each takes less than 10 minutes. But don’t let their simplicity fool you.

They are tiny, mighty, and science backed patterns that relieve anxiety, reduce panic attacks, and help you feel better.

Micro Routine to Manage Daily Anxiety #1 - Complete the Stress Cycle

The stress cycle is the pattern our nervous system goes through when it encounters stress: Life threat → Stress Response → Transition → Connection + Rest

For example, 

1. A car cuts right in front of you as you drive to work (sudden life threat). 

2. You slam on your brakes, hit your horn, and swerve (stress response of fight + flight). 

3. Heart pounds, breathing is shallow, hands feel shaky. Tears come to your eyes and you cry (transition from fight + flight into window of tolerance).

4. You walk into work and tell your bestie what happened. She gives you a hug and goes to make you a cup of tea (social connection + rest/digest).

Many of the anxious women I work with in Greenville, SC are familiar with the spike of stress:

• fighting with their toddler to get dressed in the morning 

• a coworker who makes their life miserable

• A defensive co-parent

• Rebuilding your personal life after divorce

Many of my clients work out of their high energy stress responses and they don’t transition. 

They wind up feeling constantly on. Braced. Ready to jump into action. Even when they’re ‘resting’, they feel depleted or tired and wired. 

The key to managing the daily anxiety that comes up is complete the stress cycle. At the end of everyday, give your body the opportunity to transition so you can truly rest and connect. 

To get started, choose one of these small things to do every night when you’re ready to switch off: 

• Exercise: one sun salutation, a brisk 10 minute walk, 20 body weight squats. Movement flushes the adrenaline and stress out of your body 

• Hug Until Relaxed: Find a safe person or pet and lean into them until you feel your body shift into relaxation. Usually takes between 2-5 minutes. 

• Belly Laughs: Find a comedian or blooper reel that flips your tickle box - not “oh that’s funny”, but “I might cry with laughter.” This pushes out the stress energy with an oxytocin and dopamine dump. 

• Crying: If you can't laugh, then go ahead and cry girlfriend. Tears contain cortisol, so crying literally flushes the stress out of your body. Put on a sad song or show that always gets you, and let it out. 

Micro Routine to Manage Daily Anxiety #2: Morning Mothering

Morning Mothering is where you ask, “What would a good mother want me to do in the morning?”

The answers can look practical, silly, or sentimental. For example:

• Brush my teeth

• Drink a glass of water before coffee

• Have breakfast

• Change out of pjs

• Comb my hair

• Play Doris Day

The women I work with in Greenville, SC find most of their anxiety revolves around caring for others. With such big hearts, they can forget to send love their own way. This is why Morning Mothering is essential. 

Without this, the anxiety will stalk you no matter how many deep breaths you take or how many color coded systems organize your schedule. 

Try this mental shift -

Think of your anxiety as a confused Mama Grizzly. She wants to protect her cub (you). She sees anxiety and stress as life threats. So she stands on her hind legs and growls and swipes. 

But you’re holding the stress. So she’s swiping at you.

Growling to feel better, fix the problem, and get over it.

Give that Mama Grizzly a different task every morning. Instead of defending against the threats, tap into her nurture side. Remind her that you can and will take care of yourself. And while today might be hard, you can do hard things. 

Note: Sometimes the Mama Grizzly metaphor really resonates with people and I expand on it, and then weave it into some somatic experiences. Does that interest you? Leave a comment and let me know!

Micro Routine #3 - Mid Day Mindfulness Reset

The mid-day mindfulness reset takes 5 minutes. You close your eyes and focus on what you can hear, touch, and smell. 

Here’s where you’ll really see a shift from buzzy anxiety to spacious calm. The magic is in the simplicity.

Of course, this reset takes practice. 5 minutes of mindfulness can feel like forever, especially to a brain that’s used to keeping track of approximately 1,827 items at a time. Consider starting with 3 minutes and working your way up to 5.

Here’s why it works:

1. Your eyes receive the majority of sensory information the brain processes. When you close your eyes, the stimulation load shrinks. This brain break can help reduce irritability, overwhelm, and overstimulation. 

2. Paying attention to the other senses encourages you to slow down. Be right here. Your brain notices you are safe in the present. This allows your nervous system to shift into rest/ digest mode.

Our nervous systems were meant to move from high energy to lower energy throughout the day. Like a gentle wave going up, and then going out. 

Your Mid Day Mindfulness bakes in a guaranteed lull to fuel your inevitable ramp back up. 

Putting it All Together For Your Perfect Daily Routine for Managing Anxiety

There you have it! The three micro routines of your perfect daily routine to support and soothe your anxiety. Each routine is ten minutes tops, and I laid them out in order of importance:

1. Complete Your Stress Cycle: spend 10 minutes flushing the stress out of your body to allow your nervous system true recovery at night.

2. Morning Mothering: give yourself the nourish and nurture first before attuning to others needs.

3. Mid Day Mindfulness: take 5 minutes to close your eyes, tune into your other senses, and allow your nervous system to down regulate.

I know three routines sounds like a lot, but like most things practice makes perfect. Focus on which routine seems the possible doable, and just practice that until it feels like a habit. Then add on more. 

These routines, no matter how infrequently you do them, will help you manage your daily anxiety and prevent burnout. 

Want More Support? Start Online Therapy for Anxiety & Perfectionism with Emilea

Do you live in South Carolina? (Yes, any part of the state! I live in Greenville, but since I am online only, I can work with you even if you live in Barnwell).

Are you interested in not only having tools like the ones I’ve outlined, but experiencing in-the-moment relief of your anxiety?

Are you ready to get to the bottom of what fuels your stress, and how to heal your nervous system? Schedule a free 20 minute consult call with me today to get started so you can calm the chaos and embrace peace.