Anxiety is not only a mental experience, it’s deeply connected to how your body feels and reacts. If you’ve ever noticed your heart racing, muscles tensing, or breath becoming shallow when you’re anxious, you’re not alone. These are all physical signs of anxiety, and they’re more common than most people realise.
When anxiety hits, your body is responding to a perceived threat – even if that threat isn’t real. This is what we call the fight-or-flight response – your body reacts as though it’s in immediate danger, even when there’s no real threat. This physical reaction can be helpful in a real emergency, but it often becomes a problem when it’s triggered by daily stressors.
The Impact of Anxiety on Your Body
When we experience anxiety, the body doesn’t differentiate between real and imagined threats. Stress and emotions like anxiety trigger a part of our brain that controls the body's reactions. When this part is activated, your heart rate increases, your muscles tense, and your body gets ready for action – all of which are physical reactions to anxiety (Siegel, 2010). This is the body’s natural response to perceived danger, but it can often occur in response to stressors that aren’t immediately life-threatening.
In Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT), we consider how negative thinking plays a strong role in triggering physical anxiety symptoms. When we believe a situation is dangerous – even if it’s not – our body reacts as though it is, activating the stress response (Beck, 1976). Changing the way we think about a situation can, therefore, help reduce the physical symptoms of anxiety by preventing the brain from triggering a stress response.
Similarly, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), explains that while we can’t always control anxious thoughts, we can control our response to them. Rather than trying to fight against the physical sensations that anxiety brings, ACT teaches us to accept them, which can reduce their power over us (Harris, 2009).
In Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) we look at how mindfulness can help manage anxiety. By practising mindfulness, we become more aware of our physical sensations without becoming overwhelmed by them. This allows us to experience anxiety without letting it dictate our behaviour, a process described as essential in regulating emotional responses (Linehan, 1993).
What You Can Do: Practical Techniques to Manage Anxiety
Here are some actionable strategies to help manage the physical effects of anxiety and bring your body back to a state of calm:
Breathing Exercises:
One of the simplest and most effective ways to calm your body when anxiety strikes is through deep breathing. Try inhaling for four seconds, holding for four, and exhaling slowly for four. This simple breathing technique helps reduce the physical symptoms of anxiety, like a racing heart or shallow breathing. This is a technique recommended by many, including Harris (2009), who highlights how breathing exercises can activate the body’s relaxation response.
Progressive Muscle Relaxation (PMR):
When anxiety has your body feeling tense, PMR is a great way to release that tension. Start by tensing the muscles in your body for a few seconds, then releasing them. Begin with your feet and work your way up to your head. This practice helps to relieve physical tension and connect you with your body, promoting relaxation.
Mindfulness and Grounding Techniques:
Mindfulness involves being aware of your body and environment in the present moment. Techniques like the 5-4-3-2-1 method, where you identify five things you can see, four things you can touch, three things you can hear, two things you can smell, and one thing you can taste, are grounding practices that can shift your focus away from anxiety and back to the present moment. Linehan’s work in DBT stresses how mindfulness practices can help us detach from overwhelming emotions, reducing their physical impact (Linehan, 1993).
Working with a Psychologist
Collaborating with a psychologist can be a highly effective way to manage anxiety. Psychologists are trained to understand the complexities of anxiety and can tailor interventions to your specific needs. According to the Australian Psychological Society (APS), psychologists employ evidence-based treatments such as Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) to help individuals manage anxiety disorders. These therapies focus on changing unhelpful thought patterns and behaviours, building coping skills, and fostering acceptance of anxious experiences. Engaging with a psychologist provides a supportive environment to explore the underlying causes of your anxiety and develop personalised strategies to cope with it effectively.
Conclusion
Anxiety’s physical impact on the body can be intense, but with the right strategies, you can manage it. By understanding how anxiety affects both the mind and body, and learning techniques to respond effectively, you can regain control and find relief. Breathing exercises, mindfulness, progressive muscle relaxation, and cognitive restructuring are all practical tools that can help you manage your body’s response to anxiety and lead a calmer, more centred life.
References:
Beck, A. T. (1976). Cognitive therapy and the emotional disorders. International Universities Press.