How To Calm Down: 30 Ways To Calm Your Mind Now

Hey pretty!

I’ve been dealing with a lot of stress lately (aren’t we all, right?).

And through the years, I went through many different ups and downs.

Fortunately, even though it was hard, it made me so much stronger and I learned something new every time the storm has passed.

Being an anxious person and dealing with stress is like living in a “hard mode”.

“It could be so much easier if I could just relax” – I’m sure many of us had a thought like this at least once in our life.

But for an anxious person, it could be an everyday thing.

The good news is that no matter how hard it gets, you can help yourself.

While you can’t expect to live in a perfect, just or worry-free world, you can learn to accept what’s happening and most importantly – be ok with it.

You can adapt and stay strong through whatever life throws at you.

Yes, you really can, even if you don’t believe it yet!

You can be in distress and still be happy.

You can be patient.

You can learn how to calm down.

Here are my tried and true ways to calm down.

Let’s relax!

 

How To Calm Down: 30 Ways To Calm Your Mind Now

 

How To Calm Down With Mindful Activities

 

1. Breathe slowly

 

When you’re stressed, you tend to breathe in short, shallow breaths and it creates even more anxiety.

To counter that, try to breathe deeply and slowly for a few minutes.

Use your belly to breathe – it relaxes the body even more, thanks to the relaxed nerves in the diaphragm area.

Breathe slowly whenever you want to calm down, as often as you wish – it is one of the easiest ways to relax at least a little.

 

2. Try a guided meditation or visualization

 

I swear, meditation changed my life.

Guided meditations are very easy to follow even if you’re a beginner.

They’re also one of the most effective ways to calm down!

By listening to calming music or voice, you’re being told how to relax every part of your body, how to breathe, what to imagine and how to let go of what’s bothering you.

If you want to try it right now, check out my favorite meditation guru Jason Stephenson on Youtube – his voice and narratives are simply amazing!

Related: How to create a deeply relaxing meditation room

 

3. Do mindfulness exercises

 

Mindfulness is a scientifically proven way to calm down and become more resilient day by day.

The main idea of mindfulness is to accept your feelings and emotions just the way they are.

Let them be around, observe them without judgment (like you’re watching yourself from aside) and most importantly – bring yourself back to the present moment.

Instead of living in your imaginary world, be here.

You can do that by tuning into your senses – touching and smelling different things around you, paying attention to your breath, noticing smells, sounds, and colors.

 

4. Reframe negative thoughts

 

If you’re restless because something is bothering you, you’re probably thinking about it in a very negative way.

It certainly does not help!

A more therapeutic way to calm down is by trying to reframe your negative thoughts into something more positive.

Here is a free tool that can help you to do just that.

 

How To Calm Down With Calming Activities

 

5. Go outside

 

If you’re sad, stressed or anxious, change your surroundings ASAP!

Being in the same place means staying in the same mood.

Go out, breathe in some fresh air, take a short walk to clear up your mind.

When you’re back, do something calming again.

Sometimes we need several rounds of calming activities in order to calm down because it takes some time for the stress response in our body to subside.

 

6. Take a warm shower or bath

 

Warm water is like a therapy at your home so indulge in it for a quick calming session.

You can also do some slow breathing or imagine how you’re letting everything go while you’re in your bath.

 

7. Accept the distress

 

The more you fight those unpleasant feelings, the more they will stick around.

Wonder if it’s true?

Try not to think about a pink elephant for the next 60 seconds.

You will notice that it’s pretty hard!

The same thing happens with the thoughts you try to push away – they become intrusive.

Instead of fighting, allow those thoughts, feelings, and emotions to be there with you.

Imagine them coming into your room, staying there for a while… do not pay them more attention – just let them be there.

They will leave, sooner or later.

 

8. Write it all down

 

Another great way to calm down is to simply spill it all out on the paper.

Write everything – how you feel, what is bothering you, what you’re thinking…

This is called journaling and I do it every day!

It doesn’t solve your problems but it helps you to take off those racing thoughts out of your head and that’s something.

Here are a few journals that you can print and calm down right away: Mental Health Journals

 

9. Set up your worry/anger/anxiety time

 

Instead of being restless all the time, decide on a small time frame to do that (like every day at 12:00-12:15).

Whenever you find yourself worrying about something, write it down and put it away.

Only take out those worries at the designated time – then you can worry as much as you like, but other times just put those worries away again.

This method showed me that sometimes we worry about things that look completely ridiculous the next day.

 

10. Talk to someone

 

You may not feel like it right now, but talking is one of the best ways to calm down, used by actual therapists every day, all over the world.

If you have a supporting person who can listen to you, talking can help you to look at things from another perspective and calm down your mind.

If you don’t have anyone to talk to, it’s ok!

You can always try online therapy services like Talkspace.

I did that several times, it certainly helped and I am not ashamed at all.

 

How To Calm Down By Shifting Your Mindset

 

11. Remind yourself that distress is temporary

 

Every storm passes… Bad feelings or situations – they also pass.

Some may take a little longer, but eventually, all things will get better.

Stay patient.

 

12. To calm down your mind… Distract it!

 

Don’t let your mind go wild – give it something to do.

Distract yourself by watching a movie, going shopping, taking a walk, doing your nails, reading a book…

Your mind will certainly try to get back to intrusive thoughts and that’s ok – that’s what minds do!

Just try to bring your attention back to the activity and notice every small detail in it.

 

13. Listen to an uplifting podcast

 

My personal favorite is The Anxiety Coaches Podcast, led by an amazing Gina Ryan.

I have learned so much about anxiety and how to calm down just from this podcast!

Gina’s voice is incredibly soothing and she helps you to understand why you’re feeling the way you feel and what to do about it.

 

How To Calm Down With Rest

 

14. Try a calming app

 

Easy and fast way to calm down – if you like apps, there are tons of calming ones that you can try at the app store.

My favorite ones are for nature sounds but you can find great apps for mindfulness and meditation too.

 

15. Give yourself some time

 

If it’s really hard for you to calm down, just give yourself some time.

When a stressful situation happens, our body releases stress hormones and it takes some time for them to settle down.

Don’t force yourself.

Be brave, patient and eventually the stress response will subside.

 

16. Read about what’s worrying you

 

I know this seems counter-intuitive but many times we’re anxious because we don’t understand things or possibilities for something to happen.

For example, you may be afraid of flying, because you hear about a plane crash once in a while.

But here’s a big-picture – there are about 38 million of flights happening per year.

Out of those 38 million, only 10-20 flights have an incident so the possibility for your plane to fall is very, very low.

 

17. Check if your worry is based on the facts

 

Similar to the previous tip.

Always check your thoughts – are you thinking about real evidence or something that was made in your head?

If you’re unsure, write down all the facts you have.

Remember – facts are based on the evidence.

Everything else is not a fact!

This Thought Workbook can help you check if your mind is lying to you.

 

How To Calm Down With Healthy Activities

 

18. Plan your sleep hygiene

 

This one is not instant, but very important so I decided to include it in this list.

Sleep hygiene, or things you do to have the best sleep possible, can determine your mood the next day.

To calm down before sleep, make sure your sheets are clean and comfortable.

Allow yourself to maintain the right environment before you sleep.

For that, sleeping position matters the most.

When you sleep in a specific position for a long time, it forms pressure points which result in misaligning your body – this is why it’s so important to choose mattresses that can provide comfort and support.

For example, Winkbed combines pressure relief and provides good support and comfort (you can read SleepDelivered’s review of Winkbeds to learn more).

Have the last meal 3 hours before bed.

Do some sleep meditation and turn off your devices an hour or two before sleep.

If you can’t sleep, don’t toss and turn in your bed – get up, do something calming and then try again.

 

19. Eat a tasty (preferably – healthy) meal

 

Eating is something our bodies enjoy and it’s also a way to calm down, at least temporarily.

Eat something you really really like, especially if you find yourself losing your appetite due to stress.

Don’t think about calories this time!

Let yourself enjoy the food – you need this and there’s nothing wrong with having a bigger or richer meal once in a while. Just don’t make it a habit.

 

20. Do a short, slow, easy workout

 

Moving allows your body to release endorphins – positive happiness hormones.

It also helps your body minimize your stress response faster thus helping you relax.

Slow yoga is absolutely perfect at times like this, but you can also try Tai-Chi, Chi-Gung or simply walking.

 

How To Calm Down By Releasing Negative Energy

 

21. Get back to the present moment

 

Whenever you feel restless, check if you’re in the present moment or in other words – living now.

Many times we are ruminating about things that have already happened (and therefore can’t be changed) or have never happened (which means we are worrying about something that isn’t even real or fact-based).

In these cases, mindfulness activities can be a huge lifesaver!

Here are 15 ways to calm down using mindfulness.

 

22. Do something monotonic

 

Monotonic actions can be a really soothing way to calm down – think of a mother swinging the cradle and helping her baby relax.

Try knitting, doing your nails, curling your hair… anything that involves repeating the same action again and again.

Also read: 10 stress relief activities for introverts

 

23. Cry it all out

 

Sometimes we have an emotional overload and crying is simply the best way to release it.

Remember – there is nothing wrong with crying.

It doesn’t mean you’re weak.

In fact, it really helps when there’s just too much of everything.

So cry it out, wipe your tears and you may find yourself feeling a little better.

 

How To Calm Down With Positivity

 

24. Look for a brighter side

 

There’s a bright side to everything!

If you feel down or angry, try to rethink the situation and find one positive thing about it.

Here’s an example: I got into a terrible fight with my sister and it seems like we won’t be talking for years.

BUT at least I don’t have to deal with her daily negativity attacks anymore.

 

25. Counter it with gratitude

 

Gratitude turns what we have into enough and is a perfect way to counter a lot of negative emotions.

Be grateful for big things, be grateful for small – even having an air to breathe is worth appreciation.

Read more about gratitude here: 5 ways to stay positive with gratitude

 

26. Look at your feelings and emotions from perspective

 

If you want to calm down, it really helps to separate yourself from your emotions.

Sometimes we suffer because it feels like our emotions are an inseparable, physical part of us.

For example, after a breakup, you may feel like someone “stabbed you in the heart”.

But if you look at yourself from a third person perspective, it may feel less painful.

Imagine watching yourself from aside and your feelings – floating around, but not being a part of you.

This helps you to understand that your pain or your fear is not you.

You are you and those things are just emotions – they come and go.

All the time.

 

Other Ways To Calm Down

 

27. Let in some fresh air

 

Sometimes all we need is a fresh breeze to calm down and be more present.

Open the window, go to your balcony and breathe in some fresh oxygen – slowly and deeply.

 

28. Check if your thoughts are logical

 

People often get stuck in unhelpful or illogical thinking patterns, called thought distortions.

You can take a look at them here: Cognitive Distortions.

Basically, distortion is your brain lying to you.

Whenever you catch yourself stuck in overthinking, check for these distortions in your thoughts.

After you’ve spotted one (or a few), reframe your thoughts to a more logical version.

It’s a more psychological way to calm down and honestly, sometimes it’s the only one that helps!

 

29. Light some candles

 

The candlelit atmosphere helps to create a calming mood.

Just make sure to put your candles on a safe surface and never leave them burning if you know you may fall asleep.

 

30. Imagine yourself as a strong woman and act like it

 

Our mind controls everything in our body, including our feelings.

If you want to calm down, be more confident or express any other quality, imagine yourself being someone with those qualities and then act like it.

It may feel weird at first but soon you will fool yourself (and that’s a good thing!).

Also read: How to be more comfortable in your own skin