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It is the word that seems to be on everyone’s lips these days; anxiety. And lets be honest; is that really so surprising?  Even in the day-to-day routine of life, it seems the world is bombarding us from every direction.  Stress causes your heart to race, your breathing clinch and your brain fog up until its impossible to think clearly.  Anxiety is especially challenging for young people who have yet to develop the coping skills that come with maturity.

Imagine then, the additional stress of a diagnosis of melanoma or cancer. It’s like lighting a fuse. That’s why it is more important than ever to learn how to manage your emotional wellness to enhance your physical health and strengthen your body against disease – no matter your age or status in life.

Let’s begin by understanding what happens when anxiety strikes. During a normal stressful situation, your body releases hormones that prompt the “flight or fight” reaction. Your body’s hormonal levels shoot up,  but once the situation is resolved, the levels go back down. That’s a healthy reaction.

But chronic stress is an entirely different situation! In this case, the hormonal levels don’t ease off. Your body continually releases elevated levels of Cortisol, Norepinephrine and Epinephrine which weakens your overall  immune system. This chronic “fight or flight” state can affect both your mental and physical state by triggering a new cancer or aggravate an existing cancer by promoting tumor growth or helping it spread to through  the body.  Here’s some research links that can tell you more:

Stress and Cancer: bit.ly/4kVuDV3

Cortisol and Cancer: bit.ly/4kWDeXA

What Can You Do? Quite a Bit Actually!

Obviously if you have chronic anxiety it is always best to get guidance from a licensed professional therapist , but here’s a few simple tricks offered by anxiety expert and Cognitive Behavioral Therapist April Moran of the Claire Marie Foundation that can really help!

It’s All About Breathing!

Oxygen is your friend. It can be as easy as breathing deeply, slowly and doing it the right way. Technically, it’s called Diaphragmatic Breathing. Think of it as proper cleansing breaths such as you may do in a yoga class. In with the good, out with the bad at a slow pace to calm.

Changing the rhythm of your breath while infusing oxygen into your system can slow your heart rate, signal relaxation to your brain and remove toxins from your system.

It also stimulates the vagus nerve, which runs from the brain stem to the abdomen. It’s really important as it is part of the parasympathetic nervous system which manages your body.  Learning to trigger your parasympathetic nervous system can help you calm down. You’ll feel better. And your ability to think clearly will return.

Steps to Diaphragmatic Breathing

• Sit up straight – in a chair if possible – with your legs, shoulders, head and neck relaxed.
• Breathe in through your nose for a count of four and out through your lips for a count of eight.
• If you place your one hand on your upper chest – and the other hand just under your ribs on the diaphragm. You will feel your stomach move as the oxygen slowing fills your body and then goes out.
• Keep both hands in place during the process. 
• Do this several times – just for a few minutes and you should begin to feel more calm.

Other Tips:

Ice, Ice Baby! You can also trigger the vagus nerve by reducing your body temperature through the TRIPP method. It’s easy!

• Hold your breath
• Place your face in a bowl of cold, icy water for at least 30 seconds.
• You can also just splash cold water on your face or place cold gel mask on your eyes for forehead – again for 30 seconds.
• This works best if you are bent over.

Work Your Body ! Use Exercise and Muscle Management.

• Establish routine of exercise as part of your overall stress management.
• Feeling a surge of anxiety? Spend 5-10 minutes running in place, do some jumping jacks, dance or lift a few weights.
• Practice tensing and relaxing each muscle group in your body; beginning with your toes up to your head. This is especially great at bedtime to help your body relax for a good nights sleep. 
• And always – remember to breathe!

Above all else, know you are not alone. Be kind to yourself, and lean on those who love you the most. There will be sunshine behind any cloud.  Some days it’s just a little harder to find. 

To learn more, listen to Marianne Banister’s conversation with April Moran on our podcast An Unexpected Life. You can find it where you listen to all your favorites!