What to do when the moment of anxiety ends

Learning to calm your anxiety in the moment is crucial. But making those anxiety spirals less frequent means you need to work on it in the moments when you're not feeling anxious. That's when your brain can be more creative and open to change, because it's not in fight-or-flight mode.

For those times, Jondal has more advice:

• Keep track of what triggers you. If you're anxious often, it can be helpful to keep a journal and look for patterns. "Looking at the possible root causes can help you resolve chronic feelings of anxiety. Are you triggered by particular places, people or situations? Your body might be sending you a message about some aspect of your life that's out of balance," says Jondal.
• Keep track of what works for you. "Everyone is unique. Take time to identify what makes you feel safe, and proactively bring more of this into your life. Your unique solutions will always trump generic advice about how to deal with anxiety."
• Don't be afraid to seek help. "Therapy and coaching can really help with the mindset that supports an empowering and optimistic view of who you are and what life can look like for you."

Not sure whether you have an anxiety disorder, or are just anxious? Over one-third of U.S. adults deal with an anxiety disorder at some point in their lives. And they're even more common in women and people with chronic pain or other health conditions.

If you feel excessively worried most days for at least 6 months, or anxiety is interfering significantly with your life, it's something to bring up at your next appointment with a licensed health care provider. You can get information from your doctor on therapy, medication or other strategies that can help to manage your anxiety level.