10 Products to Help Reduce Anxiety Right Now

Daley Quinn is a beauty, health, and lifestyle journalist with extensive experience reviewing health and wellness products and services.

I’ll never forget the first time I had a panic attack. It was my senior year of college, and many of my classmates and I had traveled to Punta Cana for our spring break vacation—a final hurrah before our big graduation day. After a week of drinking, along with pulling an all-nighter on our final night there, I arrived at the airport the next day with anxiety coursing through my body.

Never having had experienced a panic attack before, I had no idea why my knees suddenly buckled, why my lips were buzzing and wouldn’t move, and why my arms contorted into what I can only describe as dinosaur hands. I was rushed to the airport emergency clinic where I received an IV drip to rehydrate. Thankfully, we made it back to our gate in time to fly back to New York City, but ever since, I’ve been using multiple products and techniques during times of high stress. 

Whether it’s a massive hangover, a fear of flying, or just being overworked at your job, anxiety can manifest for various reasons.

“Anxiety can also be known as a thought disorder, as it can create a swirling of cyclical thoughts in the brain,” Mark Mayfield, LPC, a board-certified counselor and founder and CEO of Mayfield Counseling Centers in Colorado, tells Verywell. “These consuming thoughts activate the fight, flight, or freeze response in the brain and subsequently engage the sympathetic nervous system, which automatically protects our bodies from danger or harm.”

According to Mayfield, anxiety can cause a number of symptoms, including:

• Increased heart rate
• Dilated pupils
• Rapid breathing
• Adrenal hormone release
• Cortisol hormone release
• Slowed digestion
• Hypervigilance

If anxiety is prolonged and not just situational, it can have deleterious effects on the body, according to Mayfield. 

Considering the events of the past year, including a global pandemic, nationwide protests, and the United States Presidential election, it’s no surprise that rates of anxiety have skyrocketed in 2020. “I see anxiety continuing to increase [in my practice]—the onset of the pandemic unveiled the anxiety that was already present in our society, and then with the continuation of uncertainty, I am seeing anxiety increase exponentially,” Mayfield says. “Some research indicates a 25% increase in June and July alone.”

Of course, there are many reasons as to why anxiety is significantly increasing in this country, but Mayfield believes it’s mostly because of our overconsumption of media. “The human being was not designed to take in and process as much information as we are receiving (multiple social media platforms, 24/7 news apps, television, etc.), which is increasing the anxiety,” he says. “Yes, the election is [heightening anxiety] too, but I think it is because of the sheer amount of ‘pundits’ speaking into the conversation that increases the anxiety.”

If you’re one of the many Americans struggling with anxiety right now, it might be time to step away from social media and television and turn inward with my favorite picks below. 

Komuso Design's The Shift Necklace, $85

I’ve just recently discovered this tool, and it’s helped my day-to-day anxiety tremendously. The Shift by Komuso Design is a handy little breathing tool that you can wear around your neck and to help you control your breathing by slowing down your exhales. By controlling your breath through the straw-like tube, you can slow down your heartbeat, decrease your stress levels, and lower your blood pressure.

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CAMPO Essential Oil Roll-On - RELAX Blend, $25

I love using essential oils to help get me through each day. I inhale specific oils throughout the day depending on what I’m doing—whether I'm waking up, about to start work, about to start a workout, or winding down for bed. During moments that I can feel my body start to get anxious, I like to roll some of this CAMPO RELAX roll-on oil onto my wrists, back of hands, and under my nose. The blend really helps me to relax without making me feel sleepy.

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Prismatic Plants Good Day CBD Oil, $70

CBD oil is the latest trend in relieving stress and anxiety, and for good reason—ingestible CBD can work quickly and positively affects the limbic and paralimbic areas of the brain. This pick from Prismatic Plants contains 300 milligrams (mg) of CBD, plus 100 mg of cannabidiolic acid (CBDa) in each bottle, and is ideal for times of stress that are difficult to control by other means. 

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Brooklinen Weighted Comforter, From $249

It’s amazing what a heavy blanket can do for the mind and body—in one study done in 2008, researchers found that using a weighted blanket reduced anxiety by 33% of the 32 participants. This one from Brooklinen comes in five different weights, features glass microbeads, and is incredibly comfortable.

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Happy Notes Book, $24

I write in my journal almost every day, twice a day—it is my safe haven and my moment to get everything out of my brain, onto the page. Over the last few years, I’ve been practicing gratitude as much as I can, and the Happy Notes Book is where my practice started. This nifty little book gives you prompts to practice your gratitude daily, while offering space to free write as you please, too. 

Mayfield is also a fan of journaling daily. “Create a brain-dump or thought journal that will allow you to physically release your racing thoughts,” says Mayfield. “I typically do this before bedtime or in the morning when I wake up.”

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DAVIDs TEA Organic Peppermint Amour, $20

I lived in Ireland for a few years when I was younger, and every day after school, I’d put on the kettle and sip on a cuppa’ peppermint tea. It was my daily ritual and a great indication to my body that I was home and it was time to relax (and, er, get a bit of homework done, perhaps). Because of my past with peppermint, it’s become an incredibly relaxing beverage that I whip up when I need to take it easy. Other great, soothing options include chamomile and valerian root tea.

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Headspace, $13/month

I’ll admit that I’ve been an infrequent meditator the last year or so, but I try to fit it in during the mornings, when I can. On the mornings when I do practice for 10 minutes or so, I love to use Headspace, which guides you through various types of meditation practices with a calming and soothing voice. I love Headspace because they have meditations for a dozen types of anxiety-related issues, whether it be feelings of overwhelm, panicking, or letting go of stress. 

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The Class by Taryn Toomey, $40/month

I credit The Class by Taryn Toomey for keeping me relatively sane during the first few months of the pandemic, when Boston was under lockdown. The Class is unlike any other workout I’ve ever experienced—it combines breath work, meditation and lots of weird movements and jumping around in an hour-long practice that will leave you feeling exhausted, but also peaceful and stress-free.

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Chiji Pure Love Crystal Energy Candle, $40

Is there anything more comforting than lighting a candle and cozying up under a warm blanket? Every time I light this one up, I’m instantly awash in an aura of relaxation and just overall good vibes.

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Happy Dance CBD Bath Bomb, $15

Each time I move to a new apartment, my one criteria is that the new place must have a bathtub. Forget the washer/dryer, dishwasher, or in-unit air conditioning—I need my bath time to help me maintain my anxiety. The warm water helps me relax, and adding a bath bomb to the tub is a nice way to signal to your body it’s time to zen-out and take a moment for yourself. 

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