MY HEALTHY LIFE
Three Ways to Reduce Anxiety Without Medication
A
ccording to a 2005 report published in the Archives of General Psychiatry, 18 percent of the adult population in the United States suffers from an anxiety disorder. A 1999 study published in The Journal of Clinical Psychology found that the treatment of anxietyrelated disorders costs the United States over $42 billion each year. Benzodiazepines, the class of prescription drugs typically used to treat anxiety, can be addictive and potentially dangerous. As the author of a report published in a 1995 edition of Psychiatric Annals explained, benzodiazepines are potentially addictive and can cause psychological and pharmacological
36 ‹
WOMENOFCOLOR | SPRING 2021
dependence. According to the report, a person can become dependent on benzodiazepines after using them for only a few weeks, and long-term users are at an increased risk. Fortunately, there are natural ways to relieve anxiety without risky medications. Read on to learn more. Lower Anxiety with Exercise If you have been suffering from anxiety, regular exercise may alleviate your symptoms. In a study published in a 2012 edition of the journal Acta Kinesiologica, female participants performed two weekly sessions of aerobic exercise for 10 weeks. At the end of the study, these women had lower levels of anxiety, stress,
www.womenofcolor.online
