Everyone experiences strong emotions at times; we all have times when we feel out of sorts. Learning how to self-soothe can be a life-saving ability in stressful situations. What is self-soothing, and why is it important?

We all want to feel better when we are harmed physically or mentally. We want to feel better by learning how to repair and relieve anxiety in both the short and long term. In other words, we soothe ourselves.

Self-soothing is an emotional management approach used to reestablish your feelings following a stressful incident. It is a stress-relieving coping approach that entails engaging in pleasant, comfortable, and tranquil activities that focus on the five senses. These enable one to redirect their attention away from undesired thoughts, sensations, and urges.

Many people struggle with self-soothing for a variety of reasons. They may believe that they are unworthy of these tactics, that self-comforting is shameful, or that others should be in charge of soothing them. Alternatively, they may overdo self-soothing tactics, which can lead to long-term emotional avoidance practices.

It is important to note that self-soothing can become an avoidance practice when used excessively. For example, suppose someone self-soothes by sleeping under a blanket for hours every time they experience an undesirable emotion. In that case, they are most likely not engaging in life healthily or productively. Self-soothing tactics are intended to be short-term, temporary aids in overcoming unpleasant situations and bad emotions.

Healthy self-soothing can allow us to focus on healing ourselves without arming ourselves,

This blog will explain self-soothing practices and their benefits.

Positive effects of self-soothing

Relieving anxiety and stress

A recurrent feature of self-soothing is making time for calming activities such as taking a warm bath, listening to music, or practicing yoga or meditation. Any exercise that makes you feel more relaxed will help to lessen stress and anxiety symptoms and improve your mood.

Enhancing your self-esteem

Taking time to look after yourself can have a positive impact on the way you see yourself, as well as help to calm your nerves: treating yourself with kindness can make you look upon yourself more kindly. People with higher self-esteem are better able to deal with setbacks and are more likely to achieve self-improvement goals.

Promoting your mental health

Making modifications to prioritize self-soothing can aid in managing your mental health difficulties and may even prevent them from worsening. Of course, self-soothing is not a substitute for professional assistance, and you should not feel obligated to solve your problems on your own. If your mental health is deteriorating, you should always seek help. However, if you want to improve your mental health, taking the time to care for yourself both mentally and physically is critical.

Boosting self-awareness

When you self-soothe, you are aware of your feelings, so you are practicing self-awareness. This might assist you in recognizing trends in your emotions, such as occurrences or situations that can exacerbate symptoms. It can also help you identify what activities or chores are important for your well-being, alleviate unpleasant symptoms, or provide joy or relaxation.

Improving resilience and balance

Self-soothing can help you become more resilient, or able to withstand adversity and manage with life’s inevitable challenges. Self-soothing helps you to balance duties and stressors such as work, family, and relationships, as well as your personal needs. 

How to practice self-soothing

5-4-3-2-1 method

The 5-4-3-2-1 approach requires you to alternate your focus between your five senses. Find a comfortable posture and concentrate on five things you can see, four things you can touch, three things you can hear, two things you can smell, and one item you can taste to practice this. Repeat as many times as necessary. This method is especially beneficial for people who have difficulty focusing their attention on one issue for an extended amount of time. Changing your senses keeps you engaged in self-soothing and away from unwanted thoughts, feelings, or impulses.

Think about your triggers

One of the most aggravating aspects of powerful unpleasant emotions is not knowing why you are experiencing them. You can obtain greater control of your feelings by becoming more aware of what causes you to become unhappy in the first place. Do your feelings spiral out of control when you’re tired or hungry? Consider whether any specific thinking processes are causing or keeping you irritated. Are you ruminating, replaying the incident in your head over and over? Perhaps it’s your inner critic. Tell them why they’re wrong—or, at the very least, unhelpful—so you can regain control of your thinking.

Try the progressive muscle relaxation method

Progressive muscular relaxation is a grounding technique in which you deliberately focus on relaxing your body’s muscles. To do it, tense and relax each muscle group, one at a time, from head to toes (or toes to head). Tense for 5 seconds, then relax the muscle completely. Take note of your tension, then take note of the difference when relaxed. Say “Relax” to yourself as you relax each muscle.

Redirect your negative thoughts 

Dwelling on the negative never serves us well. Instead, we continue to sink downward, missing out on the good things in life. Consider utilizing positive affirmations to change negative thoughts about yourself into positive ones. For example, if you imagine how bad a situation might be, try to switch to speaking your positive characteristics aloud. “I am kind, smart, and funny”. Switching the brain to focus on YOURSELF can more effectively steer the brain away from negative thoughts.

Breathe slowly and deeply.

Self-soothing frequently includes deactivating the sympathetic nervous system. We can accomplish this by engaging the parasympathetic nervous system. The parasympathetic nervous system aids in the suppression of fight or flight responses and the restoration of calm. Taking a few long, deep breaths can readily activate the parasympathetic nervous system. Box breathing is a simple breathing technique to memorize. Box breathing entails breathing in for four counts, holding for four counts, breathing out for four counts, and then holding for four counts. Repeat this box-breathing approach a few times until you feel calmer.

Anxiety, impulsivity, and undesirable emotions can be difficult to regulate, but self-soothing practices might help in the short term. Consider contacting a mental health expert to discuss other therapy options for long-term relief.