Anxiety Reducing Strategies in the time of COVID

Raise your hand if your anxiety has shot through the roof during this global pandemic! I sat down with Dr. Nina Kaiser, licensed psychotherapist and founder of Practice San Francisco to talk through some strategies for bringing our personal and collective anxieties down a notch.

Anxiety is an incredibly common issue for my new mom patients and Radiant Mama members - and due to the global pandemic and shelter in place orders, anxiety in general is on the rise.

We’re all on constant high alert! So how do we take it down a notch?

As a dietitian specializing in postpartum health and wellness I look at anxiety through the lens of nutrients and hormones. It’s certainly no coincidence that the most commonly depleted nutrients in postpartum, like zinc and magnesium are directly linked to increased rates of anxiety. Hormonally, when progesterone is suppressed and/or cortisol is high, both anxiety and insomnia are more likely.

But we also have this elephant in the room called Corona, and in this unprecedented collective crisis anxiety is not just common but downright expected.

I called on my colleague Nina Kaiser, PhD of Practice San Francisco to join me for a talk on how to reduce our worries and anxieties in this historical time. All of the tips and strategies she gave are all small steps that we can all implement in just a few moments each day. Please enjoy the audio and comment below your thoughts!

Upcoming virtual events and offerings with Practice San Francisco (open to moms everywhere):

Thursday, 4/16, 4-5pm PST, free livestream mixer for expecting and new moms with Dr. Katie Taylor (register here!)

Weekly livestream support groups (see all here!) for expecting moms, new moms, and moms of preschoolers/elementary schoolers, and downloadable webinars for parents on managing our own anxiety/mood as parents, surviving school closures, and talking with kids about coronavirus.  And  a free Facebook group for parents focused on parenting through stressful times that offers resources on all of these topics, plus a weekly Facebook live with Nina.