Best Anxiety Quotes

Is anxiety making your head spin, wearing you out, keeping you awake, . . .?

Here's a collection of quotes about stress and anxiety to help you understand anxiety, provide anxiety-relieving direction from experts, and lift your spirits; PLUS resources with practical anti-anxiety tips and techniques to make your life better.

What's in This Post

Anxiety is Like…

“Anxiety's like a rocking chair. It gives you something to do, but it doesn't get you very far.” ―Jodi Picoult

Anxiety is a lot like a toddler. It never stops talking, tells you you’re wrong about everything, and wakes you up at 3 am. 

Encouraging Quotes for Anxious People

“Today I escaped anxiety. Or no, I discarded it, because it was within me, in my own perceptions—not outside.” ―Marcus Aurelius, Meditations

“Every moment is a fresh beginning.” ―T.S. Eliot

“Each morning we are born again. What we do today is what matters most.” ― Buddha

“Just when the caterpillar thought the world was ending, he turned into a butterfly.” ―Proverb

“Mantra for Anxiety: This is not you. This is something moving through you. It can leave out of the same door it came in.” ―James Clear

Quotes to Help You Stop Worrying

“Worrying is carrying tomorrow's load with today's strength—carrying two days at once. It is moving into tomorrow ahead of time. Worrying doesn't empty tomorrow of its sorrow, it empties today of its strength.” ―Corrie Ten Boom

“Worry often gives a small thing a big shadow.” —Swedish proverb

“Don’t believe every worried thought you have. Worried thoughts are notoriously inaccurate.” —Renee Jain

“When I look back on all these worries, I remember the story of the old man who said on his deathbed that he had had a lot of trouble in his life, most of which had never happened.” —Winston Churchill

“Worry a little bit every day and in a lifetime you will lose a couple of years. If something is wrong, fix it if you can. But train yourself not to worry. Worry never fixes anything.” —Mary Hemingway

“It ain’t no use putting up your umbrella till it rains!” —Alice Caldwell Rice

Anxiety Hurts Relationships

In counseling couples, I've noticed that anxiety can drive controlling demanding behavior that is very hard on relationships. Owning your anxiety as your issue to deal with―instead of making it your partner's responsibility―is a key step toward improving your relationship.

“Anxiety is love's greatest killer. It makes others feel as you might when a drowning man holds on to you. You want to save him, but you know he will strangle you with his panic.” ―Anais Nin

“Nothing can bring you peace but yourself.” —Ralph Waldo Emerson

Let Go of Control

“You must learn to let go. Release the stress. You were never in control anyway.” —Steve Maraboli

“The best thing one can do when it is raining, is to let it rain.” —Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

“Our anxiety does not come from thinking about the future, but from wanting to control it.” ―Kahlil Gibran

“There is only one way to happiness and that is to cease worrying about things which are beyond the power of our will.” —Epictetus

Embrace Change

“We delight in the beauty of the butterfly, but rarely admit the changes it has gone through to achieve that beauty.” ―Maya Angelou

It’s OK to Make Mistakes

“Once you realize there is life after mistakes, you gain a self-confidence that never goes away.” ―Bob Schieffer

“I just give myself permission to suck…I find this hugely liberating.”—John Green

“Take chances, make mistakes. That’s how you grow. Pain nourishes your courage. You have to fail in order to practice being brave.” —Mary Tyler Moore

“The greatest mistake we make is living in constant fear that we will make one.”
—John C. Maxwell

Accept Your Imperfection

At the end of the day, tell yourself gently: "I love you, you did the best you could today, and even if you didn’t accomplish all you had planned, I love you anyway."

Stop beating yourself up for not being perfect. You were never designed to be anyway.

“Understanding the difference between healthy striving and perfectionism is critical to laying down the shield and picking up your life. Research shows that perfectionism hampers success. In fact, it's often the path to depression, anxiety, addiction, and life paralysis.” ―Brené Brown

For help overcoming perfectionism, check out this post: The Link Between Perfectionism, Anxiety and Depression. 

Stretch Your Comfort Zone

“Everything you’ve ever wanted is on the other side of fear.” ―George Addair

“He who is not everyday conquering some fear has not learned the secret of life.” ―Shannon L. Alder

“It’s OKAY to be scared. Being scared means you’re about to do something really, really brave.” ―Mandy Hale

Anxiety Relief Quotes

Not everything that weighs you down is yours to carry.

"The greatest weapon against stress is our ability to choose one thought over another." — William James

“Present fears are less than horrible imaginings.”—William Shakespeare

“If we wanted to change the situation, we first had to change ourselves. And to change ourselves effectively, we first had to change our perceptions.” —Stephen Covey

“The great thing, then, in all education, is to make our nervous system our ally instead of our enemy.”—William James

“Nothing diminishes anxiety faster than action.”—Walter Anderson

Break Down Problems to Doable Steps

When you feel overwhelmed, remember: A little at a time is how it gets done. One thing, one task, one moment at a time.

“The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.”—Lao Tzu

“Anxiety happens when you think you have to figure out everything all at once. Breathe. You’re strong. You got this. Take it day by day.”—Karen Salmansohn

Look for the Silver Lining

“Sometimes the bad things that happen in our lives put us directly on the path to the most wonderful things that will ever happen to us.”—Nicole Reed

“Peace is the result of retraining your mind to process life as it is, rather than as you think it should be.” ―Wayne W. Dyer

You Can Do It!

“Trust yourself. You’ve survived a lot, and you’ll survive whatever is coming.” — Robert Tew

“P.S. You’re not going to die. Here’s the white-hot truth: if you go bankrupt, you’ll still be okay. If you lose the gig, the lover, the house, you’ll still be okay. If you sing off-key, get beat by the competition, have your heart shattered, get fired…it’s not going to kill you. Ask anyone who’s been through it.” —Danielle LaPorte

“Believe in yourself and all that you are. Know that there is something inside of you that is greater than any obstacle.” —Christian D. Larson

Benefits of Learning to be Calm 

“Your calm mind is the ultimate weapon against your challenges.”—Bryant McGill

“Calmness is the cradle of power.” —Josiah Gilbert Holland

Anxiety Relief Books and Recordings

Through a lifetime of dealing with my own anxiety and decades of helping counseling clients overcome theirs, I've learned a lot about what hurts and helps. I put that learning into creating books and recordings to help reduce your anxiety and increase your stress resilience. 

Anxiety Help Books

Anti-Anxiety Hypnosis Recording

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