Easing New Year Anxiety/General Anxiety: gentle ways to find your footing again

For some people, the New Year feels exciting – a clean slate, fresh starts, big plans.

For others, it can bring a tight chest, racing thoughts, and a sense of dread you can’t quite explain. If that’s you, you’re not alone… and you’re not “doing it wrong”.

The turn of the year can press on lots of tender places: expectations, comparison, money worries after Christmas, family dynamics, loneliness, grief, burnout, or that nagging feeling of “I should have my life together by now.” That’s a lot for any nervous system.

So let’s slow it down a little.

Why the New Year can feel so unsettling

The New Year is often sold to us as a reset button. Social media is full of “new year, new you”, goal lists, glow-ups and productivity promises. Even if you know it’s unrealistic, it can still stir something up inside.

New Year anxiety often comes from a mix of:

• Pressure to change quickly (or to prove you’re changing)

• Fear of getting it wrong (“What if I waste another year?”)

• Unfinished business (regrets, guilt, grief, or things left unresolved)

• Uncertainty (about work, relationships, health, money, the world)

• Comparison (everyone else looks like they’re smashing it… right?)

• A disrupted routine after the Christmas period, especially if you thrive on predictability

And if you’re someone who experiences anxiety anyway, the New Year can magnify it.

What New Year anxiety/genral anxiety can look like

Anxiety isn’t always obvious. It doesn’t always show up as panic. Sometimes it’s quieter and more “everyday”, like:

• Overthinking and replaying the past year

• A sense of heaviness or flatness (even when “nothing is wrong”)

• Trouble sleeping, vivid dreams, early waking

• Irritability, tearfulness, or feeling on edge

• Avoiding plans, emails, social messages, or “life admin”

• Feeling stuck between wanting change and feeling too overwhelmed to start

If any of this feels familiar, it makes sense. Your mind and body may be trying to protect you from threat – even if that “threat” is a calendar date and a bunch of expectations.

Gentle ways to ease New Year anxiety/anxiety in general

You don’t need a brand-new you. You might just need a little more softness, steadiness, and support.

Here are some ideas you can try – take what fits, leave what doesn’t.

1) Shrink the year down to today

A whole year is too big for an anxious brain.

Instead of “What do I want this year?”, try:

• “What do I need this week?”

• “What would help me feel 5% more steady today?”

• “What’s one small thing I can do in the next 10 minutes?”

Small is not failure. Small is how we build safety.

2) Question the “shoulds”

New Year anxiety (any anxiety really!) loves a good should:

• “I should be more motivated.”

• “I should have achieved more.”

• “I should feel hopeful.”

If you notice a “should”, try gently asking:

• “Says who?”

• “Is this my voice, or someone else’s expectation?”

• “What would I say to a friend who felt this way?”

Often, the kindest and most grounded voice is already inside you – anxiety just shouts over it.

3) Choose one non-negotiable

Resolutions can quickly become another stick to beat yourself with.

Instead, pick one small “non-negotiable” that supports your wellbeing. Something realistic, not perfect. For example:

• A short walk after lunch

• A screen-free ten minutes before bed

• A regular meal (especially breakfast)

• A weekly phone call with a safe person

• A simple bedtime routine (same time-ish, same steps)

Non-negotiables aren’t about control. They’re about care.

4) Use your body to tell your brain: “we’re safe”

Anxiety lives in the body. So it helps to include the body in calming.

A simple one:

• Breathe in through your nose for a count of 4

• Breathe out for a count of 6 (make your exhale longer than your inhale)

• Repeat 5 times

Or try the 3-3-3 grounding rule:

• Name 3 things you can see

• Name 3 things you can hear

• Move 3 body parts (wiggle toes, roll shoulders, unclench jaw)

You’re not trying to “get rid” of anxiety – you’re helping your nervous system come back to the present.

5) Limit the comparison traps

If scrolling leaves you feeling behind, it might be worth reducing your exposure for a while (even temporarily).

You could:

• Unfollow accounts that trigger the “not enough” feeling

• Put time limits on apps

• Swap doom-scrolling for something that actually restores you (music, a podcast, a book, a bath, fresh air)

Comparison tends to pull us out of our own life. Coming back to your pace is an act of self-respect.

6) Let your feelings be messy and true

The New Year can bring up grief – for people you’ve lost, for time that’s passed, for versions of life you thought you’d have by now.

If you’re not feeling hopeful, that doesn’t mean you’re broken. It might mean you’ve been carrying a lot.

You don’t have to force positivity, you can say: “This is hard.”And also: “I’m still here.”

Both can be true.

7) Make space for support (you don’t have to do this alone)

Sometimes New Year anxiety (or again any anxiety) is a sign that you’ve been pushing through for a long time.

If you’re feeling overwhelmed, talking to a counsellor can help you:

• Make sense of what’s underneath the anxiety (often it’s not “just the New Year”)

• Build coping tools that actually fit you

• Work with self-criticism, perfectionism, burnout, or people-pleasing

• Create boundaries and steadier routines

• Feel less alone with it all

Therapy isn’t about “fixing” you. It’s about having a calm, non-judgemental space where you can be honest.

A final thought

If the New Year feels heavy, it doesn’t mean you’re failing. It means you’re human.

You don’t need to transform your whole life in January. You can start with one small anchor. One gentle choice. One breath. One step.

And if you’d like support with anxiety, overwhelm, or that “stuck” feeling as the year begins, counselling can help. You deserve a space where you don’t have to hold it all together on your own.