Why the Anxiety Ring Will Be Your New Best Friend
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Many people swear by anxiety rings. The concept behind these rings is similar to that of other fidget toys and jewelry.
Each ring has small moving parts that the wearer can fidget with to calm anxious thoughts and keep their hands busy. Many adults with anxiety, ADHD, autism or just simple stress love them.
But do they actually work?
What Anxiety Rings Can't Do
To start, let's get a few things straight. While many people find anxiety rings to be helpful, they're merely a coping mechanism. Fiddling with a ring isn't going to erase an anxiety disorder, nor any other mood disorder. Anxiety rings and other fidget toys should be considered a tool, not a replacement for comprehensive mental health care.
If you find it hard to focus or have stress and anxiety interfering with your life on a day-to-day basis, it's a good idea to speak with a doctor or licensed therapist. A mental health care professional can determine whether your stress is really something more. After getting a diagnosis, they can give you techniques and tools to help treat your anxiety. These tools might include medication, talk therapy, breathing techniques or meditation.
There are no one-size fits all treatment, so don't try to diagnose yourself based on someone's TikTok video. Or use a piece of jewelry to battle a bigger beast than it can handle.
What Anxiety Rings Can Actually Help With
Now that we've got the disclaimers aside, anxiety rings can be a helpful tool to add to your anxiety-fighting arsenal. Also called fidget rings or spinner rings, anxiety rings can train your brain to associate the fidgeting behavior with a sense of calm.
Some find that simply keeping their hands busy by fidgeting with the ring is enough to distract them from worrisome thoughts, but the mind can also be conditioned to associate the ring with positive feelings instead of the ones that make you break out in a cold sweat.
To max out the usefulness of a fidget ring, consider what you'd like to associate the ring with. It doesn't matter what it is, as long as it's something soothing. As you fidget with the ring, fill your mind with positive thoughts. One could envision things like:
- Tranquil waves breaking on a peaceful beach
- A memory of your happiest moment
- A hug from your favorite person
- Positive affirmations, like "I am strong. I am resilient. I can do this."
Associating deep breathing with the anxiety ring can also help. To start, practice spinning the ring and making these positive associations when you aren't feeling anxious. Then, the next time you're feeling anxious, spin the ring and try to recreate the calm vision you practiced before.
It might be a challenge at first, but over time, just the act of spinning the ring will give your brain the sign that everything's OK.
How Real Anxiety Sufferers Feel About Anxiety Rings
Pretty much every anxiety ring has a mile-long list of reviews touting the benefits of these simplistic devices. It's common for people with anxiety to fiddle with ordinary jewelry, and anxiety rings give them an even more effective way to cope:
"I have a thumb ring that I'll constantly play with that helps me stay calm and concentrate on what's in front of me. It's like the extra space in my brain needs something to play with instead of obsessing and overthinking everything." — ppl_r_oceans, Reddit
"I have one and I love it. It helps a lot. I like that most people think it's just a regular ring and don't pay attention when I fidget with it." —banditioned, Reddit
"This lil' ring has only been on my finger for a few days, but it's already like a security blanket and helps me stay in reality when my brain has too many tabs open." —Courtney, Amazon
Anxiety Rings vs. Fidget Spinners: Is There a Difference?
Functionally, anxiety rings are no different than fidget spinners or cubes. The major perk is that they're much more discrete. Anxiety is nothing to be embarrassed about, of course, but fiddling around with a toy at work may draw unwanted attention.
Anxiety rings, on the other hand, are subtle. They look just like normal jewelry, and you can use them whenever the need arises without raising questions.
Plus, it's much harder to misplace something that's always on your finger.
Where to Get Them
Fidget rings come in a variety of styles. Just select one that fits your aesthetic and seems the most pleasing to fiddle with. Amazon has plenty of ring styles to choose from, with this model being the most popular.
For more unique looks, Etsy has pages upon pages of handcrafted anxiety rings. If you're not sure which one suits you best, test out a few.
Most of them are under $30, so there's no reason you can't wear more than one.