What is anxiety?  Anxiety (and panic, the extreme form of anxiety) involves a normal physiological response that alerts us to danger - a flush of adrenalin, shortness of breath, a pounding heart, sweating, feeling on edge.  But, if you have an anxiety disorder, none of this feels normal.  It can feel horrific, occurring too intensely, too often, and as if it is, "out-of-control."

 

It's physical, mental and emotional   Anxiety also involves the emotions (apprehension, fear, dread) and mental activity (overly focused and narrow thinking or constant worrying thoughts).  Getting "triggered" in one of these domains (physical, mental or emotional) can trigger the others, causing some to feel (especially with panic) spiraling "out-of-control."  It can feel so overwhelming that you cannot even recognize when or how you got triggered. 

 

"Healthy" anxiety  Effectively managed, anxiety is a helpful safety alert. Unfortunately for many, this response gets triggered too easily, too often, so that instead of being helpful, it gets in the way of living life with ease. 

 

Self-help tips   The tips below really can help.  But, if anxiety persists, causes distress or interferes with normal activity, you could have an anxiety disorder (such as Panic, PTSD, Obsessive-Compulsive, or Social Anxiety Disorder) and could benefit from psychotherapy. 

 

1.  Train your body to calm down when it gets "triggered."  Disciplines like yoga, meditation, etc., or breathing techniques such as the one I teach, can help.

 

2.  Challenge habitual, "automatic," self-sabatoging thinking.  Find alternative yet realistic ways to think about things.

 

3.  Learn to get better at identifying and listening to emotions, as they occur.  They will help you to understand what you need to do to get your needs met.  Ignoring emotions and needs leads to anxiety.

 

4.  Get plenty of rest and relaxation, and reduce environmental stress in your life, (reduce responsibilities).   A tired, over-worked nervous system can be more easily triggered.

 

5.  Don't drink alcohol to aleviate anxiety.  If you do, you might be using alcohol as a medicine, and there are more effective and safer medicines available.  People with anxiety disorders are at higher risk for becoming alcoholic.