Anxiety is one of those words that has become popular in mainstream language, however, what do we really mean when we say this word? Are we speaking of expected nervousness with a new transition or does this dive into intense unease and perseveration on potential events that impact quality of life. We can speak of anxiety on a spectrum from unease and worry to chronic patterns of perseverating that impacts quality of life and decision making.
Anxiety is our bodies biological response to feeling as if we are in danger. Our sympathetic nervous system kicks in high gear when our body interprets something as a threat. In order to get ready to fight, flight or freeze, as we would need to as cave people to run away from a lion attacking us, our heart rate increases, our breath quickens, our reactions intensify among other biological reactions. Our body simply does not know the difference between being attacked by a lion and worry about social situation, our job, our families etc. Anxiety is real.
So, what can we do to be able to remind ourselves we are not in danger in our everyday lives? While there are many different approaches to anxiety and thus many ways to explore this interaction, I tend to take the approach of increasing sense of safety and empowerment. When we become anxious, our view point narrows and we see less opportunity around us. We often feel small, unsafe and unsettled. An antidote to this shrinking of the self and perspective is to broaden our sense of self, sense of confidence and increase empowerment. As anxiety begins to take over, explore the ways in which you have fought against anxiety in the past and empowered yourself to do something outside of your comfort zone. How did it feel? What did you notice about yourself in that moment? Which way of being did you prefer?
As we begin to see ourselves as people who are capable and able to fight back against our threat, we see ourselves as stronger and more competent. This way of thinking increases our confidence and expands our view of ourselves. Try this exercise next time you are flooded with worry. Take a piece of paper and draw a line down the middle as if you are making two columns. In the column on the right, write down your worries and identify them as fears. These are thoughts that you have that are based in fear and anxiety. Label them as such. Then one by one take these fears that are taking over your thought process and in the column next to the thought write down some action steps you would take if that fear did occur. What would you realistically do to solve that problem or move yourself closer to a state of stability? Would you sit down and let it consume you or would you fight back against the threat?
Start to see yourself as someone who can do scary things. By encouraging ourselves to look at the actions we would take to solve a problem we are empowering ourselves and minimizing the threat. The less threatening something is and the more capable we see ourselves, the closer we are to a state of safety and peace. While this is just one activity that may not fit for everyone, it is one way of shifting our perspective to broaden our view of ourselves within our personal narrative one day at a time. Comment down below with your favorite ways to empower yourself!
Disclaimer: While these activities and posts can be helpful, it is always my first recommendation to process anxiety or other mental health issues with a trained professional in a therapeutic setting. Mental health and wellness is not a one size fits all solution. There is magic in a supportive therapeutic relationship full of unconditional positive regard.
Mind-Body-Connection 