Signs You Have Anxiety And One Thing You Can Do About It
Anxiety. It’s becoming a more commonly used term in our world. You may hear people using the phrase, “I feel anxious” or, “That gives me anxiety” - but what exactly is anxiety, and what does it look like? In today’s post, I am going to define anxiety, describe common signs of anxiety, and encourage you with one way to decrease your anxiety.
Understanding Anxiety
The dictionary definition of anxiety is: “A feeling of worry, nervousness, or unease, typically about an imminent event or something with an uncertain outcome”.
Anxiety is an umbrella term that can include several emotions including fear, worry, nervousness, or dread. There is external anxiety, which is the anxiety that occurs from an external event such as getting stuck in traffic, having an argument, or experiencing a dangerous situation. Then there is internal anxiety, which is caused by the way you think. Internal anxiety is produced by thoughts of worry, fear of what people are thinking about you, and all of the “what-if” questions you ask yourself about the future. Internal and external anxiety can both cause physiological symptoms, including tightness in your chest, nausea, diarrhea, pounding heart, muscle tension, and shakiness. The physical symptoms of anxiety can become so extreme at times that some may fear they are having a heart attack or have underlying health issues. Panic attacks can occur when anxiety or stress become extremely heightened. Anxiety can be a strong feeling, but the good news is that you have the power to decrease the intensity of it.
The Power of Your Thoughts
Did you know that you have the power to create your own narrative? Your narrative is the world you live in - how you see things, perceive situations, respond to circumstances, and think about the future.
If you are constantly thinking about the “what if’s” and worried about everything that can go wrong, you are creating a very hopeless narrative. Our minds are extremely powerful and can create the way we see ourselves and the world around us. If you have the power to create this narrative, or imaginary world, where everything is going to wrong, you also have the power to create a very positive, hopeful world! Can you imagine yourself thinking about all of the “what-if’s” in a way that made you feel more positive and less anxious? I’ll give you an example. Let’s say that you are noticing you’re feeling anxious about going to work Monday morning. Perhaps you’re thinking, “What if I’m going to get stuck in traffic and be late? What if I mess up on that task? What if my manager is in a bad mood? What if I don’t get enough sleep tonight, and I’m exhausted tomorrow?” These thoughts are going to produce feelings of anxiety. Instead of continuing to ruminate on these types of thoughts, we want to challenge those what if questions. When you are worrying about getting stuck in traffic and being late, you can challenge that thought by saying to yourself, “I am rarely late due to being stuck in traffic, and if I plan to leave a few minutes early, I know I won’t be late”. Or, “Even if I don’t get enough sleep tonight, I know I am capable of making it through the day. It’s only one day of being tired”. Instead of going down the “What-if” spiral of worst-case scenarios, change the way your thoughts are going and give yourself a little reassurance. See if you can notice a difference in how you feel by changing those what-if questions.
Recognizing Your Anxiety
When our thoughts have been negative for a long time, we may get to where we don’t even realize that we are having certain thoughts that are creating anxiety. There are ways to begin to identify your thoughts that are causing you to feel anxious. Many times, anxiety shows up in our body before we recognize it in our thoughts. This is why it is important to notice the physical sensations of anxiety, such as tightness in your chest, upset stomach, or shakiness to then be able to say, “Oh, I’m noticing I’m feeling anxious”. When you start with recognizing the physical symptoms of anxiety, you can begin to work backwards to identify the thoughts that are causing the anxiety. So when you notice those physical sensations of anxiety, stop, pause, take a few deep breaths, and ask yourself, “What have I been thinking about recently that may have caused me to feel this way?”. When you identify those thoughts, you can start to challenge that thought, and change the way you were thinking about something. The good news is that you have control over a lot of your anxiety just by how you think!
Sometimes it can be difficult to know how to get to the root cause of anxiety to be able to make changes to feel better. Additionally, becoming aware of your thoughts and consciously changing them takes time and practice, and I will discuss why in another blog post.
There are times when it is helpful to work with a therapist trained in treating anxiety to help in this process. A therapist can help you identify when your anxiety shows up, what causes you to feel anxious, and how to make the needed changes to reduce your anxiety. If you are interested in getting help treating your anxiety, please fill out the Contact Me form and I will reach out to you to speak with you more.
