Anxiety is something we experience when we are faced with something that feels worrying, uncertain and threatening. Its is a natural human response to feeling afraid. Different people can feel varying degress of anxiety at different times in their life and any one of any age can experience it
Different times in life come with different challenges which is why it can appear at any time. Stressful times or change of events which could include changing career, moving house, having a medial test or meeting new people can all come with feelings of uncertainty and can leave us feeling out of our comfort zone. Feelings of anxiety can be experienced in a variety of ways through worrying or fearful thoughts, difficult and intrusive feelings and uncomfortable bodily sensations.
Anxiety however alerts us to danger. Its keeps us safe and prepares our bodies for the fight or flight response. When in the fight or flight response we feel more alert, energised and our hearts beat faster and blood is diverted into the muscles for us to be able to move quickly. Once the anxiety subsides we calm down and our body returns to a state that feels more relaxed. This can often cause shaking.
When does Anxiety become a problem?
Anxiety becomes a problem when it begins to interfere with day to day living. This can occur when anxiety lasts for a long time or feels too overwhelming to manage. Anxiety can also be considered a problem when feelings and thoughts feel out of control and cause you to avoid certain situations. Anxiety can also escalate into heightened states of distress leading into panic attacks.
Anxiety symptoms may also lead to a specific diagnosis of Anxiety Disorder if they fit the medical criteria.
Symptoms of Anxiety
These can include but are not limited to, shaking, feeling disorientated, dry mouth, breathlessness, sweating, dizziness, rapid, irregular head beats and nausea. Tightness in the chest can also lead to feelings of a heart attack.
What can I do to reduce my levels of Anxiety?
Breathing
Breathing is important. If you find your breathing becoming more rapid, it can be helpful to count form one to five on the in breath and one to five on the out breath, breathing slowly, gently and deeply into the stomach for three to five minutes.
Minfulness
Mindfulness can also be helpful. By becoming aware of our immediate and present surroundings, thoughts and feelings we can interrogate whether we need to attach so much importance to them. Stepping ack from becoming entangled with our thoughts and feelings we can begin to see that our thoughts and feelings are fleeting; they pass if we let them come and go. By practising mindfulness we can interrogate our thoughts and feelings before they take a stronger hold.
Grounding
Becoming aware of our body can be helpful. During a heightened panicked state we are quite often up in our head with our worried thoughts or with our attention focused on the tightness in our chest. By drawing our attention to our feet the energy is drawn away from the top half of our body which can produce a calming effect. We can also notice with our attention on our feet, that they are connected to the floor and can then acknowledge that the floor is stable, secure and supporting. this is commonly know as grounding.
Talking
Talking to a professional can be a very helpful way of trying to understand what is going on. Quite often we can understand our triggers for producing anxiety but the root is unknown to us. Talking with a professional can help to uncover any underlying issues that may be causing the triggers and heightened states of distress.
Healthy living
Caffeine and alcohol can have a very negative effect on anxiety. Drinking too much of either can increase anxiety. This may be because caffeine and alcohol can speed up your heart rate and disrupt sleep.
Relax
Finding the time to relax is important. Taking a regular relaxing warm bath or joining a yoga or meditation class or receiving one of our relaxation treatments can be of great benefit in reducing anxiety.
For more information on how to reduce anxiety, or to book an appointment, please visit out website or call us on 01726 338080
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