To have anxiety is to feel fear, fear and restlessness. It can be a normal response to stress , for example, when you feel fear before making an important decision, taking a decisive exam, or facing a difficult situation at work or in your personal life. This fear can be a good thing when it makes you alert when facing a difficult event and gives you a boost of energy. In fact, it is an instinctive mechanism that we humans have to survive. If we lived in nature, we would face two situations: that of fleeing because a predator is going to eat us or that of facing him. However, it has been a long time since we have lived in a cave or have predators to jeopardize our survival. Curiously, when we feel anxiety, our brain labels the causes of fears in the same way that if we had to flee or fight , it is not able to make a difference.
When you have anxiety, the feeling of fear does not go away over time and can even get worse . In addition, it can interfere with day-to-day activities such as going to work, school or interpersonal relationships.
A person with an anxiety disorder has anxious and difficult-to-control thoughts or beliefs that, as we have said, not only do not disappear over time, but can get worse. You also experience physical symptoms that range from unexplained pain to palpitations, dizziness, and even feeling short of breath. Your behavior will change and you may avoid the daily activities that you used to do.
Some of the techniques that can help reduce and relieve anxiety include the following:
- Start using a journal in which you write how you feel and that serves as an outlet for those feelings of stress and anxiety, as it will allow your mind to let go and not get trapped in them.
- Get regular exercise. Practicing it helps stimulate blood flow, improves neurotransmitter production, and calms symptoms of anxiety.
- Use relaxation techniques like progressive muscle relaxation, meditation, and visualization to reduce stress.
- Make sure you are getting enough sleep. When you don’t get enough sleep your body needs, anxiety symptoms can be increased.
- Work on desensitizing yourself to your fears and concerns. If you have to face these situations that you dislike in the future, you will do so in a more relaxed and comfortable way.
- Find healthy distractions like watching a comedy or something funny on TV, listening to music, or playing a game with friends.
- Channel your anxiety through art . Not only will it serve as a distraction, but it will give you an outlet for your feelings.
If you recognize yourself in the symptoms of an anxiety disorder, we recommend consulting a specialist, he is the person who can best help you.
