Anxiety is a natural and usually short-lived reaction to a stressful
situation, associated with feelings of worry, nervousness or
apprehension
It occurs when you are not familiar to some situations which may arrive unexpectedly or when you feel that you are not worth of doing a particular task or even when the goal is unknown.
Some common feelings that all of us at some point of our lives have felt anxiety in are first day of school, exam day, speaking in front of an audience, or attending a job interview.
For people with anxiety disorders however, anxious thoughts, feelings, or physical symptoms are severe, upsetting, frequent, and interrupt daily life.
Anxiety disorders differ from normal feelings of nervousness or anxiousness, and involve excessive fear or anxiety. Anxiety disorders are the most common of mental disorders and affect nearly 30 percent of adults at some point in their lives. . But anxiety disorders are treatable and a number of effective treatments are available. Treatment helps most people lead normal productive lives.
Anxiety refers to anticipation of a future concern and is more associated with muscle tension and avoidance behavior.
Fear is an emotional response to an immediate threat and is more associated with a fight or flight reaction – either staying to fight or leaving to escape danger.
Signs and Symptoms of Anxiety
Symptoms of anxiety can also be physical. Anxiety can cause overly tense muscles, or high blood pressure. Trembling, sweating, a racing heartbeat, dizziness, and insomnia can also come from anxiety. Anxiety may even cause headaches, digestive problems, difficulty breathing, and nausea.If physical symptoms of anxiety are severe and sudden, it may be a panic attack.
Anxiety can cause intrusive or obsessive thoughts. A person with anxiety may feel confused or find it hard to concentrate. Feeling restless or frustrated can also be a sign of anxiety. Other people with anxiety may feel depressed.
Checkout Video on How to Cope up with Anxiety:
TREATMENTS
Cognitive behaviour therapy
Cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) has been found to be the most effective treatment for anxiety disorders.CBT helps you change unhelpful thoughts and behaviours that can contribute to anxiety, and aims to build skills to manage anxiety when it arises.CBT for anxiety includes some of the following strategies:- Cognitive restructuring: a technique used by psychologists to help a person to challenge negative thoughts and develop more helpful and constructive ways of thinking.
- Problem-solving: a technique used to help a person work through day-to-day problems. Problem-solving has been shown to help people feel more confident tackling life’s challenges, and to decrease general anxiety. Structured problem solving involves identifying the problem, developing a range of potential solutions, selecting one to test out, implementing the solution and evaluating its helpfulness.
- Exposure therapy: a treatment in which the psychologist guides the person through a series of real or imaginary scenarios to confront specific fears. Through this gradual process, the person learns to cope more effectively with these fears, and with practise, the anxious response naturally decreases.
- Relaxation: a range of techniques such as meditation or progressive muscle relaxation which, when practised regularly, have been found to effectively reduce anxiety.
Mindfulness
Mindfulness has been found to effective in the treatment of anxiety. In mindfulness, instead of avoiding, withdrawing, or fighting against anxious thoughts, feelings and physical symptoms, the person is helped to remain present and aware of the symptoms, without judging them. Over time, the person becomes more open to and accepting of anxious experiences, less overwhelmed by them, and better able to engage fully with life.Lifestyle changes
Lifestyle changes such as getting regular exercise, reducing alcohol and caffeine intake (which can act as stimulants and make anxiety symptoms worse), taking part in enjoyable activities, improving time-management skills and having adequate sleep can help reduce stress and anxiety.Some Tips To Manage ANXIETY:
Check your self-talk
Keep things in perspective
Don’t let anxiety stop you from doing things
Practise relaxation, meditation or mindfulness
Look after your health
References: www.psychology.org.au,Psychology Today Magazine
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