How To Cope With Anxiet

TeLeTeck

Anxiety is a normal and natural emotion that everyone experiences from time to time. It is a response to stress, uncertainty, or danger, and it can help us prepare for challenges and cope with difficulties.

However, when anxiety becomes excessive, persistent, or irrational, it can interfere with our daily functioning and well-being. Anxiety can cause physical symptoms, such as racing heart, sweating, trembling, nausea, or difficulty breathing.

Anxiety can also cause psychological symptoms, such as worry, fear, nervousness, or panic. Anxiety can affect our thoughts, feelings, behaviors, and relationships.

If you are struggling with anxiety, you are not alone. According to the World Health Organization, anxiety disorders are the most common mental disorders worldwide, affecting about 284 million people in 2017.

Anxiety disorders include generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), panic disorder, social anxiety disorder (SAD), obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and specific phobias.

Anxiety disorders can be treated with medication, psychotherapy, or a combination of both. However, there are also some self-help strategies that you can use to cope with anxiety in your daily life. Here are some tips on how to cope with anxiety:

Identify and challenge your negative thoughts

One of the main causes of anxiety is negative thinking. Negative thoughts are irrational, exaggerated, or distorted beliefs that trigger or worsen your anxiety.

For example, you may think that something bad will happen, that you are not good enough, or that you have no control over your situation. These thoughts can make you feel hopeless, helpless, or worthless.

To cope with anxiety, you need to identify and challenge your negative thoughts. You can do this by using a technique called cognitive restructuring, which involves four steps:

Write down the situation that makes you anxious and the negative thoughts that you have about it.

Evaluate the evidence for and against your negative thoughts. Ask yourself questions such as: Is this thought realistic? Is this thought based on facts or feelings?

What are the alternative explanations? What are the positive aspects of the situation?

Replace your negative thoughts with more balanced and realistic ones.

Use positive affirmations, such as: I can handle this. I have overcome similar challenges before. I have the skills and resources to cope. I am not alone.

Review the outcome of the situation and the impact of your new thoughts on your anxiety level.

Did the situation turn out as bad as you expected?

Did your new thoughts help you feel more calm and confident?

By identifying and challenging your negative thoughts, you can reduce your anxiety and improve your mood.

Practice relaxation techniques

Another way to cope with anxiety is to practice relaxation techniques. Relaxation techniques are methods that help you calm your body and mind.

They can lower your blood pressure, heart rate, breathing rate, muscle tension, and stress hormones. They can also increase your blood flow, oxygen level, energy level, and mood.

Some of the relaxation techniques that you can practice are:

Deep breathing: Deep breathing is a technique that involves taking slow and deep breaths from your diaphragm (the muscle below your lungs).

Deep breathing can help you relax by activating your parasympathetic nervous system (the part of your nervous system that controls rest and digestion).

To practice deep breathing, follow these steps:

Sit or lie down in a comfortable position.

Place one hand on your chest and one hand on your stomach.

Breathe in through your nose for four seconds. Feel your stomach rise as you inhale.

Hold your breath for two seconds.

Breathe out through your mouth for six seconds. Feel your stomach fall as you exhale.

Repeat this cycle for 10 minutes or until you feel relaxed.

Progressive muscle relaxation:

Progressive muscle relaxation is a technique that involves tensing and relaxing different muscle groups in your body.

Progressive muscle relaxation can help you relax by releasing the physical tension that builds up when you are anxious.

To practice progressive muscle relaxation, follow these steps:

Sit or lie down in a comfortable position.

Start with your feet and work your way up to your face.

For each muscle group, tense it for five seconds and then relax it for 10 seconds.

Notice the difference between tension and relaxation.

Repeat this process for all muscle groups or until you feel relaxed.

Meditation: Meditation is a technique that involves focusing your attention on a single object, such as your breath, a word, a sound, or an image. Meditation can help you relax by quieting your mind and reducing your negative thoughts.

To practice meditation, follow these steps:

Sit or lie down in a comfortable position.

Choose an object of focus, such as your breath.

Close your eyes and bring your attention to your object of focus.

If your mind wanders, gently bring it back to your object of focus.

Do this for 10 minutes or until you feel relaxed.

By practicing relaxation techniques, you can reduce your anxiety and improve your well-being.

Face your fears

A third way to cope with anxiety is to face your fears. Facing your fears means confronting the situations or objects that make you anxious, rather than avoiding them.

Avoiding your fears may give you temporary relief, but it can also reinforce your anxiety and make it worse in the long run. Facing your fears can help you overcome your anxiety and increase your confidence and self-efficacy.

To face your fears, you can use a technique called exposure therapy, which involves four steps:

Make a list of the situations or objects that make you anxious, from the least to the most scary.

Choose one situation or object from the bottom of your list and plan how to expose yourself to it. For example, if you are afraid of spiders, you may start by looking at a picture of a spider.

Expose yourself to the situation or object for as long as you can, until your anxiety level drops by at least 50%. For example, if you are looking at a picture of a spider, you may do it for 15 minutes or until your anxiety level goes from 8 to 4 on a scale of 0 to 10.

Repeat this process until you are no longer afraid of the situation or object. Then move on to the next one on your list.

By facing your fears, you can reduce your anxiety and improve your coping skills.

Seek professional help

The last tip on how to cope with anxiety is to seek professional help. Professional help is when you consult a qualified mental health professional, such as a psychologist, psychiatrist, counselor, or therapist.

Professional help can provide you with a diagnosis, treatment, and support for your anxiety.

Professional help can also help you identify and address the underlying causes of your anxiety, such as trauma, abuse, or other mental disorders.

To seek professional help, you can:

Talk to your primary care doctor and ask for a referral to a mental health specialist.

Search online for mental health services in your area or use online platforms that offer online therapy or counseling.

Contact a local or national mental health organization or hotline and ask for guidance or resources.

Reach out to a trusted friend or family member and ask for their support or accompaniment.

By seeking professional help, you can get the best care and treatment for your anxiety.

Conclusion

Anxiety is a common and treatable condition that can affect anyone at any time. Anxiety can cause physical and psychological symptoms that can impair your quality of life.

However, there are some self-help strategies that you can use to cope with anxiety in your daily life. These strategies include: