It’s that feeling you experience in the pit of your stomach, the rush of heat, adrenaline, the fast breathing and the dizziness. It’s that sense of dread, a seeming knowing that something absolutely unwanted is about to happen. It’s the thought that’s often completely irrational and yet, still has the power to change every fibre of your being at that moment.
But, anxiety wasn’t always experienced like this. In fact, the function of anxiety dates right back to early human times when our limbic brain was smaller than it is today and was covered by a thin layer, called the cortex.
We lived differently then. We walked through open fields, hunted our food, dwelled together, prepared meals together, cared for each other. It was a tribal way of life in the truest sense.
The limbic brain helps us to be safe by keeping an eye out for any threats. If a high risk was perceived, it would trigger a chain reaction of physiological responses that were designed to get us ready to stay and defend ourselves or to run for safety. Today we call these responses fight and flight (and more recently, we also have freeze). So in itself, anxiety is good. It keeps us alert.
Fast forward to the modern-day, and maybe you can recall going out with the girls one night. At the end of the evening, you all say goodnight and walk off separately to your cars. It’s dark and, it feels like it might rain. The parking lot seems dark too and is only illuminated by the dimmest of street lights. The wind is moving through the trees and causing them to cast moving shadows on the ground. You put your hand into your handbag and fumble for your keys, making sure you have the car key ready to thrust into the lock of the car door so you can jump inside and lock it. This is anxiety. This is your body helping you to be acutely aware of your surroundings in order to keep you safe by acting more quickly.
Anxiety comes from a thought that something bad is about to happen.
It’s helpful to remember that thoughts create feelings. Anxiety comes from the thought that something bad is about to happen. One of the most empowering approaches to managing the symptoms of anxiety when they arise is to remind yourself that this is only a thought and that a thought can be changed.
Anxiety becomes a clinical condition when it begins to show up more days than not in your life for a period of a few weeks, to such an extent that it begins to impair your ability to do and enjoy the things that you normally do, like work or socialise. For most people, anxiety is short-term when they participate in therapy and have monitoring from their doctor. Some people also benefit from medication for a short period.
Keeping a journal of experiences can also be helpful in assisting you to identify any triggers or patterns with the symptoms that you experience. You could keep a log of the day, time, place, what was happening just before you felt anxious (the trigger), what you instantly said to yourself at the moment (the thought) and what you did when the anxiety became more present (the behaviour). The following step would be to review your journal and, when you are ready, look at each scenario that you’ve written down and imagine what might be different if you change the thought.
Ansxiety is a sigh for growth and for change and when you are able to change your relationship with it, you will begin to heal.
Changing thoughts takes practice and patience. It also takes being kind to yourself. If your alternative thought is the opposite of the original one, it may not be helpful. I’ve personally found it more effective in those cases to say something like - ‘I’m in the process of recognising my thoughts and coming up with alternative ones that make me feel more at peace.’ You could also remind yourself that it is safe for you to have peace of mind and anchor yourself into the present moment with mindful breaths.
While I’ve been a Psychologist for 20 years, outside of that role, I do also hold a belief that things are happening for me and not to me. This belief was instrumental in being able to turn around my own anxiety. I was able to see that the anxiety was providing contrast and showing me exactly what I did want in my life (more peace and security). With that awareness, I was able to create the peace I was seeking step-by-step, until one day I just realised that I hadn’t panicked. And that felt really good.
Anxiety is a sign of growth and change, and when you are able to change your relationship with it, you will begin to heal. Other great additions to your toolset are the practices of mindfulness, meditation, journaling and metta meditation. They are based on mindfulness principles and can be very effective in helping you heal by viewing yourself and the condition from a different perspective.
If your symptoms are worrying you, then please seek support from a qualified therapist and see your doctor.
Much love,
Brooklyn
