What is Anxiety? How can I get relief?”

Anxiety is a sign that your nervous system is in the “Threat System”: This system detects threats and strives to protect us from perceived danger. This is the system that gets activated when YOU detect stress whether it is a stressful situation, worry/fear, or self-criticism.

So when this Threat System gets activated,  general brain functions may get put on “hold” or slow down until the danger gets taken care of. How does this affect you?  It makes it difficult to think clearly,  to make wise decisions or have a full sense of self. This is Anxiety.

Anxiety is like a brake on a bike. You must learn how to utilize it so it continues to be a protection and not a hindrance to your progress in life. When riding a bike, we need to know how to use the brake properly; as a protection. If we overuse it or misuse it, we could flip and fall. This negative experience could even cause us to stop riding a bike! Feeling anxious can likewise cause us to stop engaging in or avoid certain activities. Anxiety itself is not a curse, but the relationship with anxiety can be a cause of suffering. Anxiety encourages us to withdraw from enjoyment in life. This results in isolating oneself, which can lead to depression. 

So the key is to understand the nature of YOUR anxiety and learn to control it, instead of your anxiety bossing you around! *1)

What can you do?

There is a need to work on both the right and left side of the brain. The left brain function is predominantly understanding, reasoning, and thought patterns. So you want to examine and come to understand how you respond to stress, fear, and worries. You also want to be aware if there are certain thinking patterns you are locked into, that may contribute to anxiety.

At the same time, we need to look at the right brain, where emotions, body sensations and strong beliefs about self originate.  There are certain parts of your brain that get activated when under threat and it’s beneficial to learn how to “soothe” these parts of the brain by practicing therapeutic techniques.

The key is to learn to work with both left and right sides of the brain, instead of just working on one side*2).

*1)How do you know if you need to be clinically treated? Since anxiety is a part of a defense mechanism, it is normal to experience a measure of anxiety, as long as you can manage it. However, if you experience ongoing anxiety in more than 2 different social settings(home, work, school etc..) and keep losing control over it, you may want to consult with a professional.

*2)Not attending to excessive anxiety without help often leads to depression so the key is to get yourself help without “waiting” and “pushing harder”!

In the online course “Changing the Response to Stress” you will learn about "Threat System" and how to better understand the functions of both the right and left brain. A plan on how to exercise them in creative and resourceful ways is outlined.