Everyone has feelings of anxiety at some point in life. It could be a natural stress response. For example, it is normal to feel anxious about moving houses, changing jobs, sitting an exam, having a job interview, or giving a speech. You see, it is a feeling of fear or worries about something that is yet to happen, in other words, in the future and not in the past, something that hasn’t happened yet and might not even happen, and indeed it is not the now; in your present tense. It comes from your thoughts and is considered harmful as they tend to hurt you.
Anxiety is an emotion from thoughts that are ongoing in your mind, and its negative ones negatively affect you, causing pain and hurt, affecting your immune and digestive systems. You are attracting all negative things in life, impacting you and those surrounding you, such as family, friends, co-workers, etc.
Emotions that you might experience as hurt, anger, pain, and vulnerability, are the results of your thinking. You are experiencing and feeling the quality of your thinking. It hasn’t happened yet; it’s in the future. You’re thinking and imagining specific events going bad that haven’t happened yet, these thoughts don’t serve you, and the only way you can do something about it is to change your thinking.
“Worrying does not take away tomorrow’s troubles; it takes away today’s peace.” (Randy Armstrong)
Occasional anxiety might be ok, but if these feelings persist for several months or years, the feeling of fear and worry may be with you all the time in a way that it interferes with your life; for example, it prevents you from driving highways, traveling by planes or worrying every time your kids leave the house then this is becoming serious and requires an intervention. It’s becoming like holding on to a glass of water (anxiety); the longer you hold to it, the heavier the glass gets, and you can no longer hold on to it, resulting in physical pain in your hand, shoulder, neck, and perhaps other serious illness. This can weigh you down.
Why do people suffer anxiety?
- Stress related to school, work, or life challenges
- Difficult experiences in life as a child, adolescent, or adult
- Low self-esteem, negative beliefs or thoughts about yourself can cause social anxiety, for example, I am not smart enough or not good looking, etc
- Trauma as war or brutal incident
- Losing someone as a parent at an early age
- Genetics runs in the family
- Medical conditions such as depression, thyroid disorder, or heart diseases
- Constant worry about your health or the health of loved ones can make you feel overwhelmed and anxious
- Brain chemicals, mainly Epinephrine as its directly involved in anxiety symptoms; another chemical, which is serotonin imbalance, causes high cortisol levels, which contribute to anxiety; researchers believe that anxiety stems from areas in the brain responsible for controlling fear and emotions
- Substance abuse: alcohol or drug
- Caffeine can increase anxiety
A prevalent sign of anxiety is that you cannot stop thinking about something or certain things; as mentioned earlier, anxiety is caused by your thoughts. So, you keep on thinking about the problem over and over. Consequently, you cannot focus, fall asleep quickly, or keep waking- up in the middle of the night; in other words, you cannot get good quality sleep. Your mind is always occupied with that thought.
Some people, especially those with prolonged anxiety, one that is constant and overwhelming, might experience symptoms such as fast heartbeat (palpitations), sweating, shortness of breath or fast breathing (hyperventilation), feel panic, avoiding certain places, work, school, family or social gatherings.
Anything is manageable and treatable, but first, you need self-awareness about your condition and acknowledge that you need to do something.
Reach out to a specialist who can help you learn about your thoughts and feelings, how it affects your behaviour, how to control your thoughts, and how to turn those negative thoughts and emotions into positive ones. You will be able to control your whole life and change it totally……you can change the outcome in your life.
Simple things you can do on your own:
Food and drinks Avoid certain drinks and food that increase anxiety as caffeine (coffee, tea, cola, energy drinks)
Quality of your life: stop alcohol, eat right, and exercise: Walking, jogging, or going to the gym, anything you can do regularly. Exercise increases brain chemicals that help improve mood. Get good rest and sleep.
Mediation regularly helps to relax the mind and has so many benefits as reducing anxiety and improving focus and many other benefits.
Release the negative thoughts and replace them with positive ones. Focus on the things that you want rather than the things that you don’t want. For example, imagine you got good grades in your exam and live happily. We don’t know what’s in the future anyways, and if something goes wrong, at least you are prepared for it mentally, physically, and energetically…Focus on what you want
Journals Write daily journals and take notes of your thoughts…. I am sure you will see a pattern.
Be mindful about what you feed your brain, for example, what you watch on TV, social media, and others, your social circle, whether friends, family, or co-workers …. how they impact the way you think.
Everything comes with practice. It requires confidence, patience, and belief that you can do it.
Train your mind to be your friend, not your enemy
Train your mind to be stronger than your feelings
Train your mind to control your thinking
