Anxiety is a natural physical and mental process, which you cannot escape. You will face anxiety whenever you feel that you need to sail against the tide. Such situations are not few, they are plenty. These are integral parts of our lives. Anxiety was born at the very same moment as mankind. And since we will never be able to master it, we will have to learn to live with it – just as we have learned to live with storms.
As goes the saying, “You can’t stop the waves, but you can learn to surf.”
If you are living with anxiety like constantly brooding about the past or thinking about the future, you are anxious. You are not living in the present. Your current life be it personal, professional, or social is deeply impacted. Your mind is distressed. You do not enjoy your stay on this planet. You want to quit everything and just be with it. This disturbs your life no end. You are not only mentally affected but physically too. This way we see that if you are inflicted with chronic anxiety, it can cause physical stress on your body, especially to your nervous, cardiovascular, digestive, immune, and respiratory systems.
The body starts throwing symptoms like
- Rapid breathing or Higher Heart rate
- Light-headedness or Dizziness
- Abdominal Pain
- Indigestion
- Chest Pain
- Fatigue
- Insomnia
- Headache
All of us get pangs of anxiety from time to time, but chronic anxiety can interfere with your quality of life. While perhaps most recognized for behavioural changes, anxiety can also have serious consequences on your physical health as you can see above.
Here are some tips which you can follow to help yourself in calming down your anxiety:
- Take a break. Focus on your breathing. Listen to music.
- Spend some time in nature. Try active relaxation. Think of somewhere else.
- Try guided meditation. Get creative.
You can also choose to follow the 3-3-3 rule for anxiety.
The 333 rule for anxiety is an easy technique to remember and use at the moment if something is triggering your anxiety. It involves looking around your environment to identify three objects and three sounds, then moving three body parts.
“Our anxiety does not come from thinking about the future, but from wanting to control it.”
In the long term, it will impact various body systems and start throwing symptoms that are difficult to deal with. You can check anxiety by taking suitable medication or better still, going in for some therapy sessions. Many kinds of therapies are available nowadays and they help in the long run. You must be patient about consulting a therapist as sometimes it is a long-drawn procedure.
However, its short-term impact has some other ramifications like it increases your breathing and heart rate, concentrating blood flow to your brain, where you need it. This very physical response is preparing you to face an intense situation.
If it gets too intense, however, you might start to feel lightheaded and nauseous. An excessive or persistent state of anxiety can have a devastating effect on your physical and mental health.
“Living with anxiety is like being followed by a voice.”
Anxiety disorders can happen at any stage of life, but they usually begin between early adolescence and young adulthood. Women are more likely to have an anxiety disorder than men, according to the Anxiety & Depression Association of America (ADAA).
Stressful life experiences may increase your risk for an anxiety disorder, too. Symptoms may begin immediately or years later. Having a serious medical condition or a substance use disorder can also lead to an anxiety disorder.
But the fact remains that treatment of therapy is in your hands majorly. You are your best doctor as you only are aware of the situation you are in. Now, you need to discover how to be less anxious and become more productive and successful.
You should learn to be present more in present and feel:
- Calmer
- More in control
- Happier and Connected
You should appreciate that the present is all we have, every precious second and nano-second is ours to do with what we want. However, that only happens when we live in the now mentally and exert control over our thoughts and feelings.
Being more present is a good two-for-one deal in that it both helps decrease anxiety and increase pleasure. Besides, you should avoid being lonely as being surrounded by people who understand you and not judge you, helps a great deal.
“I’m a lonely person at heart, I need people, but my social anxiety prevents me from being happy.”
Last but not least, several times during the day, no matter what’s going on, ask yourself, “How am I feeling?”
Hopefully, the answer will be that you are doing just fine. The point of this inquiry is to ground you in the now.
If you frequently ask this question, you will be pulling yourself back to the present from thinking about the past or future.
This way you can overcome anxiety and lead a HappyHo life!
