Imagine being in a dark room that is full of ‘stuff’. When you walk around in the dark, you’re going to bump into things. You’re going to scrape, bruise and maybe drop a few choice words. This is what Anxiety can feel like…
Turn on the light though, and those things are still there, but now you can navigate your way around them. No more bumps. No more scrapes. And no more having to hold your tongue. This is what managing Anxiety can be like…
So what exactly is Anxiety?
Anxiety is a natural human response to stress or perceived danger and a common emotional state characterized by a feeling of unease, worry or apprehension. This can be caused by anything from a big event or major change, to something as simple as a work presentation or meeting new people. Most people will feel anxious from time to time but like so many things it exists on a spectrum and can range from something fairly mild to something severe or even debilitating, interfering with our daily lives and leading to distress, avoidance and a whole range of symptoms whether physical, emotional or psychological.
Anxiety is part of the body’s natural ‘fight or flight’ response that helps us react quickly to potential threats. When we feel under threat in some way, our amygdala (part of the brain) reacts by pumping neurochemicals (oxygen, hormones, adrenaline) around our body to ‘fight’ or flee from the perceived attack so as to try and keep us safe from harm. As well as helping to keep us safe from harm, it can also provide us with motivation to get things done, whether to push through sitting that exam or winning that race. However, when there isn’t anything to fight or run away from, there’s nothing to use up these neurochemicals, meaning that they build up in us and are felt as anxiety.
As already mentioned, there is no single cause to Anxiety and it can rise in response to a range of different life events or circumstances, whether work stress, financial worries or relationship problems in your family, at work or with your friends or life partner. In some cases, anxiety can become persistent or overwhelming even when there is no apparent stressor or threat. This is when it can start to interfere with daily life and may turn into a problematic condition, diagnosable as an ‘anxiety disorder.’
Physical Changes that Can Occur
Breathing Issues and Heart Palpitations – your breathing might change to become shorter and more shallow, leaving you feeling a bit breathless (this is because your brain is telling your body to save oxygen used for breathing and send it to the muscles so they can ready to run or fight).
Change in Colour – your cheeks might turn red (from all the blood rushing to your face), making you feel uncomfortably warm.
Feeling Faint – as the oxygen level builds up, the carbon dioxide level drops – this is where you might begin to feel a bit faint. As the ‘fuel’ gets sent to your arms (for fight) and your legs (for flight) your hands, arms and legs might suddenly feel tense, shaky or even numb
Feeling Sick and Tummy Upsets – as your heart races to get the oxygen around your body, it can feel like it’s beating out of your chest and you might feel sick. Your digestive system will also ‘shut down’ until the perceived danger is dealt with, so the fuel it was using to digest can be used elsewhere in your body for fight or flight. This can result in feeling ‘butterflies in your stomach’ or even feeling sick as though you’re about to vomit. Your mouth may suddenly feel dry too.
Feeling Sweaty – your body will start to try and cool itself down to stop it from overheating in case it needs to fight or flee
Emotional Changes that Can Occur
The amygdala also controls emotions, so when it’s in fight or flight, it’s switched on to ‘High.’ This means emotions will be running high too – you may suddenly burst into tears or have an angry outburst, not really knowing why or where it’s come from
What Else Can Anxiety ‘Look’ and ‘Feel’ Like?
Negative Thoughts – ‘what if’s’, thoughts about being judged or embarrassed, small thoughts that grow into big worries. Remember thoughts are just that, thoughts. They are not predictions of what will actually happen. Let them come and then let them go again.
Excessive Worrying about Physical Symptoms – for example that a migraine might mean something is really wrong – this is sometimes referred to as ‘Health Anxiety.’
Negative Feelings – feeling scared, worried, overwhelmed, out of control. A sense that something bad is going to happen
Dissociation – feeling separate from your physical self or surroundings – this might translate to not being able to feel a particular part of your body e.g. a numbness in your hands
Physical Discomfort – racing heart, tightening in the chest, ‘butterflies’ in your tummy, shaky hands, tense muscles, feeling sick, feeling faint, feeling tearful, feeling angry
Unusual Behaviours – skin picking (dermatillomania); pulling out hair (trichotillomania), nail biting, avoiding people/situations e.g. not wanting to go to school (just in case something happens that will provoke anxiety)
Ritualistic Behaviours – undergoing certain habits or rituals that don’t really make sense e.g. having to touch things a certain number of times, compulsive handwashing etc.
Tummy Problems – constipation, diarrhea, irritable bowel – when the environment in the gut is out of balance (not enough good bacteria), the messages sent back to the brain can provoke anxiety
Trouble Sleeping – difficulty either falling asleep or waking up and not being able to go back to sleep
Anxiety Disorders
Anxiety disorders are a group of mental health diagnoses characterized by excessive, persistent and irrational fear or worry about everyday situations or events. An estimated one in six adults in the UK (16% of the population) are likely to have some form of anxiety. These figures are even higher in young people with 1 in 5 young people thought to have anxiety.
There are several types of anxiety disorder, including:
- Generalised Anxiety Disorder (GAD)
- Panic Disorder
- Agoraphobia
- Social Anxiety Disorder
- Specific phobias
- Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
- Health Anxiety Disorder
Symptoms of anxiety disorders vary across individuals and may include a mix of physical, emotional and behavioural symptoms. In the UK, anxiety disorders are often treated with a mix of therapy and medication.
How to Deal with Anxiety
Breathing Techniques:
Slow, deep breathing brings about relaxation, neutralizing the surge of neurochemicals that cause the awful physical feelings of anxiety.
When you’re having anxious thoughts, try focusing on your breathing, concentrating on the feeling of your body as you breathe in and out. It can help you ‘control the thought’. There are a number of effective breathing exercises that you can try including:
Breathe in through your nose for 3, hold for 1 and then out through your mouth for 3.
(If it helps to imagine something, think of holding a cup of hot chocolate and smelling the lovely sweet aroma for three, hold your breath for one, then blow it cool for one)
Make sure the breathing is going right into your belly, not just into your chest.
Try and practice a couple of times a day when you’re feeling calm
Square Breathing
Imagine the four sides of a square
Inhale to the count of 4 – as you imagine tracing round the sides of a square in a clockwise direction
Hold to the count of 4 – stay in the corner of the square whilst you do this
Exhale to the count of 4 – as you imagine tracing back round the sides of a square in an anticlockwise direction
4-7-8 Breathing Technique
Close your mouth and quietly breath in through your nose, counting to four in your head
Hold your breath and count to seven
Breathe out through your mouth, making a ‘whoosh’ sound whilst counting to eight
Repeat three more times for a total of four breath cycles
Mindfulness:
Mindfulness changes the brain the way that exercise changes our body by:
- Strengthening the connections between the amygdala and the pre-frontal cortex (the part of the brain that calms big emotions like anxiety). The stronger this connection the more likely that the pre-frontal cortex can ‘kick in’ and calm things down
- Teaching the brain to stay ‘in the present.’ Anxiety often takes us on a journey of ‘what if’s’ and once you’ve started on this thread, it’s difficult to bring yourself back into the present. Mindfulness helps you to keep control so you can stop your brain from worrying about things that haven’t even happened yet (and probably won’t)
Mindfulness can improve concentration, academic performance and the ability to focus, as well as helping with stress and depression.
A Quick Guide to Mindfulness
Get comfy and close your eyes.
Notice your breathing. How does the air feel as you draw it inside you? Notice the sensation of the air, or your belly rising and falling. Notice your heart beating. If your mind starts to wander, come back to this.
Now, what can you hear? What can you feel outside of you and inside your body? If your mind starts to wander, focus on your breathing again.
Mindfulness Apps
Smiling mind – a free app with tailored programs for all ages
Stop, Breathe, Think – start by choosing words to describe how you’re feeling right now, and the app will suggest the best meditations based on where you’re at
Insight Meditation Timer – another free app with guided meditations from over 700 teachers.
Exercise and Movement:
Exercise can be a really effective way of calming down an ‘over excited’ mind. When we get over excited, neurons (brain cells) also get too active, leading to anxiety. To stop these neurons from getting too over excited, the brain has a neurochemical – GABA – which calms down overactivity. Exercise ensures that we get the GABA to the right, healthy levels.
Any activity that gets your heart going can count as exercise – it doesn’t even have to be that vigorous. Start with some gentle stretches, yoga or seated exercise, or go for a walk. Over time you may be able to build it up to brisk 20 minute walk or 8-10 minutes of going up and down the stairs a couple of times a day. If possible try and build up to doing some form of exercise at least five times a week to really reap the benefits.
Going for a run, swimming or taking part in a fitness class also gives you something else to focus on and think about instead of your anxious thoughts.
Journalling:
Taking time to record what’s happening in your life and how it’s affecting you can help you to better understand what’s triggering your anxiety. This will help you to better prepare for and manage such situations. It can be helpful to allocate a certain time of day as your ‘worry time.’ For some people this might be half an hour first thing in the morning before you properly start your day, for others it might be last thing at night before your head hits the pillow.
Challenge Your Thoughts:
When you ‘catch yourself’ ruminating (thinking things over and over again), try to write down the thought and ‘challenge’ it. Is what you’re worrying about likely to happen? Are you being realistic? Have you had similar thoughts which have not in fact turned into reality? By challenging the thoughts you can stop them overwhelming you because you are the one in control, not your thoughts.
Seek Professional Support:
Financial Worries – if money is a cause of anxiety for you, you are worried about not being able to pay bills, are struggling to repay debt or aren’t sure if you can cover your family’s living costs, seek help. Organisations such as the Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) or StepChange can help point you down the right path.
Spend Time in Nature:
Spending time in nature has a positive impact on our mental health as it can help us feel calmer and less stressed, whether taking a long walk in the woods or tending to some flowers in a window box. To really get maximum benefit, try and spend a longer period of time out there, maybe an hour or more.
Connect with People:
Connecting with others can really help. Spending time with friends or meeting new people through activities such as volunteering or sports or social clubs is known to help reduce anxiety. Talking to others about how you’re feeling and what’s worrying you can also minimize the power it has over you.
Sleep, sleep and more sleep!
Resting and having a good night’s sleep is hard when you head is full of worries. If you are being kept awake by anxious thoughts at night, try writing them down in a journal. If sleep is still not coming, get up and go get a drink, then wait until you feel more tired before going back to bed.
Keep a note in your journal of your sleep patterns – what time you went to bed, what you ate, how often you woke up etc. This can help you work out a routine that will help you get better quality sleep.
Eat Well
An unhappy tummy can make for an unhappy brain. Eating well is so important.
Try to eat a healthy, balanced and nutritious diet. When we are anxious, many of us may reach for sugary snacks, junk/processed food or alcohol but these do not help to calm our anxiety, rather they can make it worse by knocking out the balance of good bacteria in our gut. This in turn upsets the balance of everything and influences our mood by sending the ‘wrong’ messages back to our brain. Whilst they may appear to be a ‘quick fix’, they are certainly not a long term solution.
Eating healthy food regularly (unprocessed and food containing ‘good bacteria’ such as yogurts) can help us maintain a healthy gut and better regulate our blood sugar. This gives us the energy we need to live well.
Caffeine which can be found in coffee, tea and fizzy drinks, can affect our mood and cause sleep problems, so it’s best to drink these in moderation and not too close to bedtime.
Speak to ‘the Professionals’:
If you are still struggling with feelings of anxiety and they are often preventing you from doing things you need or want to do, reach out to your GP or a qualified counsellor for professional support.
There are a number of fantastic organisations and helpline services out there who can help.
These include:
Anxiety UK
T: 03444 775 774 (open Mon-Fri from 9.30am to 5.30pm)