Anxiety
Everybody experiences anxiety from time to time. In fact, a little bit of anxiety is actually healthy for us - it is there to help keep us safe and out of dangerous situations. But what happens when the anxiety feels like it has become out of control? When anxiety feels as though it never lets up, and when it prevents you from doing the things you were once able to do? Then it is time to seek the assistance of a helping professional such as a counsellor.
What is anxiety?
Anxiety is our body's normal reaction to something stressful. Anxiety might happen because you are doing something unknown or unfamiliar, like meeting new people; something you know is stressful such as giving a speech; or, something unexpectedly going wrong in your life.
Anxiety happens when you brain recognises a threat and reacts to that threat by pumping your body full of useful chemicals such as adrenaline and cortisol. These chemicals help you to focus on the percieved threat and react a little quicker than usual. Usually anxiety is something that lasts only a short time - it is exhausting to create and release those chemicals, and they get used up really quickly.
Sometimes though, because of trauma, or because of other factors, the body reacts with 'anxiety' to anything that might be threatening, leaving you feeling anxious 'all the time'. Often anxiety just creeps up on a person, and they don't realise how much it is impacting their lives. When anxiety impacts on someone's life in a negative way, they can sometimes also feel depressed because the impact of the anxiety makes them feel helpless, alone, and powerless to stop it. When this happens, it is definitely time to get help from someone who has the skills to help you find ways to cope with anxiety.
What causes anxiety?
Anxiety is caused by the environment. Our bodies experience the environment around us and feed information to the brain about what is going on. We can also create the environment around us through our thinking about a situation. Often just by changing the environment through removing stressors, the intensity of the anxiety can be lowered.
Some people are more sensitive to anxiety than others because of the natal environment, or because of how they experienced childhood. If a mother is stressed during pregnancy, her child is exposed to more stress hormones and becomes accustomed to a higher level of stress hormone in the system. This means that when that child is born, the amount of stress they can tolerate before it becomes uncomfortable is potentially less than for other people.
Anxiety can also be caused by ongoing stressful events such as a difficult job, medical concerns, money worries, death or illness of a loved one, and trauma.
How do people experience anxiety?
Everyone experiences anxiety slightly differently - it depends on the person and what triggers the anxiety response. Some common aspects of anxiety that lots of people feel include:
What is anxiety?
Anxiety is our body's normal reaction to something stressful. Anxiety might happen because you are doing something unknown or unfamiliar, like meeting new people; something you know is stressful such as giving a speech; or, something unexpectedly going wrong in your life.
Anxiety happens when you brain recognises a threat and reacts to that threat by pumping your body full of useful chemicals such as adrenaline and cortisol. These chemicals help you to focus on the percieved threat and react a little quicker than usual. Usually anxiety is something that lasts only a short time - it is exhausting to create and release those chemicals, and they get used up really quickly.
Sometimes though, because of trauma, or because of other factors, the body reacts with 'anxiety' to anything that might be threatening, leaving you feeling anxious 'all the time'. Often anxiety just creeps up on a person, and they don't realise how much it is impacting their lives. When anxiety impacts on someone's life in a negative way, they can sometimes also feel depressed because the impact of the anxiety makes them feel helpless, alone, and powerless to stop it. When this happens, it is definitely time to get help from someone who has the skills to help you find ways to cope with anxiety.
What causes anxiety?
Anxiety is caused by the environment. Our bodies experience the environment around us and feed information to the brain about what is going on. We can also create the environment around us through our thinking about a situation. Often just by changing the environment through removing stressors, the intensity of the anxiety can be lowered.
Some people are more sensitive to anxiety than others because of the natal environment, or because of how they experienced childhood. If a mother is stressed during pregnancy, her child is exposed to more stress hormones and becomes accustomed to a higher level of stress hormone in the system. This means that when that child is born, the amount of stress they can tolerate before it becomes uncomfortable is potentially less than for other people.
Anxiety can also be caused by ongoing stressful events such as a difficult job, medical concerns, money worries, death or illness of a loved one, and trauma.
How do people experience anxiety?
Everyone experiences anxiety slightly differently - it depends on the person and what triggers the anxiety response. Some common aspects of anxiety that lots of people feel include:
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Physical
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Mental
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What can I do to cope with anxiety?
Anxiety happens because the stress response is activated - this is an unconscious process (that means we aren't in control of it). We can help turn off the stress response by activating our Parasympathetic Nervous System. There are lots of practices that can be built into everyday living to help with this. Some of these might include:
How can I help a friend or loved one experiencing anxiety?
When someone is experiencing a panic attack (a short-lived, but intense feeling of anxiety), it is really scary for the person because they feel completely out of control. Reassure them and ask them what helps them to calm down, and then help them engage in that activity.
Sometimes it can help to come up with a plan together of what to do when that anxiety happens.
If I come to counselling, how might that help with anxiety?
A little bit of anxiety at different times of our life is perfectly normal. We may feel a little anxious because something important is coming up (eg school exams) - but when that anxiety doesn't go away, or feels too big to cope with alone, then it might be an idea to speak to someone about what might be going on.
Anxiety happens because the stress response is activated - this is an unconscious process (that means we aren't in control of it). We can help turn off the stress response by activating our Parasympathetic Nervous System. There are lots of practices that can be built into everyday living to help with this. Some of these might include:
- Getting enough sleep
- Meditating
- Staying active and exercising
- Eating a healthy diet
- Connecting with friends and loved ones
- Avoiding alcohol, caffeine
- Avoiding smoking and other drugs
How can I help a friend or loved one experiencing anxiety?
When someone is experiencing a panic attack (a short-lived, but intense feeling of anxiety), it is really scary for the person because they feel completely out of control. Reassure them and ask them what helps them to calm down, and then help them engage in that activity.
Sometimes it can help to come up with a plan together of what to do when that anxiety happens.
If I come to counselling, how might that help with anxiety?
A little bit of anxiety at different times of our life is perfectly normal. We may feel a little anxious because something important is coming up (eg school exams) - but when that anxiety doesn't go away, or feels too big to cope with alone, then it might be an idea to speak to someone about what might be going on.
Here are some other common reasons people attend counselling. Click to find out more about them:
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Anxiety
Communication Depression Disordered eating Emotional abuse Exam and study stress |
Grief
Physical abuse PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) Relationships Self-esteem and confidence Self-harm / Self-injury |
Sexual abuse
Stress management Study support Suicidal thoughts and feelings Trauma |