Feeling anxious about what to do. Don't Worry, or How to Get Rid of Feelings of Inner Anxiety

Tension and anxiety is a normal reaction to difficult life situations, however, after the resolution of difficulties, it passes. During periods that cause a state of anxiety and anxiety, use stress relief techniques, try folk remedies.

Anxiety is the body's response to a physical or psychological threat. Acute anxiety can occur before an important or difficult event. It passes quickly. However, for some people, anxiety becomes almost the norm, which seriously affects their daily life. This painful condition is called chronic anxiety.

Symptoms

An acute state of anxiety manifests itself in a vague or vice versa, clearly directed foreboding. It can be accompanied by physical symptoms - stomach cramps, dry mouth, heart palpitations, sweating, diarrhea and insomnia. Chronic anxiety sometimes causes unreasonable anxiety. Some fall into a panic for which there seems to be no reason. Symptoms include a feeling of suffocation, chest pain, chills, tingling in the arms and legs, weakness, and feelings of terror; sometimes they are so strong that both those suffering from a neurosis and those around them can take them for a real heart attack.

Breathing exercises for anxiety

Yoga classes are useful for people who often experience anxiety. They promote physical and mental relaxation, even breathing and help overcome negative emotions. The exercise is designed to strengthen and relax the muscles of the chest and abdomen and restore the disturbed flow of vital energy (prana). Take five breaths in each step.

Get on your knees, put one hand on your stomach, the other on your thigh. Feel how the abdominal wall rises when you inhale, and when you slowly exhale, it retracts.
Place your palms on either side of your chest. When breathing, raise and lower the chest, while exhaling, pressing it with your hands, squeezing out the air.
Tighten your abdominal muscles. Raise your shoulders and upper chest as you inhale and lower them as you exhale while relaxing your abdominal muscles.

No matter how the feeling of anxiety manifests itself, it is exhausting, debilitating; in the end, physical health can be seriously affected. It is necessary to find ways to deal with the root cause of the disease. Consult with a specialist. How to avoid feelings of anxiety?

obsessive neurosis

Obsessive neurosis is a disorder in which a person feels the need to constantly do something, such as washing their hands, constantly checking to see if the lights are off, or replaying sad thoughts over and over again. It is based on an ongoing state of anxiety. If this type of behavior interferes with normal life, see a specialist.

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In stressful situations, the body burns nutrients faster than usual, and if they are not replenished, the nervous system is gradually depleted, which causes anxiety. Therefore, it is important to eat a healthy diet rich in complex carbohydrates, such as those found in whole grain bread and brown rice. It is believed that such food has a sedative effect.

Note! If you can't deal with stress on your own, don't worry. Today there are many How to choose your sedative read in our material.

To keep your nervous system healthy, be sure to include essential fatty acids (found in, for example, whole grains, nuts, seeds, and vegetables), vitamins (especially the B group), and minerals in your diet. To achieve a stable blood sugar level, eat often, but in small portions. A harmonious combination of rest, physical activity and entertainment will help you feel healthier physically.

Treating Feelings of Anxiety

You yourself can do a lot to alleviate your condition.

Self-knowledge. Thinking about the causes of the pathological condition will serve as the first step towards overcoming them. If you are prone to phobias, such as being afraid of flying, you may be able to focus your fear on something specific.
Relaxation. Evolution has programmed our body in such a way that any danger causes a response, expressed in involuntary physiological changes that prepare the body for the “fight or flight” response. By learning the techniques of physical and mental unloading, you can remove the feeling of anxiety. There are several ways to achieve this.
Try exercising or other physical activity that requires effort, this will relieve muscle tension and release nervous energy.
Do something calm.
Start a group class that teaches relaxation and meditation, or use a relaxation course on an audio or video cassette.
Do progressive muscle relaxation exercises twice a day or any time you feel anxious. Try relaxing yoga exercises.
You can relieve anxiety and improve well-being by pressing your thumb on the active point located on the back of the hand, where the thumb and forefinger converge. Do the massage three times for 10 - 15 seconds. Do not touch this point during pregnancy.

Hyperventilation on alert

In a state of anxiety and especially during outbreaks of panic fear, breathing quickens and becomes superficial, the ratio of oxygen and carbon dioxide in the body is disturbed. To eliminate oversaturation of the lungs with oxygen, or hyperventilation, sit with your hand on your upper abdomen and inhale and exhale so that your arm rises when you inhale. It helps to breathe slowly and deeply.

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Cognitive therapy. Practicing affirmations will help reprogram your thoughts so that the focus is on the positive aspects of life and personality, rather than the negative ones. Write short sentences that fit your occasion. For example, "I am prepared for this job" if you are going to be interviewed by a potential employer. It is helpful to repeat these phrases out loud or write them several times. This type of psychological exercise is a part of cognitive therapy aimed at changing natural or instinctive reactions without trying to understand their essence. The doctor can direct your thoughts in search of a positive explanation for the actions of certain people: for example, a friend did not pay attention to you in the store, not because she did not like you, but simply did not see you, thinking about something. Having grasped the essence of such exercises, you can perform them yourself. You will learn to adequately perceive negative influences and replace them with more positive and realistic ones.

Anxiety and nutrition

The amino acid tryptophan has a calming effect on the brain. In the brain, it is converted to serotonin, which induces calm. Most protein foods contain tryptophan. In addition, the absorption of this substance improves with the simultaneous consumption of carbohydrates. Good sources of tryptophan are milk and biscuits, turkey sandwiches, or cheese sandwiches.

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Food. The state of anxiety depresses appetite or increases it. Choose foods rich in B vitamins, vitamin E, calcium and magnesium, as the lack of these nutrients exacerbates anxiety. Limit your intake of sugar and white flour products. Avoid alcohol and drinks containing caffeine. Instead, drink spring water, fruit juices, or soothing herbal teas.

Aromatherapy. If you feel physically tense, massage your shoulders with aromatic oils, add them to a bath or in an inhaler. To prepare massage oil, take two teaspoons of cold-pressed vegetable oil - almond or olive - and add two drops of geranium, lavender and sandalwood oils and one drop of basil. Avoid the latter during pregnancy. Put a few drops of geranium or lavender oil into your bath water or a bowl of hot water and inhale the steam for 5 minutes.

Phytotherapy. For three weeks, drink three times a day, one glass of tea from pharmacy verbena, empty oats (oatmeal), or ginseng. These herbs have a tonic effect.

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To relieve stress during the day and sleep well at night, add chamomile, intoxicating pepper (kava-kava), lime blossom, valerian, dried hop cones or passion flower to the described herbal mixture. Before use, consult your doctor.

Flower essences. Flower essences are designed to relieve negative emotions. They can be used both individually and in various combinations, depending on the type of personality.

For general anxiety, take aspen flower, mirabelle, larch, mimulus, chestnut, sunflower, or pedunculate oak flower essences four times a day. Take Dr. Buck's Rescue Balm every few minutes when panicking.

Other methods. Psychotherapy and cranial osteopathy can help alleviate anxiety symptoms.

When to See a Doctor

Strong feelings of anxiety or bouts of fear.
Seek immediate medical attention if
Anxiety is accompanied by depression.
Insomnia or dizziness.
You have one of the physical symptoms listed above.

Sometimes the feeling of anxiety ceases to be reasonable and literally takes us prisoner. And then we worry about everything: from the likelihood of a child's sudden cold to the onset of global warming ... the site is about how to get rid of bad thoughts and drive away the feeling of constant anxiety.

"Hello. Please help me. I am almost constantly worried about my nine-year-old daughter. I am very afraid that something will happen to her.

The feeling of anxiety arises spontaneously in especially happy moments. Or after reading the next terrible news on the Internet (killed, stabbed, set on fire, etc.). Violence and aggression are the main topics of the media.

Knowing that thoughts are material, I just go crazy: it’s impossible not to think ... "

Fear or other strong emotions cause a person to jump to conclusions. Thus, we generalize completely unrelated facts, draw conclusions from isolated cases, and for some reason try on everything that happened somewhere and with someone in our life.

An anxious person tends to worry about the most insignificant thing and see catastrophes and horrors in everything. To reduce anxiety, such a person comes up with various rituals.

For example, he checks 10 times whether the front door is closed, controls his loved ones by calling them every half an hour, does not allow children to go out with their peers, imagining the terrible consequences of such communication ...

An anxious person is sure that the world is very dangerous and full of threats. He sees obstacles in everything and expects problems.

It must be said that the media contribute greatly to this perception, feeding us daily with stories about the horrors taking place in the world.

So it turns out that anxious people live, constantly worrying about the future and trying to protect themselves and their loved ones from possible troubles. They spend a lot of energy, time and emotions on this.

Unfortunately, in most cases, these efforts lead to nervous breakdowns, depression (after all, a person thinks about the bad all the time) and irritation of loved ones. (after all, they are constantly monitored).

It turns out that an anxious person from all sides lives hard. But despite this, he continues to worry, because he cannot help it.

It depicts everything that happens around and matters to us, everything that we take for granted or feel: this is our perception, what we call experience or the sum of ideas about reality.

The picture of the world is created from childhood and it describes in detail what is possible in this life for us and what is not.

The picture of the child is created on the basis of the picture of the people around him - parents, friends, teachers, etc. And with this card he goes through life.

With the passage of time and the emergence of new experience, this map expands, but the whole paradox is that all subsequent events are perceived by a person from the point of view of previous experience, beyond which it is very difficult to go.

The world consists of thoughts and is in the head. Any picture of the world "comes to life" with the frequent direction of attention to it.

Scrolling horror stories about yourself or your loved ones in your head is absolutely futile - the energy of fear can only aggravate the situation. What we think about, we most often meet in life.

By changing your thoughts, you begin to behave differently and achieve different results.

The fact that you have the power to create your experiences, and not just react to external circumstances or memories of the past, means that you have ample choice, the ability to manage your life and create your own future.

Therefore, a good way to get rid of anxiety - shift your focus in a positive direction.

First, if possible Eliminate bad news from your life.

Do not watch or read crime stories, reports of disasters and wars - after all, you yourself form a reason for fear, plunging into negativity.

Turn off the TV, skip articles on this topic. There is no benefit from this information, but your impressionability begins to paint terrible pictures.

Create a positive information field for yourself, concentrate on the positive side of life.

Eliminate negativity from your life

Profitable exchange

4 Ways to Beat Anxiety

The appearance of fear is largely provided by the human imagination, the ability to associate. When you worry, the imagination paints pictures of a terrible future.

Pictures can be huge and always stand before your eyes. But what if an unpleasant picture is replaced by a pleasant one?

Imagine a situation that brings back fond memories for you. As you vividly visualize this joyful experience, determine how you feel.

Pay attention to your feelings again. Have they changed? Maybe they got stronger?

Now let the imagination drift away, become smaller, more sketchy, weaker, until it shrinks almost to the size of a postage stamp.

What are your feelings now? Having determined this, return the image to its original position.

For most people it goes like this: when a positive experience approaches, positive feelings increase, and when it moves away, they weaken significantly.

If you want to experience positive emotions more intensely, simply bring them closer to the eyes of your imagination.

But if you want the experience to be less intense, you can move it away from you.

You can do the same with a state of anxiety by pushing unpleasant pictures far, far away or turning them into a barely noticeable point.

You can take temporary systems: What is the significance of this event in 5 years? In two years? Tomorrow? Right now? In general, it all depends on the specific situation, and logic is not necessary here.

affirmations

Helps to regulate your emotional state positive affirmations, called affirmations.

For example, as soon as you catch yourself in negative thoughts, immediately repeat the phrase "I and my loved ones are always and everywhere safe" - repeat as many times as necessary to calm down.

You can come up with any phrases that suit your situation. The main thing is that they be positive and in the present tense.

If something constantly bothers you, repeat affirmations every day in any free minute - this is the only way you can achieve a positive effect.

By learning to manage your condition, you can not only get rid of anxiety, but also open your life to a whole rainbow of positive emotions, which, in turn, will attract a lot of pleasant situations into your life!

Ekaterina Gorshkova,
psychologist

Anxiety is an emotion that all people experience when they are nervous or afraid of something. It’s unpleasant to be “on your nerves” all the time, but what can you do if life is like this: there will always be a reason for anxiety and fear, you need to learn to keep your emotions under control, and everything will be fine. In most cases, this is exactly the case.

Worrying is normal. Sometimes it’s even helpful: when we worry about something, we pay more attention to it, work harder and generally achieve better results.

But sometimes anxiety goes beyond reasonable limits and interferes with life. And this is already an anxiety disorder - a condition that can ruin everything and which requires special treatment.

Why Anxiety Disorder Occurs

As in the case of most mental disorders, no one can say for sure why anxiety clings to us: so far too little is known about the brain to speak with confidence about the causes. Several factors are most likely to blame, from ubiquitous genetics to traumatic experiences.

For someone, anxiety appears due to the excitation of certain parts of the brain, for someone, hormones are naughty - and norepinephrine, and someone gets a disorder in addition to other diseases, and not necessarily mental ones.

What is an anxiety disorder

to anxiety disorders Studying Anxiety Disorders. belong to several groups of diseases.

generalized anxiety disorder. This is the case when anxiety does not appear because of exams or the upcoming acquaintance with the parents of a loved one. Anxiety comes on its own, it does not need a reason, and the experiences are so strong that they do not allow a person to perform even simple daily activities.
social anxiety disorder. Fear that prevents being among people. Someone is afraid of other people's assessments, someone is afraid of other people's actions. Be that as it may, it interferes with studying, working, even going to the store and saying hello to neighbors.
panic disorder. People with this disease experience panic attacks: they are so scared that sometimes they cannot take a step. The heart beats at a frantic speed, it gets dark in the eyes, there is not enough air. These attacks can come at the most unexpected moment, and sometimes because of them a person is afraid to leave the house.
Phobias. When a person is afraid of something specific.

In addition, anxiety disorder often occurs in combination with other problems: bipolar or obsessive-compulsive disorder or.

How to understand what is a disorder

The main symptom is a constant feeling of anxiety, which lasts for at least six months, provided that there are no reasons to be nervous or they are insignificant, and emotional reactions are disproportionately strong. This means that anxiety changes life: you refuse work, projects, walks, meetings or acquaintances, some activity, just because you worry too much.

Other symptoms Generalized anxiety disorder in adults - Symptoms ., which hint that something is wrong:

constant fatigue;
insomnia;
constant fear;
inability to concentrate;
inability to relax;
trembling in the hands;
irritability;
dizziness;
frequent heartbeat, although there are no cardiac pathologies;
increased sweating;
pain in the head, abdomen, muscles - despite the fact that doctors do not find any violations.

There is no exact test or analysis by which to identify an anxiety disorder, because anxiety cannot be measured or touched. The decision on the diagnosis is made by a specialist who looks at all the symptoms and complaints.

Because of this, there is a temptation to go to extremes: either to diagnose yourself with a disorder when life just started, or not to pay attention to your condition and scold your weak-willed character, when, due to fear, an attempt to go outside turns into a feat.

Do not get carried away and confuse constant stress and constant anxiety.

Stress is a response to a stimulus. Take, for example, a call from a dissatisfied customer. When the situation changes, the stress goes away. And anxiety can remain - this is a reaction of the body that occurs even if there is no direct effect. For example, when an incoming call comes from a regular customer who is happy with everything, but picking up the phone is still scary. If the anxiety is so strong that any phone call is torture, then this is already a disorder.

No need to hide your head in the sand and pretend that everything is fine when constant stress interferes with life.

It is not customary to consult a doctor with such problems, and anxiety is often confused with suspiciousness and even cowardice, and it is a shame to be a coward in society.

If a person shares his fears, he is more likely to receive advice to pull himself together and not become limp than an offer to find a good doctor. The trouble is that it will not be possible to overcome the disorder with a powerful effort of will, just as it will not be possible to cure it with meditation.

How to treat anxiety

Persistent anxiety is treated like other mental disorders. For this, there are psychotherapists who, contrary to the common ones, do not just talk with patients about a difficult childhood, but help to find such techniques and techniques that really improve the condition.

Someone will feel better after a few conversations, someone will help pharmacology. The doctor will help you reconsider your lifestyle, find the reasons why you are nervous a lot, assess how severe the symptoms are and whether you need to take medication.

If you still think you don't need a therapist, try taming your anxiety yourself.

1. Find the cause

Analyze what you experience most and most often, and try to eliminate this factor from your life. Anxiety is a natural mechanism that is needed for our own safety. We are afraid of something dangerous that can harm us.

Maybe if you are constantly shaking with fear of the authorities, it is better to change jobs and relax? If you succeed, then your anxiety is not caused by a disorder, you don’t need to treat anything - live and enjoy life. But if it is not possible to identify the cause of anxiety, then it is better to seek help.

2. Exercise regularly

There are many blind spots in the treatment of mental disorders, but researchers agree on one thing: regular exercise really helps keep the mind in order.

3. Let the brain rest

The best thing is to sleep. Only in a dream the brain overloaded with fears relaxes, and you get a break.

4. Learn to slow down your imagination with work.

Anxiety is a reaction to something that didn't happen. It is the fear of what might happen. In fact, anxiety is only in our head and is completely irrational. Why is it important? Because counteracting anxiety is not peace, but reality.

While all kinds of horrors happen in the disturbing imagination, in reality everything goes on as usual, and one of the best ways to turn off the constantly itchy fear is to return to the present, to the current tasks.

For example, to occupy the head and hands with work or sports.

5. Quit smoking and drinking

When there is already a mess in the body, it is at least illogical to shake the delicate balance with substances that affect the brain.

6. Learn relaxation techniques

Here the rule “the more the better” applies. Learn breathing exercises, look for relaxing yoga poses, try music, or even drink chamomile tea or use lavender essential oil in the room. Everything in a row until you find several options that will help you.

When a person is in danger, it is normal to feel fear and anxiety. After all, in this way our body is preparing to act more efficiently - "fight or run away."

But unfortunately, some people tend to experience anxiety either too often or too much. It also happens that manifestations of anxiety and fear appear for no particular reason or for a trifling reason. When anxiety interferes with a normal life, the person is considered to be suffering from an anxiety disorder.

Symptoms of Anxiety Disorders

According to annual statistics, 15-17% of the adult population suffers from some form of anxiety disorder. The most common symptoms are:

Cause of anxiety and fear

Everyday events are often associated with stress. Even such seemingly ordinary things as standing in a car during rush hour, celebrating a birthday, lack of money, living in cramped conditions, overwork at work or conflicts in the family are all stressful. And we are not talking about wars, accidents or diseases.

In order to cope with a stressful situation more effectively, the brain gives a command to our sympathetic nervous system (see figure). It puts the body in a state of excitement, causes the adrenal glands to release the hormone cortisol (and others), increases the heart rate and causes a number of other changes that we experience as fear or anxiety. This, let's say - "ancient", animal reaction, helped our ancestors to survive in difficult conditions.

When the danger has passed, the parasympathetic nervous system is activated. It normalizes the heart rhythm and other processes, bringing the body to a state of rest.

Normally, these two systems balance each other.

Now imagine that for some reason a failure has occurred. (Detailed analysis of typical causes is presented).

And the sympathetic nervous system begins to get excited, reacting with a feeling of anxiety and fear to such meager stimuli that other people do not even notice ...

People then experience fear and anxiety with or without cause. Sometimes their condition is constant and enduring anxiety. Sometimes they feel nervous or impatient, have trouble concentrating, have trouble sleeping.

If such symptoms of anxiety persist long enough, then, according to the DSM-IV, the doctor can make a diagnosis of " generalized anxiety disorder».

Or another kind of "failure" - when the sympathetic nervous system hyperactivates the body for no particular reason, not constantly and weakly, but in strong bursts. Then they talk about panic attacks and, accordingly, panic disorder. We have written quite a bit about this variety of phobic anxiety disorders elsewhere.

About treating anxiety with medication

Probably, after reading the text above, you will think: well, if I have an imbalance in the nervous system, then I need to bring it back to normal. I'll take a proper pill and everything will be fine! Fortunately, the modern pharmaceutical industry offers a huge selection of products.

Some of the anti-anxiety drugs are the typical "fuflomycins" that have not even passed normal clinical trials. If someone is helped, then due to the mechanisms of self-hypnosis.

Others - yes, really relieve anxiety. True, not always, not completely and temporarily. We mean serious tranquilizers, in particular, the benzodiazepine series. For example, such as diazepam, gidazepam, xanax.

However, their use is potentially dangerous. First, when people stop taking these medications, the anxiety usually returns. Secondly, these drugs cause a real physical dependence. Thirdly, such a crude way of influencing the brain cannot remain without consequences. Drowsiness, problems with concentration and memory, and depression are common side effects of anxiety medications.

And yet ... How to treat fear and anxiety?

We believe that an effective, and at the same time, gentle for the body way of treating increased anxiety is psychotherapy.

That's just not outdated conversational methods, like psychoanalysis, existential therapy or gestalt. Control studies indicate that these types of psychotherapy give very modest results. And that, at best.

What a difference modern psychotherapeutic methods: EMDR-therapy, cognitive-behavioral psychotherapy, hypnosis, short-term strategic psychotherapy! They can be used to solve many therapeutic problems, for example, to change inadequate attitudes that underlie anxiety. Or teaching clients to “control themselves” in a stressful situation more effectively.

The complex application of these methods in anxiety neurosis is more effective than drug treatment. Judge for yourself:

the probability of a successful result is about 87%! This figure is not only the result of our observations. There are many clinical trials confirming the effectiveness of psychotherapy.

a noticeable improvement in the condition after 2-3 sessions.

short term. In other words, you do not need to go to a psychologist for years, usually 6 to 20 sessions are required. It depends on the degree of neglect of the disorder, as well as other individual characteristics of the person who applied.

How is fear and anxiety treated?

Psychological diagnostics- the main goal of the first meeting of the client and the psychotherapist (sometimes two). Deep psychodiagnostics is what further treatment is based on. Therefore, it must be as accurate as possible, otherwise nothing will work. Here is a checklist for a good diagnosis:

found the real, underlying causes of anxiety;

a clear and rational plan for the treatment of anxiety disorder;

the client fully understands the mechanisms of psychotherapeutic procedures (this alone gives relief, because the end of all suffering is visible!);

you feel sincere interest and care for you (in general, we believe that this condition should be present in the service sector everywhere).

Effective treatment, in our opinion, this is when:

scientifically proven and clinically tested methods of psychotherapy are used;

the work takes place, if possible, without medication, which means that there are no side effects, no contraindications for pregnant and lactating mothers;

the techniques used by the psychologist are safe for the psyche, the patient is reliably protected from repeated psychotrauma (and we are sometimes approached by “victims” of amateurs of all stripes);

the therapist promotes the autonomy and confidence of the client rather than making them dependent on the therapist.

Sustainable result This is the result of intense collaboration between the client and the therapist. Our statistics show that on average 14-16 meetings are needed for this. Sometimes there are people who achieve excellent results in 6-8 meetings. In especially neglected cases, even 20 sessions are not enough. What do we mean by “quality” result?

Sustained psychotherapeutic effect, no relapses. So that it doesn’t turn out the way it often happens when treating anxiety disorders with drugs: you stop taking them - fear and other symptoms return.

There are no residual effects. Let's go back to medication. As a rule, people taking medications still feel anxiety, albeit through a kind of “veil”. From such a "smoldering" state, a fire can flare up. It shouldn't be like that.

A person is reliably protected from possible stresses in the future, which (theoretically) can provoke the appearance of anxiety symptoms. That is, he is trained in self-regulation methods, has high stress tolerance, and is able to properly take care of himself in difficult situations.