Anxiety – A Different Perspective

Anxiety, even the word causes us to hold our breath. Did you know that holding your breath is at the root of the disorder?

Holding one’s breath causes the oxygen levels in the body to lower, making the heart work harder and the mind to lose clarity. The antidote is of course breathing, especially deep breathing while anxiety is occurring.

What causes a person to stop breathing, or not breathe normally? Psychologically speaking, when our internal resources cannot adapt to what is happening around us, a crisis occurs. If you are prone to anxiety, this must be met head-on. Avoiding the problems tends to make them worse, however, stepping through the problems slowly helps you move in the direction of problem resolution. Breaking things down into incremental steps and facing one issue at a time is a great strategy. Hiding away from a problem or trying to make other people take care of you will only foster dependency, then what if that person isn’t there to take care of you?

Another reason for anxiety is called “Future Negative Fantasies”. This is when we focus on the worst thing that can happen, our emotions will kick in, believing that that horrible future is taking place right now, and go into panic mode. It is foolish to focus on the worst thing. If it is your fantasy, why not focus on the best thing that can happen? In doing so it improves our mood.

 

 

Another reason is past trauma. Trauma can be defined in many ways. Psychologically speaking, if an event from the past keeps haunting you, then it is a trauma and needs to be processed through. Gestalt Therapy refers to this as “Unfinished Business”. This means the event needs to be relived from many different angles, but the easiest way to process unfinished business is by writing about it and then ripping it up.

Write letters to the person or persons that have hurt you and then rip them up. Free your mind of this clutter. Free-form writing in which you simply jot down what is on your mind and then rip up what you jotted down. Please don’t reread these, again, rip it up.

Psychosynthesis is an older approach that has people focus on living in the here and now. This slogan applies: “The past is history, the future a mystery, but now is a gift and that is why it is called The Present.”  

Psychosynthesis deals with the issues we have that are conflicting. Should I take that new job? Should I marry? Should I consider stopping smoking? When you are at a junction in your life it is very stressful. Which road is the right one to take? In giving both viewpoints an opportunity to voice themselves, the answers come rather naturally.

Stressful events also cause anxiety. Moving, starting a new job, the birth of a child, marriage, the holidays, becoming sober, all of these, and more can be jarring to the system. Writing can be important, and therapy too.

If you continue to have panic, consider medication and therapy. The combination creates the best odds for healing. Though ultimately taking quick action steps is the ultimate healer. You can’t wait on this one because anxiety tends to continually increase unless you take the action steps to resolve it.

Compassionate Care is Always Available

There are many more tools and strategies you can use in your pursuit of happiness. Here is where we come in. Contact us at Basic Steps Mental Health and let us support and educate you on this journey back to your loving heart center. Imagine living a heart-centered life, regardless of what is happening externally. We’d love to be of help.

For 25 years, Dr. Scott Alpert, the clinical director of Basic Steps Mental Health, has treated over 7,000 people with mental health and addiction problems, using a Psychological approach that mixes and matches ten of the top approaches used in the industry. We are here virtually and in-person to help you get through this COVID-19 pandemic and many other difficulties you may be experiencing.

May you have good mental health.