Every person throughout his life periodically experiences anxiety about one reason or another. But there are people who can worry even in safe situations or because of events that can happen. This personality trait is called “anxiety”. Anxiety can arise situationally, anxiety is constantly present in a person. It is often a prerequisite for the emergence of fears, phobias and overprotection of children. The main cause of increased anxiety is high stress levels in large cities.
High level of anxiety is a common problem in modern people
Situational fear and anxiety about ambiguous situations are normal in human life. It is much worse when the ability to worry develops into suspiciousness and anxiety. Over time, a person can develop an anxiety disorder that can seriously poison their lives. Fear can be caused by a really dangerous situation that threatens life and health. Increased anxiety can also manifest itself in completely ordinary situations, for example, when it is necessary to fly an airplane or speak in public.
There are several types of anxiety. It becomes permanent with a large crowd of people. This type is called “social anxiety”. This also includes the obsessive fear of being in an awkward situation before public speaking. Post-traumatic obsessive anxiety may occur after the trauma.
Often, increased anxiety is inherited from parents. Children from families with an authoritarian parenting style or overprotective parents risk growing up anxious, with low self-esteem and an inability to make decisions on their own. Dealing with obsessive anxiety may require the help of a therapist and helpful relaxation techniques.
Reasons for the development of increased anxiety
Despite the fact that obsessive anxiety is not always formed in childhood, parenting style in the parental family has a serious impact on the development of the child. His mother and father are the first significant adults in his life. And the formation of the personality of children depends on their attitude.
A high level of fear for the life and health of loved ones can be noted in families where accidents with ancestors occurred – sudden disappearances, early unexplained deaths, deaths in war or in conditions of social and political instability. Anxious adults also grow out of children who have not received basic trust in the world due to rejection by one of their parents.
There are families, all of whose members are anxious and show anxiety even on minor occasions. Not surprisingly, children growing up in such an environment become anxious themselves. Numerous calls to “pull yourself together and calm down” do not work and do not contribute to the instant disappearance of the anxiety state.
The tendency to be anxious about the smallest of things also has physical symptoms. The most common of these are panic, increased heart rate, increased sweating, confusion, headaches, and muscle aches. Anxious people are at risk of developing mental disorders ranging from neuroses to depression.
The main problem with anxious people is the inability to relax. Therefore, relaxation is a necessary skill that they have to learn. This can be helped by regular practices that form the basis of meditation, yoga, or other arts. Psychotherapy can help change behavioral patterns to more positive ones.
The quality of life of anxious people is severely tested. Uncertainty in itself, an inability to make decisions, a variety of fears deprive people of opportunities to enjoy life. The occurrence of unreasonable anxiety can be facilitated by the presence of several stressful factors at once – an unfamiliar environment, communication with “toxic” people, fear of public speaking. Anxiety takes a lot of energy and vitality, makes it impossible to actively act.
Surrounding anxious people makes several common mistakes. They often use devaluating phrases that reinforce feelings of guilt or urge you to calm down and end your panic immediately. Of course, these calls will not work, since the anxious person is simply not able to instantly calm down. Anxious people need support and recognition.
Regular practices such as yoga can help relieve anxiety . This art is based on the correct work with muscles and breathing. The relaxation used by practitioners helps to focus on the sensations of their own body and to control their breathing. Many of those who regularly practice yoga note the positive effect of the practice – they become much calmer.
Physical activity can help you not only strengthen your muscles or lose weight, but also distract yourself from disturbing thoughts. A person can choose any kind of sport that interests him – running, cycling, skiing, swimming. Any creative activity or hobby helps to switch and be less influenced by heavy and gloomy thoughts.
In modern psychotherapy, various methods are widely used to visualize anxiety and fear. One of them is art therapy. In one of the exercises, a person is asked to draw their own anxiety or fear, first in dark colors, then in more positive ones. To a large extent, any active activity helps to get rid of obsessive anxiety.
In the modern world, there are many factors that contribute to the formation of obsessive anxiety states. This is negative information from the media, daily reports about the disappearance of people, plane crashes, road accidents, terrorist attacks. Some people are often worried that in their minds they tend to combine unrelated facts and try on what is happening for themselves and their lives. Hence, there is an unreasonable anxiety for the life of a child or any other close person.
Anxiety takes a lot of effort, time, emotions, leaving no resource for work and vigorous activity. Therefore, it is important for anxious people to learn how to manage their emotions and change their way of thinking to more positive ones. This can be learned in psychotherapy sessions with a qualified specialist who shares the patient’s attitudes and values.