For most people, anxiety can be a really positive force in their lives. It can boost adrenalin, make us cautious about entering in to new situations to protect us from making mistakes, and give us a healthy boost of energy to deal with challenging situations. However, some people can suffer with anxiety to the extent that it is detrimental to their work, home life and overall wellbeing. If this happens, it’s important to take action to stop the anxiety from controlling their lives and causing ongoing health problems.
Good and Bad Anxiety
Humans are hard-wired to feel anxious in certain situations. We all have an intrinsic ‘fight or flight’ mechanism that boosts certain chemicals through our system, and prepares us for dealing with risks in the right way. Our ancestors relied on this chemical effect to fight of predators in the wild, or give them a useful energy burst to capture prey. However, these days the challenges we face are often far removed from the issues which our bodies were designed to deal with.
This means that anxiety can sometimes take hold of us in inappropriate ways, sending confusing signals to our body which can lead to debilitating symptoms. For example, if we speed up while crossing the road to avoid a car, we’ll find that the experience leaves us feeling weak and shaky afterwards, because our body has pumped blood to our arms and legs to help us avoid the danger.
This is fine in certain situations, but what happens if we respond physically to less immediate challenges?
If we find that we are in ‘fight or flight’ mode to financial worries, or imagined situations that probably will never come to pass, the anxiety is misplaced and doesn’t bring any benefit. This means that we have constant surges of adrenalin for no real reason, which can cause a number of symptoms.
Anxiety Symptoms
Symptoms of anxiety can range from the mild, gnawing sense of unease right through to panic attacks which are so severe, the person experiencing them can genuinely be afraid for their life. Over time, this causes longer-term issues such as depression, extreme fatigue and a weakened immune system. It’s important to recognise the signs of anxiety and deal with them.
Anxiety Support
I work with many people who suffer with anxiety, and the good news is that with a little support you can permanently free yourself from this debilitating condition. I provide a three-week intensive programme of therapy which includes hypnosis and coaching, to support you to challenge some of your responses to situations, and implement positive coping mechanisms to stop the anxiety from hampering your personal and professional wellbeing.
Permanent anxiety is not a positive or useful condition for any of us. If you would like support with managing your anxiety, get in touch with me to find out how you can be free of this difficult condition and become the care-free, confident and positive person you deserve to be.
