Being anxious means you are a 'good' person
Posted on 22nd March 2022
If you are anxious you are a great person, because people who are anxious have high concern for things in life. People with anxiety think about other people, they think about danger, and are generally concerned for the welfare of themselves and others.
If you struggle with anxiety, you probably also have high standards. You expect a lot from yourself.
You expect to be good at a lot of things and expect to excel in this world. You probably have a strong work ethic.
You probably feel very strongly that you should perform in a certain way, at work, and amongst other people. And you have a concern about how you act and behave.
Also you may have concern about how you impact others
All of these are all great qualities. So anxious people are great people, they really are those people who has these high standards and great ethics, and great concern for others, and themselves. So that's a good thing.
However, when that becomes too much, it tips into an anxiety, you produce cortisol (a hormone that is produced under stress within your body) all the time, and you're constantly in that warning system we call the fight or flight response.
The fight or flight response is when you are on alert, adrenaline is produced and you are ready to deal with a situation at hand which may appear threatening, for example failing. The fight or flight response helps you to perform better so is quite useful too but when you are in it all the time it is dangerous and not good for your body and mind at all. This is because the flight or fight response shuts down other areas in the body, e.g digestion, rational thinking. It can cause headaches, depletes the immune system and basically stops all normal functioning while you deal with the threat. Your heart rate goes up, you may sweat a lot, your breathing becomes laboured, or very, very fast. So there's lots of things happening to the body when we're in the stress response.
However, the stress response’s policy is not always helpful. For instance, if you're anxious about going into work, because of how people are going to think of you, you get so anxious that you don't go, it's kind of counterproductive, isn't it?
Also being in the fight or flight response for a significant amount of time causes long term damage.
Below are some tips to manage your anxiety feelings.
Stand for a moment and just notice your feet on the ground, say to yourself "I am safe", "I am grounded", "I am supported". This will help your whole system to calm down as you are giving your brain a message that all is well
Focus on your breath (only if this is something that is helpful for you). Notice your breath coming in and out and your belly rising and falling, again this resets everything.
Find a soothing object to feel, such as a fluffy cushion, a stress ball, or a fidgit, plasticine, bluetack. Anything that has a texture that alerts your senses. Or stoke/cuddle a pet.
Run your hands under cold water for a few minutes, this resets everything and distracts your mind away to the sensation of the water, reducing the physical reaction of the fight or flight response.
If you feel that you are someone who has anxiety and has probably been in a stress response for a while now joining us on one of our retreats may be just what you need to give your whole system a reboot and to reduce some of the effects on your body by getting some time out.
Here is what you will recieve…
Time to learn how to relax.
Time to learn how to change your over responsible thinking
Time to learn how to be kinder to yourself
Time to learn key tools to become more present and in the moment so you do not have to always be worrying.
Follow the link below for more information and our upcoming retreats
or book a call with me to discuss joining a retreat
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