Anxiety is the uneasy feeling of fear and dread which can make you feel tensed and restless. It may boost your energy and help you focus on work but sometimes persistent fear or worry can become overwhelming. That could be a sign of anxiety disorder.

Anxiety disorders are mental health conditions that go beyond regular nervousness and fear. These disorders interfere with your ability to function, make you lose control over yourself and overreact to certain situations. They can also make you avoid situations, people and places that trigger the symptoms and eventually impact your performance and personal relationships.

Some of the types of anxiety disorders include:

• Phobia
• Panic Disorder
• Social Anxiety Disorder
• Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
• Illness Anxiety Disorder
• Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
• Separation Anxiety Disorder
• Generalised Anxiety Disorder

Every person has their own reason and triggers of anxiety. For some, a simple exam or test can cause anxiety while sometimes, the underlying triggers could include childhood trauma, phobia etc.  

Some of the common triggers of anxiety are:

• Genetics- history of anxiety and other related issues in the family
• Sudden change
• A stressful environment - at home, job, school etc
• Side-effect of medications
• Excessive intake of caffeine
• Trauma
• Phobia
• Travelling
• Mental health disorders like depression
• Nervousness - situations like exams, interviews, events etc.

While occasional anxiety is a normal part of life and can cause a little worry or nervousness, excessive anxiety or anxiety disorders involve more than temporary fear and worry and can become worse for some people.
Some of the warning signs and symptoms of anxiety include:

• Hyperventilation
• Irritability and frustration
• Fear and worry related to a person, place or situation
• Nervousness
• Trouble concentrating on work
• Restlessness
• Difficulty in connecting with the surrounding
• Feeling lost
• Sleep difficulties
• uncontrollable feelings of worry
• Nightmares

While there could be many situations that could trigger anxiety, there are certain things you can do to keep anxiety under control or reduce the impact of symptoms when you get anxious:

• Identify and learn to manage your triggers:  Sometimes the triggers are so obvious that you can identify and manage them yourself. Like, if your anxiety gets triggered by caffeine, you can cut back on coffee, tea and other caffeinated foods. But there could be instances when you need to see a therapist to get your triggers identified and managed with coping techniques and therapies.

• Adopt a healthy lifestyle: Your physical health impacts your mental health, so it is important to stay physically active and healthy to keep your mind relaxed and stress-free. Eat healthy food, stay active, spend time in nature, indulge in activities that make you happy and develop a routine for stress management and relaxation techniques like yoga. These things help in reducing anxiety and improve your well-being.

• Start meditating: Meditation helps you to relax and keeps you calm and tranquil. It lets you eliminate all the negative and stressful thoughts from the mind and results in enhanced mental, emotional and physical well-being.

• Slow breathing: Anxiety might make your breathing faster and shallower. Whenever you feel anxious, take a deep breath, then slowly breathe out and relax. Slow breathing helps in calming down and brings your heartbeat to a normal pace.  

• Keep a journal: Since it won’t be possible to always have someone around, writing your thoughts in a diary or journal can help in managing anxiety.  You can vent your heart out in the journal and can also track the most common triggers, warning signs and symptoms of anxiety.

• Talk to someone: While it might not be easy but try to talk it out. Share your worries and concerns with someone close to you. Letting your thoughts out will help you feel light and relaxed. Being heard will provide you with some validation and give you the strength to combat your worries.

• Be kind to yourself: Your anxiety doesn’t define you. You are not your anxiety. Don’t be hard on yourself. Treat it like a normal illness and get the required treatment to control and manage it. Though it is not easy, it is not impossible as well. Everything gets managed, including anxiety. So stay calm, be kind to yourself and relax. This phase shall pass soon.

Psychotherapy
Talk therapy or psychotherapy is a way to help people with mental disorders and emotional difficulties. It can help in eliminating or managing the troubling symptoms of anxiety and provides healing and better well-being. The therapies are tailored by a professional therapist as per your specific anxiety disorder and needs. Psychotherapy may also be used in combination with other therapies or even medicines.

• Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

CBT is a type of psychotherapy that works on negative thought patterns and behaviours to identify and restructure them. It changes your approach towards situations by teaching different ways of thinking, behaving and reacting to the situations to help you feel less anxious.

• Acceptance and Commitment Therapy

ACT is yet another type of psychotherapy that emphasises acceptance as a way to deal with the symptoms and negative feelings and thoughts. It focuses on mindfulness and increased commitment to healthy activities. Acceptance of feelings and thoughts may lead to increased psychological flexibility and make you feel positive.

Sarvodaya’s Centre for Mental Health brings the expertise of the finest psychiatrists and psychologists to help you with your mental health issues. Consult them by booking your appointment online or call 18003131414.