Pushing Past Anxiety
Anxiety. We all experience it from time to time, but anxiety can be a constant companion for some people. It can be debilitating, making it hard to get out of bed or leave your house. Luckily, there are ways to manage anxiety and make life easier for yourself when those feelings creep up on you. Here’s how:
Most things are out of your control
You can’t control the outcome of a situation, only how you react. For example, suppose your boss calls you into her office and asks for an update on a project due next week. In that case, there isn’t much that you can do about the outcome: either she’ll ask for more time, or she’ll go ahead with it anyway. However, what is within your power is how you choose to respond at that moment—by panicking or remaining calm and collected.
The key here is not trying to change what cannot be changed; instead, change how you interpret what already exists and your general relationship with that situation.
How you choose to respond in any given moment is a reflection of your character. It can be as simple as choosing not to react with anger when someone cuts you off in traffic or as complex as staying calm and collected while managing a team of highly demanding clients.
Understand your fears
To overcome your fears, you need to understand what they are. The first step is identifying what you’re afraid of: “I’m afraid people will look at me.” Next, think about the worst thing that could happen if this fear came true: “If people looked at me, they’d see my imperfections.” Then consider the best thing to occur if you face your fears: “I’d learn something about myself.”
To help you evaluate each outcome’s likelihood, list their probabilities from least likely (1) to most likely (10). Finally, figure out whether there are any other outcomes in between these extremes and add those numbers up too. This strategy should give you an idea of whether facing your anxiety is worth it.
Take a deep breath
Take a deep breath if you’re like me and feel stressed and anxious. You can practice this technique anywhere at any time; take a long deep breath through your nose and let it slowly through your mouth. Not only will this help calm down the anxiety, but it will also help increase focus.
You can do this while doing something else, such as walking or running on a treadmill (or outside if the weather permits).
Acknowledge anxiety and keep moving forward.
Anxiety is a part of life, and we must deal with it. But you can’t let anxiety keep you from achieving your goals or even being happy. To that end, here are some steps for dealing with anxiety:
Accept that anxiety is a part of life: Don’t fight against it or try to deny its existence; instead, accept that everyone feels anxious sometimes—and then move on!
Stay present: When your mind wanders off into worry about things that might or could happen in the future (“What if I get fired?”), bring yourself back into the present moment (“I’m sitting at my desk right now—my job seems pretty secure for now...”)
Keep moving forward: If something comes up during your day-to-day activities that cause anxiety (a deadline coming up too soon; an assignment due soon), acknowledge them without letting them overwhelm or paralyze you—then keep going!
Acknowledging your anxiety and taking action can be a powerful antidote against fear. When you realize that fear is just a feeling, you can start to let it go. You can make choices based on what you want, not what you don’t want. Often that means acting despite our fears— as it’s the only way to grow.
