Coping with and Conquering Anxiety Fears | Studies have shown that individuals who experience frequent anxiety often mis-perceive a situation or a possible event as being more dangerous or likely to occur than it really is. For example, imagine you’re boarding an airplane and find your heart starts pounding, your palms become sweaty, and your breathing rate has increased. As you make your way to your seat, your mind starts to focus on a story you saw on the news about a plane crash. You briefly overhear another passenger talking about a storm headed in the direction where your plane is going. You sit in your seat and start to feel a sense of panic and want nothing more at that moment than to get up and flee from the plane to solid ground and safety. During such an experience, it can be difficult to consider all the available facts. In a moment when your body is sweating, your heart is pounding, and your stomach is in knots, danger can seem imminent and very real. Your body is primed for fleeing, and your brain focuses on the facts supporting how your body is feeling (concluding that danger is likely).
Understanding How Anxiety Distorts Perceived Danger
Now imagine you decided to leave the plane and forgo the flight. The anxiety would decrease, your hands would stop sweating, your heart rate would slow, and your breathing would return to normal. You may feel relieved that you “avoided danger.” Then, as the plane flies away, your thoughts wander to the missed vacation and time with friends whom you had planned to visit, who would be expecting you at the airport, arriving on the plane that just left without you. While avoiding the things we fear is effective in the short term for reducing anxiety, that avoidance behavior strengthens the perception of danger and provides support that “fleeing” is necessary. However, excessive fear and anxiety can get in the way of living and doing the things we want and need. Sometimes, the threat “alarm bells” in our body can go off when the likelihood of a threat occurring is actually very low.
Fortunately, there are many methods that can help reduce anxiety so that major life disruptions can be avoided and/or reduced. One approach to reduce fears/anxiety is to assess all the facts about the situation and the probability of the feared event actually happening. For example, how likely is it that the plane will crash in comparison to the likelihood of the plane arriving safely? Another important technique to fight anxiety is learning how to physically calm your body so your anxiety symptoms are not mis-perceived as “proof” of threat. Learning to purposefully slow and lengthen your breath can be a simple way to reduce tension in your body so that you can calmly and accurately view your surroundings and consider all the facts.
Coping with and Conquering Anxiety Fears
Practicing facing our fears in small, manageable steps is one of the most effective ways to reduce anxiety over time. Repetition is crucial, and remembering to start small and work your way up so that you can experience success along the way is also important. Start by practicing tolerating feelings of anxiety without avoiding the feared event. For example, if talking in front of a large group sets off your alarm bells, choose to start by saying hello to two new people and then work up to making small talk with an individual, then two, etc. It is important to work your way up to the more difficult situations while experiencing small successes in the change process. Lastly, consider seeking professional help from a therapist if your anxiety has impacted several areas of your life and seems too overwhelming to conquer on your own.
