Especially in these days and age, everyone has some or the other form of anxiety. One of the most primary reasons many of us do not know how to control our anxiety is because we have not even been taught the basics of anxiety. We don’t even know how to emotionally regulate ourselves and bring ourselves back into balance.
So If you’re new here, I am Akash, and this is the platform where we talk about everything from healing your traumas, building self-love, confidence, self-esteem, and, as a result, building your best life. And in this article, I will explain, what it is, why it happens and how harmful it is for you.
What Is Anxiety?
Anxiety is nothing but protection in the form of bracing yourself from the possibility of something that could happen. It’s just that you are so unable to deal with the uncertainty lying ahead in your future that your body goes into defense mechanisms to prevent things happening to you which your mind automatically categorizes as something that’s going to be bad.
Your brain is actually predicting a possible danger that’s lying ahead of you, and we don’t even know if there actually is danger or not. But your body is still reacting in ways as if a wild animal is chasing you. You are always in a state of defending yourself and fighting any danger that can possibly come in front of you.
This is nothing but a result of you still being fixated on past events that have happened in your life. Your brain goes into a loop of predicting that these past negative events will definitely happen to you again in the future. The reason you are anxious is because you have, in a way, trained your body to be on alert mode no matter what is happening in your surroundings.
Why Anxiety Loop Happens?
Over a period of time, this becomes a habit. Your mind and body go into a state of stress and anxiety where this becomes your default mode, and then it becomes hard for you to get out of it.
The anxiety loop actually starts with worrying thoughts that create anxious feelings in your body, and then the feelings reinforce the validity of the thought. If you have repeated that loop enough times, your body naturally anticipates that feeling even without the thought being there, even if there is nothing actually wrong happening to you.
There was a saying that goes like this: depression is you living in the past, and anxiety is you living in the future. Even when you’re depressed or anxious, there is no point in time where you’re actually in the present moment, fully grounded in the moment that’s in front of you.
How Anxiety becomes Survival Mechanism?
In a way, you have trained your body to believe that being in an anxious state is actually better than the uncertainty that’s lying ahead of you. Anxiety is just your mind and body’s way of protecting yourself from what could happen in the future. But how do you know what’s actually going to happen in the future?
When you are so scared of being in the unknown, you develop anxiety as a survival mechanism. Now it’s not leaving you, you are living with it every single day, and it’s destroying your life. All that looping of past negative thoughts has made you believe that bad things always happen to you. That thought has gone into your subconscious mind, where you are constantly anticipating bad things happening to you, other people doing wrong to you, or circumstances going against you.
Root Cause of Anxiety
The real question you need to be asking yourself is: What exactly is this anxiety trying to protect you from? Is it trying to protect you from failure, hurt, abandonment, sadness, or anger?
Whenever you feel anxious, sit with your anxiety, feel it, and ask yourself what you are scared of. There is a fear lying within you that is making you anxious. Unless you understand where this anxiety is coming from, you will unconsciously keep repeating this behavior.
Anxiety is not the main problem; it is just a symptom of the negative thoughts lying in your subconscious mind.
When your nervous system is constantly in fight-or-flight mode, your body cannot return to homeostasis, the natural state of balance. While the human body is designed to handle short-term stress, chronic anxiety depletes your body’s energy reserves.
As a result, essential functions like digestion, healing, cell growth, and repair are compromised. This weakens your immune system and can contribute to conditions such as arthritis, inflammation, gut problems, and other chronic illnesses. Physical symptoms of anxiety may also include:
- Muscle tension
- Back and shoulder pain
- Jaw clenching and teeth grinding
- Digestive issues
Many people deny the stress they are experiencing, but their bodies still respond to it.
Start Thinking: Anxiety Is Not Permanent
One thing I really do not like is when someone says, “I have anxiety,” as if it is an incurable disease. Anxiety is completely curable. The more you keep telling yourself that you are an anxious person by nature, the more you reinforce that belief in your subconscious mind.
Whatever your subconscious mind believes becomes your reality. Whether or not you believe in manifestation, you are manifesting 24/7. When you are in a constant state of anxiety, predicting worst-case scenarios, you continue to recreate more of those experiences in your life.
Your emotions create your thoughts, and your thoughts create your reality. To break this loop, you must consciously change your inner world.
Have Right Awareness and Mindset
The moment you start changing your mindset and the way you think, you begin to create change in your life. Catching your thoughts in the moment is one of the hardest yet most powerful skills you can develop. Unless you become conscious of your unconscious thoughts, you will continue to recreate the same experiences and attribute them to fate.
When working with clients, I encourage them to view anxiety as a temporary state rather than a lifelong condition. By slowing down the body and resetting the nervous system, anxiety can gradually disappear.
Panic attacks are manifestations of severe anxious thoughts. During anxiety, people tend to take shallow breaths, limiting the oxygen supply to the brain and body. This causes the brain to perceive a life-threatening situation, intensifying the panic attack.
Breath is a powerful tool for grounding yourself in the present moment. When you become conscious of your breathing, you anchor yourself in the here and now, reducing anxiety.
Practical Techniques for Managing Anxiety
1. Breathwork
Conscious breathing helps regulate the nervous system and brings the body out of the fight-or-flight state.
2. Meditation
Meditation increases awareness of thoughts and promotes emotional regulation. It has been one of the most effective tools in becoming conscious of unconscious patterns.
3. EFT Tapping (Emotional Freedom Technique)
EFT tapping involves stimulating meridian points on the body while repeating affirmations. It helps calm the nervous system and restore a sense of peace.
4. Emotional Regulation and Non-Reaction
Developing the skills of self-regulation and non-reaction allows you to respond to situations calmly rather than reacting impulsively. Observing your thoughts without identifying with them is key to breaking the anxiety cycle.
Your outer world is a reflection of your inner world. By changing your inner thoughts and emotional responses, you stop attracting negative situations into your life. Although it may be challenging initially, consistent effort in emotional regulation can completely reset your nervous system, leading to a calmer and more peaceful life.
My Final Message
Please remember that the anxiety and stress you are feeling right now are not permanent. If you make a conscious choice to work on yourself, you can heal and transform your life. Once you master emotional regulation and non-reaction, you will experience profound calm and peace.
So I hope this article was helpful for you. If you have any questions about anxiety, drop your questions in the comment section. So that’s all for today’s article and thank you so much for reading, and I will come back soon with upcoming intersting article. Thank you!