How to overcome worry and anxiety

Anxiety and worry is experienced by almost everyone at some stage in their lives.    On one level it can be a positive thing.  It enables us to:

• - Plan for important events in advance
• - Consider others feelings and needs
• - Be aware of our own feelings and needs
• - It gets us out of harms’ way and warns us when to take action

Helpful anxiety will make us check our bag for the passport and airline tickets before we leave the house.    It will make us throw in our backpack the extra raincoat for our tramping companion or take extra water with us on a hot day.    

Unhealthy anxiety will put us in a state of hyper-vigilance, over thinking (ruminating), doing too much for others, and acting in haste.   If the anxiety is persistent, overwhelming or irrational, it can become disabling.  It interferes with our enjoyment of life and daily activities.

So where does anxiety come from?

• We begin worrying or experience stress about something
• This tenses up our digestive system so we stop absorbing the nutrients from our food properly.   Our organs then get depleted and our chemistry goes out of balance
• We don't get enough nutrients to our cells - including the brain
• Our hormones go out of balance and we get moody
• We take short upper chest breaths which makes our body feel like it is in danger.  We go into survival mode:  the adrenal glands pump out cortisol into the blood stream, our muscles get ready for flight or flight
• If we don’t burn off the sugars in our muscles through movement or exercise, they get sore and tense, causing pain
• The chemistry in our body makes us feel on edge, the mind (from the chemicals and stimuli) goes into overdrive, and we have anxiety.

Now add to this a traumatic event 

• A car accident
• Working with a difficult person on a daily basis
• Loss of job/financial worries
• Betrayal
• Relationship break-up
• Living with someone who is threatening suicide
• Living with someone who is constantly criticising or undermining us
• Caring for someone who is dying and you are constantly on the “watch out” for them
• You lose self-confidence with a partner, friend, family member or employer
• War, earthquake, life threatening event

And voila, anxiety appears!    It’s a normal reaction to an unhealthy situation.
Anxiety is a combination of chemical imbalance in the body, lifestyle choices, an overactive mind, unprocessed emotions, combined with a difficult situation.   Each thing feeds into the other.   
Physical symptoms are

• muscle tension
• fatigue
• restlessness
• difficulty sleeping
• irritability
• edginess

If you experience this, wouldn't you like to change it?

The good news is that by looking at each of the elements that create stress, and changing our habits, we can get out of this situation.  It takes time to change, but it is well worth it.

So what helps?:
Deep slow breathing - the kind where your tummy gets inflated like a balloon (this makes your body think you are safe)
Taking time to relax and do nothing (yes this means no media devices)
Being in nature and enjoying it
A relaxation massage
Looking at your lifestyle and seeing what can be changed to relieve stress
Getting some advice/counselling/training in managing difficult people or situations, so you become more resilliant and resourceful

If you would like some relief from stress and anxiety contact me for a private session or a massage.  I am running a special offer of $55 for an hour until the end of June - limited spaces available.

Elayne Lane
MassageInNelson.com

http://www.adaa.org/generalized-anxiety-disorder-gad
http://www.adaa.org/generalized-anxiety-disorder-vs-general-anxiety-about-your-finances

---