The Root Causes Of Anxiety And Their Management

Anxiety is a reaction of the body and mind to unpleasant, frightening, or unexpected situations. Whilst unpleasant, it is not unfunctional but essential in our life. However, when we have too much anxiety, we feel distressed. If you suffer from anxiety on a daily basis, you might want to learn more about what triggers it and how to cope with it effectively. So, in this article, we'll go over a few ways to manage your anxiety, along with some other information that you might find helpful.

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How To Know If You Have Anxiety?

You can tell you have anxiety if you often feel your body and mind are not communicating well. Frequent nightmares, panic attacks, and excessive worrying might also indicate anxiety. Anxiety manifests itself in various ways, which depend on the individual experiencing it. But there are some common symptoms that most anxiety patients face. The following are a few of them:

• Feeling restless.
• Fatigue.
• Dizziness.
• Not being able to sleep properly.
• Concentration issues.
• Tension and irritability.
• Shaking and trembling.
• Chest pains.
• Increased heart rates.
• Frequent nightmares.
• Overthinking.
• Hot flashes.
• Feeling detached from the world.
• Hyperventilating.
• Sweating.
• Dry mouth.
• Tense muscles.
• Panic attacks.
• Irrational fears.
• Tendency to avoid social situations.
• Nausea.

What Are the Factors That May Cause Anxiety?

Many factors can make you more vulnerable to having too much anxiety. Genetic factors, trauma, stress, personality type, medications, etc., are a few of the most common factors.
Whilst research often looks at one particular trigger; clinicians argue that there is no single cause to find. Several factors are at play here.
Let's take a look at a few of the reasons that can make you vulnerable to having anxiety:

1. Genetic Factors and Family Factors

If any of your family members suffer from anxiety, you might be at a higher risk as it can indicate a genetic predisposition. According to a study, anxiety diseases are linked to hereditary features. The researchers concluded that you might be more susceptible to anxiety when you have certain genetic characteristics. However, growing up with family members who displayed significant anxiety levels might affect you as you could learn this is the "normal" response to difficulties.

2. Stress

Well, everyone experiences stress. However, unsettled or severe stress might raise the risk of developing persistent anxiety. Excessive anxiety can be triggered by a significant incident or a series of less stressful life events. The little but consistent stress experiences (for example, traffic jams) appear to affect our stress systems severely. Other examples are the loss of a family member, work stress, or persistent financial worries that may lead to a person developing anxiety.

3. Medications

Often underrated is that several medicines may cause anxiety as one of their side effects. Besides, such medication can also cause other symptoms that resemble anxiety. For example, caffeine-containing medications, some asthma medicines, ADHD medicines, corticosteroids, etc., might increase the risk of being consistently "on edge". Moreover, the coming of an anti-anxiety drug, such as Benzodiazepines, can elicit withdrawal effects with symptoms akin to anxiety.

4. Trauma

A recent or previous traumatic incident, such as abuse, might cause anxiety. Many people feel anxious after an unanticipated or terrifying event. Trauma is one of the main factors that may cause anxiety in many individuals. One possible explanation is that the trauma has shattered our assumption of living in a benign and safe world.

5. Personality type

Some personality traits may influence your chances of developing symptoms of anxiety. A team of scientists discovered that individuals who overly criticized themselves struggled with criticism and had too many negative thoughts were more likely to develop GAD (generalized anxiety disorder) and major depression later in life.

Strategies To Manage Your Anxiety

If you don't take proper steps to manage your anxiety, it might start getting in the way of your daily tasks, your daily enjoyments and your life in general. We understand how difficult it might be for you to deal with your anxiety every day. So, here are a few strategies to manage your anxiety better:

1. Exercise Regularly

Exercise is essential for both physical and emotional well-being. It can help you feel better by reducing anxiety. However, it would help if you chose the activities you will enjoy. Moreover, begin softly and work your way up to increasing your workout intensity and duration.

Besides, keep in mind that breathing exercises are also crucial for managing your anxiety.

2. Identify What Is Bothering You

To get to the core of your worry, you must first identify what is upsetting you. And you can achieve this by reflecting on your feelings and thoughts.

However, writing in a diary can help you figure out the origins of your anxiety. So, make a list of everything that is upsetting you. Furthermore, another technique to find and comprehend your nervous feelings is simply talking to a friend.

3. Distract Yourself

Sometimes the most beneficial way is to shift your attention away from your anxiety. You may hang out with your friends or do some housework. Additionally, participating in some fun activities or a hobby may also help you. The following are a few tips to distract yourself from helping you cope with anxiety:

• Clean or organize your room.
• Listen to calm and soothing music.
• Meditate.
• Watch comedy series or movies.
• Go out for a walk.
• Go on a trip.

These are only a few examples that may divert your mind. However, only you know best what might help you distract yourself from all the stress.

4. Practice Self-care

Self-care is critical to your capacity to handle anxiety. Manage time to get enough sleep every night and follow a healthy diet. Furthermore, don't forget to shower regularly, wear clean clothes, etc. You will be amazed to see how these small self-care practices can help you with your anxiety.

5. Seek Professional Help

The last and most obvious one is to seek help from a professional. Therapists will understand your situation and help you learn how to deal with your anxiety. The good news is that WithSto provides you with an online platform to seek help from psychologists. You can also enrol yourself in WITHSTO's different courses. Specialists create them to help you deal with anxiety to manage social anxiety, general anxiety, panic attacks, or health anxiety better.

Photo by Jukan Tateisi

Conclusion

Managing anxiety is not as easy as it sounds. Start with little steps. For example, reconnecting with people, going out for a while, and foremost - giving yourself credit for doing these things. The harsh self-critique we often use when we feel vulnerable is depleting you even more. And, if you need any help, remember that we are always here for you. If you're having trouble dealing with anxiety on your own, don't hesitate to reach out to Withsto. We'd be delighted to help you.

Photo by Dan-Cristian Pădureț on Unsplash