Do I Have Anxiety? The 5 Psychological Keys To Know It And Solve It
Feeling anxiety or even living with it is one of the most unpleasant experiences we live with today. At the same time, it is an increasingly common problem. But how do I know if I have anxiety?
Anxiety is often confused with stress. Stress is an unpleasant sensation resulting from facing too many challenges with few resources. This leads us to fatigue and demotivation. Anxiety is more linked to fear, insecurity or intrusive thoughts. Anxiety comes due to fear at work, a crisis in a relationship, a breakup, difficulties in relationships, etc.
Although the diagnosis of anxious-depressive symptoms is very common today, we can live with anxiety for too long without this implying a diagnosis. It is about that frequent anxiety that conditions us, that seems invisible but that leads us towards discomfort. In this article we are going to see what its characteristics are so that you can solve that question: do I have anxiety? How can I solve it in a stable way?
What I am going to tell you is based on direct experience in consultation accompanying people in their change and therapy processes. In almost 70% of cases these people suffered from anxiety to a greater or lesser degree. Let’s find out if you have it and how you can fix it.
Anxiety is not a difficulty for a few people, but rather an unpleasant emotional and physiological state that anyone can feel at some point in their life. A first day at work, a first date, waiting for important news, health problems or living with uncertainty can make us feel anxious.. But what is it really? What do we feel?
Anxiety is an unpleasant emotional state linked to fear and insecurity. We have become accustomed to living with fear and insecurity for too long, perhaps in a generalized way or focused on some situation (partner, work, social life, etc.), in such a way that it limits us, makes us feel tired and harms our well-being. as general health.
Although we usually think that the causes of anxiety are due to the problem we are experiencing (breakup, frequent arguments, need for control), the reality is that this problem is only a trigger. The real causes of anxiety derive from our previous state. There are fundamentally two causes.
Management of fear and insecurity
Anxiety is always linked to fear and insecurity. However, these emotions are useful and positive in certain situations. The problem is when we learn to manage them in a dysfunctional way, in such a way that they are too intense, frequent and long-lasting.. When this situation becomes generalized, anxiety is generated. Now, why do we feel that choking sensation in the chest or pit of our stomach so often?
Anxious or dysfunctional breathing
When we feel anxiety we are in a state of alert. We feel that what is happening is dangerous, so we begin to breathe quickly and shallowly. This respiratory mechanics problem causes the diaphragm to not expand enough and contract quickly.. That’s where the feeling of suffocation or pressure in the pit of the stomach or chest comes from.
How do I know if I have anxiety?
To clear up your doubts, we are going to see the five keys to know if you have or live with anxiety. I also leave you a video where we delve into what anxiety is and how to overcome it.
intrusive thoughts
Intrusive thoughts or rumination consist of automatically thinking about what worries you. They are thoughts about external factors that you cannot control: “What will they think of me? What are they doing now? What is this going to mean for me?”
The two main characteristics of this type of thoughts are that they are not practical (they do not lead us to any solution), they always generate discomfort and are related to factors that we cannot control. Intrusive thoughts or rumination are a consequence of anxiety. If you have them, you are undoubtedly in an anxious state (which corresponds to dysfunctional breathing).
The physical symptoms are very varied. The main one is usually that feeling of suffocation or pressure in the chest or pit of the stomach, but it can be accompanied by gastritis, lack of appetite, exhaustion, shortness of breath, neck pain, headaches, or even discomfort in the throat (similar to those that accompany crying).
Anticipation
We try to anticipate what scares us, we investigate, we look for details to feel safe or to confirm our suspicions, and We always believe that what we fear is going to happen or is happening. All this leads us to a behavior of anticipation that exhausts us..
Avoidance
When we feel anxiety we avoid what scares us, even if it may be something everyday: a relationship, a certain conversation, a context, etc. The more we avoid, the anxiety remains and becomes more intense.
Hyperreactivity
Hyperreactivity consists of, when in a state of alert, reacting to events more intensely or with greater impulsivity.. Anxiety makes us feel what is happening in a more intense, fragile and vulnerable way.
Solve anxiety in a stable way
Feeling anxiety at some point in our lives is natural. However, living with anxiety limits our well-being and is a problem that we need to solve. However, the solution will not come with superficial therapy or much less with drugs (which relax the body and diaphragm but are not a long-term solution).
The solution is to live a process of change and therapy that is profound and at the same time practical, whose learning is stable and will serve you throughout your life. Let’s see what we work on in consultation to be able to achieve it.
Discover how you manage your emotions and how they are projected with anxiety
Anxiety develops as an emotional problem that affects us globally. For this reason, we must begin the process by discovering how you manage your emotions now. It’s about paying attention to what your behaviors are like before, during and after anxious episodes, and in turn, with all the emotions involved. (insecurity, guilt, frustration, etc.).
This step is key to being able to manage our emotions in a functional way.
Work with respiratory mechanics
If anxiety is so linked to breathing from a physiological point of view, we absolutely need to work with breathing. When a person has anxiety and needs to live their process of change and therapy, this learning is essential from the beginning. Learning to breathe completely and naturally reduces the intensity of anxiety over time and promotes our overall health.
Plan of action
To solve anxiety, only reflective therapy does not work for us, but rather we need to take action. Although an action plan is usually made at the beginning of a change and therapy process, in my case I prefer that we design it a little later. Once we see how you manage anxiety, we will find the best solutions, since each case is totally different.
Work with everything that is important to you
Anxiety is linked to our partner, work, self-esteem, the way we communicate or relate, etc. For this reason it is also necessary not to be left alone with the problem, but focus on learning comprehensively about yourself and being able to work with everything that happens to you.
Constant company
Finally, to solve cases of anxiety it is important that you have constant company (not just sporadic sessions) so that you can have help when necessary. My way of providing support is every day, without consultation limits, in addition to weekly tools and sessions.. In this way, the process is deeper and at the same time practical. The goal is to solve the anxious problem in a stable way.
If you consider that you have anxiety, above all, be patient and committed to your process. If you need help and professional company, remember that you can schedule a first session in Human Empowerment or in my Psychology and Mind profile.
Thank you for thinking of you, Rubén Camacho Psychologist and coach
