Anxiety In The Modern Age: Why Do We Feel More And More Anxious?
Feeling anxiety or even living with anxiety is one of the most common problems in our modern world.
More and more people are experiencing recurrent anxiety To what extent is living with anxiety related to our current way of living?
The human being is an emotional and also social being. We depend on our context, which influences and conditions us in our way of living, behaving, thinking and feeling. In turn, anxiety has now become the most frequent problem for requesting a psychological session or experiencing a change process.
However, The solution to anxiety cannot be massive medication In a world in which there are more and more courses, workshops, books and therapeutic techniques, we increasingly live on the edge of anxiety and discouragement.
In this article we are going to resolve this paradox. We will have several objectives:
What is anxiety and how does it come into your life?
Anxiety is an unpleasant emotional and psychological state, close to anguish, that makes us live in a state of alert When we live with anxiety it leads us to exhaustion, intrusive thoughts, difficulties falling asleep or eating, etc.
At the same time, it is common to feel an unpleasant sensation in the chest or pit of the stomach, which depending on the person can lead to other symptoms (gastric discomfort, chest or neck pain, migraines, etc.).
Anxiety is a fear that has become widespread We have become accustomed to living in fear, on alert. It can occur in relation to a breakup, conflicts, emotional crises, or when facing uncertainty (not knowing what is going to happen) or health problems.
Why does anxiety arise and how do you maintain it?
Let’s see what are the factors that help trigger and maintain the anxious response to an experience.
Feeling fear or insecurity at certain times in our lives is natural But when we don’t know how to manage these emotions, they can transform into anxiety. Anxiety is still a fear that has become widespread. When faced with certain fears and insecurities, we tend to avoid conflicts, or to observe details that make us think that our fears make sense (something very common in our digital age, as we will see later).
When this happens it is because we have difficulty understanding and managing our emotions. But The problem is not those emotions themselves but the way you manage them through your own behaviors.
Second factor: your way of breathing
Do you remember that unpleasant feeling in the chest or pit of the stomach that is so common when we feel anxiety? When anxiety occurs it is due to our respiratory mechanics, that is, our way of breathing.
When faced with moments that cause anxiety, we begin to breathe quickly and shallowly The diaphragm does not function optimally, it ends up repeatedly pressing on the pit of the stomach and hence the annoying sensation.
For this reason, to solve any problem you have with anxiety (whether in your relationship, breakup, work, personal life, etc.) it is essential that you work on your way of breathing. This is the first step with which we work in a process of change to reduce the intensity of anxiety (which will make everything easier for you on a daily basis).
This is the authentic learning we need (beyond the usual prescription of drugs).
The relationship of anxiety with our modern world
How does anxiety relate to our modern world? Why do we feel more and more anxious?
First of all, it is important that we reflect on the importance of context for our well-being and learning. Depending on the stimuli, we can feel peace and openness or stress and confusion (a hyper-stimulating environment does not affect us in the same way as a more orderly one). In turn, it conditions our way of life, collective beliefs and our routine.
Let’s understand it according to three features of our current context.
The three traits of our modern era and how they influence anxiety
The first feature or factor is that we live in a hyper-consumer, globalized world constantly exposed through social networks Our context is then hyper-stimulating and consumer-oriented, which increases the number of daily activities. This causes us stress and exhausts us in an emotional and cognitive sense (which precipitates anxiety).
In second place, our context flows through social comparison Being constantly exposed on social networks and at the same time polarized by over-information (today it is easier to think without nuances, which conditions us and prevents us from reflecting), it is common for us to compare ourselves with other models, which hinders our self-esteem. .
When we feel like we are living according to a pre-established script, we feel increasingly confused and purposeless, which causes us to feel fear, insecurity, lack of control, and therefore, anxiety. One of the basic conditions for human beings to live in well-being is to be able to make their own decisions and for their well-being to depend mainly on their actions and way of life.
The last factor is that of over-information. Every day we are exposed to a multitude of over-information that confuses and exhausts us , in addition to being caused by devices that work according to an addictive mechanism (the cell phone or smartphone). In the face of breakups, social networks are frequently used insistently, and more and more people look at their cell phones as soon as they wake up and it is also the last thing they look at before going to sleep. This generates greater addiction due to hyper stimulation, which harms our anxious state.
The solution to anxiety is in your own personal change and learning
In short: we live in a hyper-stimulating context, which dazes us with experiences but where we reflect less and less and find our own space. However, we cannot change that world or the context. What is in your power is to know yourself and live a process of change that leads you to build your own context, more organic and beneficial.
We need to focus on several learnings.
5 lessons to overcome anxiety in our modern world
The first step to solve problems with anxiety, as I told you above, is learn to breathe fully When we start working with breathing we become aware of how it affects our mood, the way you think and act. This first step is essential, since anxiety will progressively decrease in intensity thanks to your own learning (which will help you in a stable way).
The second step is learn to use technology , so that it is at your service but you do not become immersed in that addictive mechanism. In a process of change, it is also common for us to work on how we use the cell phone, so that it does not cause so much anxiety through its hyperstimulation.
The third step is build your own context , through a series of routines that lead you towards calm, making your own decisions and making your well-being depend mainly on you. This will lead you to know yourself, to recover, and to find yourself again.
The fourth and most important step is learn to understand and manage your emotions , since that is the origin of problems with anxiety. When we learn to manage them, fears, insecurities and discouragement are no longer as intense, frequent and lasting, and we can generate more acceptance, clarity and confidence.
Finally, in the case of couple relationships, it is essential that we understand how are you approaching your relationships When we approach them in a dependent way or generate demands or too many expectations, it is common that emotional difficulties are generated and the relationship is damaged. At the same time, knowing how to set limits is necessary to live with well-being and autonomy.
Perhaps the most important thing in a psychological process or personal change is that all this learning comes from you and that it is holistic, that is, working with all parts of your personality. In my case, this is the reason why I do not accompany with occasional sessions, but constantly: every day, for any need that the person has and without limit of consultation, in addition to sessions and other tools.
Thus, we can address anxiety problems when they occur and confront them at the time If that is what you want, on Human Empowerment or on my Psychology and Mind author page you can contact me to schedule a first session to get to know each other, study your case and see how you can solve what is happening to you 100%.
