Anxiety
Feeling anxious?
Anxiety is something everyone experiences at times, and feeling anxious is a perfectly natural reaction to some situations.
But sometimes feelings of anxiety can be constant, overwhelming or out of proportion to the situation and this can affect your daily life.
The good news is there are plenty of things you can try to help cope with anxiety. We also have specific tips and expert advice to help you look after your mental health and wellbeing if you are feeling worried or anxious about coronavirus (COVID-19).
What is anxiety?
Anxiety is a feeling of unease, like a worry or fear, that can be mild or severe. Everyone feels anxious from time to time and it usually passes once the situation is over.
It can make our heart race, we might feel sweaty, shaky or short of breath. Anxiety can also cause changes in our behaviour, such as becoming overly careful or avoiding things that trigger anxiety.
When anxiety becomes a problem, our worries can be out of proportion with relatively harmless situations. It can feel more intense or overwhelming, and interfere with our everyday lives and relationships.
The tips on this page should help you manage feelings of anxiety. But if your anxiety is affecting your daily life or causing you distress, you could consider seeking further support.
Top tips to cope with anxiety
Shift your focus
Some people find relaxation, mindfulness or breathing exercises helpful. They reduce tension and focus our awareness on the present moment.
Try NHS-recommended relaxation exercises
Understand your anxiety
Try keeping a diary of what you are doing and how you feel at different times to help identify what’s affecting you and what you need to take action on.
Challenge your anxious thoughts
Tackling unhelpful thoughts is one of the best things we can do to feel less anxious. Watch the video to find out more.
Video: Reframing unhelpful thoughts
Make time for worries
If your worry feels overwhelming and takes over your day, setting specific “worry time” to go through your concerns each day can help you to focus on other things. Watch the video for more advice.
Face the things you want to avoid
It’s easy to avoid situations, or rely on habits that make us feel safer, but these can keep anxiety going. By slowly building up time in worrying situations, anxious feelings will gradually reduce and you will see these situations are OK.
Look at the bigger picture
If we feel anxious about a situation, we might get stuck on the details and stop seeing things rationally. Thinking about your problem or situation from someone else’s view can make it easier to come up with a plan. What advice would you give to a friend or family member?
Signs of anxiety
Anxiety can show in a variety of ways. This can be as changes in your body, in being constantly worried or changes in your behaviour, such as becoming overly careful or avoiding things that trigger anxiety.
You may:
- feel tired, on edge, restless or irritable
- feel a sense of dread
- be unable to concentrate or make decisions
- have trouble sleeping
- feel sick, dizzy, sweaty or short of breath
- be shaky or trembly
- get headaches or tummy aches
- avoid situations or put off doing things you are worried about
- have difficulty falling or staying asleep
- experience a noticeably strong, fast or irregular heartbeat
- have pins and needles
- have a dry mouth
- sweat excessively
- repeatedly check things or seek assurance from others
What causes anxiety?
Anxiety affects everyone differently and can be brought on by different situations or experiences. It is our body’s natural reaction to perceived danger, focusing our attention and giving us a rush of adrenaline to react, sometimes called the “fight or flight” response.
Sometimes it can be difficult to know what is making you anxious, which can be upsetting or stressful in itself. That’s why learning to recognise what is making you anxious can help so you can deal with the uncertainty better.
Some people naturally react more than others, and there are times when everyone may go through stressful situations and feel anxious because of uncertainty or perceived threat.
There are lots of things that can influence our mental health, such as our upbringing, childhood environment, things that happen to us and even our temperament. Learn more about what affects our mental health and what support is available for life’s challenges.
Read more about dealing with life’s challenges
Support or treatment for anxiety
- Seek NHS support if anxiety is affecting your daily life or causing you distress, call NHS 111 or talk to your GP. In England, you can also refer yourself for psychological therapy through the NHS IAPT service without seeing your GP.
- Charities, helplines and communities
- Try a Reading Well bookReading Well for mental health provides helpful information and support, with books on mindfulness and other subjects available free from your local library.
Source
https://www.nhs.uk/every-mind-matters/mental-health-issues/anxiety/
