Anxiety can be defined as “an emotion characterized by feelings of tension, worried thoughts, and physical changes like increased blood pressure.” (American Psychological Association)
When we are anxious, we may have recurring disturbing thoughts or concerns and avoid certain situations out of worry. We may also have physical symptoms such as sweating, trembling, dizziness, or a rapid heartbeat.
How do we deal with anxiety? Let’s explore a set of practices suggested by Dr. Rick Hanson:
1. Calming our core
To relax our body and calm our mind, we can breathe in such a way that our exhalation is longer than our inhalation. To illustrate, we can inhale 2, 3 and exhale 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. We allow this experience to really sink in. From this feeling of calm and stability, we can better handle threats and challenges around us.
2. Finding a sense of strength
We can recall a time when we felt strong, determined or a time when we endured or lived through something difficult. We move our body. We sit up straight. We feel what it is like to be strong. We tap into this sense of strength when we deal with challenges or threats.
3. Recognizing protectors
We can feel safe by being aware of various protections in our physical environment such as sturdy walls, a well-built roof.
We can feel safe by being aware of resources in our life: e.g., finances, locks on our doors, services in our community. We can think of friends in our life who would help us out.
Recognizing protectors and resources can help us to feel protected and to reduce anxiety when we deal with difficult situations.
4. Dealing with imaginary tigers
As our brain is wired for threats, we may be hyper-alert even when there are no real threats. Generally, we over-estimate threats and under-estimate opportunities and resources in our life.
To more accurately assess threats or fears, we can make two columns, one in which we list our fears and worries and a second column where we list our rebuttals, counter-arguments and resources to deal with the fears and worries. This more accurate appraisal allows us to calm down our anxiety.
Feeling Alright Right Now
We can look for opportunities to listen to what the body is saying: e.g., you’re basically alright, right now. When we look back over our lives, most times we were basically alright, right now.
We can come into the present and bring awareness to the feeling that in this moment we are basically alright. The heart is still beating. We feel the ongoing nature of living. Digestion is still occurring. The bodily organs are functioning reasonably well. There’s enough air to breathe.
If our mind wanders, we bring it back and see if we can stay with the feeling of being alright, right now. As we feel basically alright, we can still be aware of the world around us and make plans to deal with things. We can feel a growing sense of a mind that is reassured and confident as we move forward in our life.
Taking action in our lives
We can motivate ourselves to take systematic, concrete step-by-step action to deal with real threats, pain or danger to the extent that we can.
It is best to make sure that we are safe physically, financially, relationally, and that those we care about are safe.
To deal with anxiety, we can develop our inner resources and practices along with effective sustained action out in the world.
To conclude, Dr. Hanson writes that addressing our anxiety can help us feel better, reduce the wear and tear on our health and well-being, be less distracted by false alarms and help us to see the real things we need to deal with.
References
Dealing with Anxiety – Rick Hanson, Ph.D.
Working with Anxiety
Prepared by Wally Lazaruk, December 2023
