Inside: A proven technique to get over anxiety naturally without medication.
What is Anxiety?
When I met her she was so anxious she could barely leave her home. She avoided crowds. Shopping at big department stores like WalMart was out of the question. Even thinking about going to such stores spiked her anxiety to an unbearable level.
She was constantly worrying about what other people thought of her and that something bad would happen to her or her children. Nothing bad had happened, but what if it did. These were her constant thoughts she was always on high alert.
Driving more than 5 miles from home was impossible for her. Her anxiety became intense when she tried to drive and turned to panic when she got more than a few miles from home.
Her anxiety was making it difficult to fall asleep and she would often wake up at 2:00 am and be unable to return to sleep. Living her life was exhausting. She was desperate to get over her anxiety while driving and being around other people.
I knew from experience her life didn’t have to be this way. She could learn to manage or maybe even get rid of all that anxiety. Irrational beliefs often support anxiety and depression.
How Common is Anxiety
This infographic does a great job of explaining the different types of anxiety and how common anxiety is. You are not alone if you are dealing with anxiety.
Get Over Anxiety Now
There is a proven method of decreasing the frequency and intensity of getting over anxiety naturally. You can overcome generalized anxiety and get over panic attacks too. Many people are able to get over their anxiety naturally without drugs.
The first step to dealing with anxiety is to determine if it is a signal or noise. If you have determined that your irrational beliefs are supporting anxiety or depression, there are different systems to address this.
Included in the resource library is a printable: 5 Tips to Deal with Anxiety. Sign up for the newsletter and get access to the resource library.
Related:
How to Use Your Mind to Reduce Stress and Anxiety
The First Step to Reducing Anxiety
If the anxiety is not a problem, cognitive behavior therapy is a proven way to get over anxiety. I often teach Albert Ellis’s ABC system of cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) to help children and adults change irrational beliefs that support anxiety.
- Activating Event
A stands for activating event or What happened? Often when someone is anxious they notice the feeling of anxiety first. Sometimes they notice something that happened that they believe caused the anxiety. This is the activating event. But what happened is not the cause of anxiety. The cause of the anxiety is the belief.
- Belief
B stands for belief. What is your belief or self-talk about what happened? The same activating event can lead to different feelings depending on what we tell ourselves about the event.
- Consequence
C stands for consequence. What is the consequence of your belief or What are you feeling? In this case we are talking about anxiety as the consequence.
Change Your Thoughts to Get Over Anxiety
The theory behind this is that in order to change your feeling you must change your thinking or what you say to yourself. Sometimes when children or adults are anxious they know their self-talk is supporting their anxiety or depression. Other times it is just below consciousness. The self-talk gives the person clues to the beliefs that support anxiety.
Do you want individual support to overcome anxiety? Find out about life coaching with Tamara here.
Related: When You Feel Like Giving Up as a Single Mom
Beliefs that Support Anxiety
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There are common beliefs that support anxiety in teenagers and adults. Once you have determined the self-talk that is supporting the anxiety, the next step is to come up with counter-thoughts. Here are some examples of counter-thoughts:
- Everyone must like me or I am a failure.
Counter-thoughts: Some people will like me and some will not, that is ok.
I connect with some people better than others and some people connect with me and some do not.
- I need to be perfect.
Counter-thoughts: No one is perfect. I will do my best and that is enough.
- If I make a mistake, no one will like me and I will go through life alone and lonely.
Counter-thoughts: It is human to make mistakes. Often vulnerabilities help us connect to other people.
If your child has anxiety, first help him or her determine if it is a signal of a problem to solve or noise to disregard. Second, help your child determine which self-talk and beliefs that are supporting anxiety. Third, help the child identify counter-thoughts. There are multiple books that may help you conquer this. Other times a professional mental health counselor is needed or, in more severe cases, medication.
Depression and anxiety often go hand in hand. The ABC’s of cognitive behavior therapy are also helpful to change irrational beliefs that support depression.
Resources for Depression:
9 Tips You Need to Overcome Depression
What to Do If You Are Feeling Depressed and Lonely at Christmas
