Anxiety is a common experience for many people.
Work, family issues, health concerns, and financial obligations are parts of everyday life that commonly contribute to heightened stress levels and anxiety.
According to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America, anxiety is classified as a disorder with traits of “persistent and excessive worry” where individuals can lose rational perspective and “expect the worst, even when there is no apparent reason for concern.”
Chronic or severe symptoms may be a sign of generalised anxiety disorder (GAD), which affects close to 40 million adults in the US, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), 1 in 13 globally. However, thanks to modern medicine, there are effective therapies and medications as doctors and healthcare professionals determine the best treatment options that are right for you.
It is important to minimize the chronic stress of daily life as much as possible which is important for your overall health. That’s because chronic stress harms your health and increases your risk of health conditions such as heart disease, anxiety disorders, and depression.
It’s important to understand that stress isn’t the same as mental health disorders such as anxiety and depression, which require treatment from medical professionals.
Although the tips below may relieve many types of stress or anxiety, they may not help people with diagnosed conditions.
There are a number of things you can try to help combat anxiety, including:
- Behavioral therapy
- Deep breathing
- Exercise
- Journaling
- Meditation
- Reading
- Socializing, following pandemic guidelines of social distancing, masking and hand hygiene
- Speaking with your healthcare provider
- Spirituality
- Thought reframing
When to seek advice or treatment from a medical professional
It’s recommended you speak to a health care provider about your anxiety should any of these situations occur:
- Your anxiety becomes an obstacle — In any aspect of everyday living, often causing difficulties for six or more months
- Your anxiety becomes a negative influence in relationships — Creating barriers in life
- Your anxiety leads to isolation — Producing thoughts of hopelessness or helplessness
- Your anxiety controls your life — When your emotional or physical response to excessive worry is controlling your life in some aspect or another.
