Anxiety

Anxiety is an accepted part of life for many people and yet it doesn't have to be. It is also a much larger issue than is recognised, as shown by the eye-opening statistics below: the World Health Organization tells us that 40% of all disabilities worldwide are due to Anxiety and Depression; there are currently around 3 million people in the UK with Anxiety as their primary mental health problem; in a survey covering Great Britain, 1 in 6 adults had experienced some form of 'neurotic health problem' in the previous week; 70% of sufferers have symptoms of 3 or more anxiety conditions at once; and it's estimated only 15% of sufferers are seeking help for their Anxiety.

As a Psychologist and Coach, and most importantly as a business owner, I understand the impact that anxiety can have on people. I often work with clients on how to manage their anxieties and felt I should share a few tips with those who need some advice. First, it's important to understand what Anxiety is.

How Anxiety manifests in your body

• A churning feeling in your stomach
• Feeling light-headed or dizzy
• Pins and needles
• Feeling restless or unable to sit still
• Headaches, backache or other aches and pains
• Faster breathing, a fast, thumping or irregular heartbeat
• Sweating or hot flushes
• Problems sleeping
• Grinding your teeth, especially at night
• Nausea
• Needing the toilet more or less often
• Changes in your sex drive
• Having panic attacks

How Anxiety affects your mind

• Feeling tense, nervous or unable to relax
• Having a sense of dread, or fearing the worst
• Feeling like the world is speeding up or slowing down
• Feeling like other people can see you're anxious
• Feeling like you can't stop worrying
• Worrying about anxiety itself
• Wanting lots of reassurance from other people
• Worrying that you're losing touch with reality
• Rumination, thinking a lot about bad experiences
• Depersonalisation or derealisation, feeling disconnected from your mind, body or the world around you
• Worrying a lot about things that might happen in the future

Quite often people are suffering with Anxiety and don't even realise it, because it's become so normal to their existence. Anxiety is a type of fear usually associated with the thought of a threat or something going wrong in the future, but it can also arise from something happening right now.

What causes Anxiety

There are many triggers, but the most common include physical factors (such as thyroid problems), childhood environment, genetic predispositions, and biochemical imbalances. Current issues or problems in life and work can also trigger anxiety, exhaustion or a build-up of stress, long working hours, being out of work, feeling under pressure while studying or at work, money problems, homelessness or housing problems, losing someone close to you, feeling lonely or isolated, or being bullied, harassed or abused.

There is no quick fix to 'cure' Anxiety, the solution lies within you.