Anxiety and Stress occur in a spiral of interactions between thoughts, images, physical sensations, behaviors, and emotions. Not everyone experiences all five, but everyone does experience a similar pattern each time they spiral. Relaxation, Better But Believable Thoughts (see my post dated Feb 3), and most coping strategies are useless once your spiral has gained momentum. In fact, researchers at Penn State found that coping strategies did little more than talk therapy to alleviate worry and anxiety. In a follow up study, they taught anxious individuals to prevent their worry spirals from getting out of control by catching them early and found that most all were able to successfully reduce anxiety and worry substantially and enjoy a more relaxed life.

I suggest that you use mindfulness and other relaxation strategies I’ve covered in previous posts several times/day. Use post-it notes or other reminders because we typically don’t recognize stress until it has gained some momentum. Use the strategies without stopping your flow of activity. So for instance, you can feel the surfaces beneath you and continue to read this post, make phone calls, type, or engage in just about any activity.

Check back soon for other ideas on how to nip your anxiety in the bud.

Dr. Jennifer L. Abel
author of: Active Relaxation: How to Increase your Productivity and Achieve Balance by Decreasing Stress and Anxiety.
www.activerelaxationthebook.com

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There are at least 3 reasons why people worry: 1) worry about the future is easier than thinking about past trauma, 2) a false sense of control (sometimes superstitious), and 3) to try to problem solve or increase the likelihood that things will turn out well. This latter is the main reason that people worry. However, most worriers agree that more than 90% of their anxious thoughts are completely useless.

To manage anxiety caused by a specific worry, brainstorm a list of possible solutions. To exercise your mind, be creative by entertaining ideas that are not really good options as these can introduce humor, or better yet, lead to a more viable solution. When you’re finished, you could ask someone else to do the same without looking at your list. Then rule out those you aren’t willing to entertain. Finally, choose those one or two and make a plan to put them into action. Even if there is no solution, you will probably worry less because you have tried your best to solve the problem.

For a simpler way to worry less subscribe or tune in later in the week.

by Jennifer L. Abel, Ph.D.
author of the book Active Relaxation: How to Increase Productivity and Achieve Balance by Decreasing Stress and Anxiety

Bad Light!  Flourescent lights are harmless for some people.  However, it is very common for them to cause a feeling of derealization and disconnectedness.  For some they can even trigger panic attacks.  Don’t be afraid to ask that the ones above your desk at work be disconnected and bring in a lamp with a more pleasant light source. Also, there are now full spectrum flourescent lights that are less offensive and cost less than $4/bulb.
Dr. Jennifer L. Abel

- author of: “Active Relaxation: How to Increase your Productivity and Achieve Balance by Decreasing Stress and Anxiety.”

If trying to push anxiety and worry away worked, you probably wouldn’t be reading this blog. Research shows that trying to put something out of your mind actually makes you think about it more. Therefore, when applying the relaxation strategies you learned in my previous posts, or elsewhere, rather then using them to try to “get rid of” your anxiety, frustration, or stress move toward them.

For an example, let’s say that you’re worried about something you said in a meeting that you fear was negatively received. You’ve already decided that bringing it up again will not likely help and that there’s nothing else you want to do about it, but you can’t keep it from coming into your mind. The wrong way to approach it: “I’ve gotta get this out of my mind.  I should focus on the feeling of the surfaces beneath me and the colors, shapes, and textures of what I see to stop thinking about it.”

The better way: Observing the thought and even allowing it to be there and then gently shifting your focus to the surfaces beneath you and the colors, shapes, and textures of what you see.

See my previous posts “Don’t Think About it NOT” and “DO Think About Blue Monkeys”

Jennifer L. Abel, Ph.D.

Author of Active Relaxation: How to Increase Productivity and Achieve Balance by Decreasing Stress and Anxiety.

Bob, an insomniac had enjoyed several good nights of sleep and then his sister who knows of his struggles says just before they hang up – “I hope you sleep well tonight.” And then he starts thinking about whether he’s going to sleep that night and ends up tossing and turning.  He feels like he would be asleep by now if that well-intentioned sister of his hadn’t gotten him to start thinking about it.

Jenny is worried about losing her job.  She has no indication that she will be losing her job, other than knowing that a couple of her friends have lost their job.  She knows it’s pointless to worry about it and she tells herself “Jenny, don’t worry about losing your job.  It’s useless.  Put it out of your mind.”  But this seems to only make the worry stronger.

Have you ever seen a blue monkey?  Don’t think about blue monkeys and stop reading this for a minute while you try to stop thinking about blue monkeys.  If you’re like most people you’ve thought about blue monkeys because you were trying to avoid thinking about them.  You may have tried to think about green goats, reflect on your day, or use a relaxation strategy.  But in all likelihood you thought about blue monkeys again.

Research by Wegner using a similar subject “white bears” shows that if white bears are merely mentioned, people are less likely to be thinking about them a few minutes later than if they are mentioned and told not to think about it.  The effect is even greater when something the individual worries about (like money) is substituted for the white bears.

What to do? Common sense says, let yourself think about it, and there is some truth to that.  “Tune in” to my next blog for more advice on what to do instead of trying to put your worries out of your mind.

by Jennifer L. Abel, Ph.D.

author of “Active Relaxation: How to Increase Productivity and Achieve Balance by Decreasing Stress and Anxiety”