Get to the Root of your Anxiety: Part 3

Now that we know a bit about Anxiety, what it is and how to manage it, let’s go even deeper----and learn about how to get to the root of your anxiety. This is important because understanding where your anxiety comes from can help you find effective ways to manage it, even for the long term. We’ll also discuss ways to rewire your anxious brain. You can refer to the book, ‘Rewire Your Anxious Brain,’ by Catherine Pittman and Elizabeth Karle. It gets into the differences between anxiety based in the amygdala and anxiety based in the cortex. Knowing where your anxiety stems from in your brain is essential in finding and selecting the correct treatment.

Anxiety disorders are the most common mental illness in the USA and are highly treatable, particularly if you seek and get help. These can develop from different risk factors: brain chemistry, personality, genetics, epigenetics and various life experiences and events. Personally, I can attest to the fact that childhood trauma, whether Big T trauma or Small T trauma (refer to previous blogs about Trauma), can increase anxiety as you get older. The trauma often stays buried in your subconscious and can cause you all kinds of worries and irrational fears.

Symptoms of anxiety (ie: shakiness, nervous stomach, muscle tension) often have a root cause. This is oftentimes, beyond our conscious awareness. This cause may be unique to you, your circumstances and your experiences, whether you feel terrified about public speaking and your family told you that getting support was a sign of weakness or if you have social anxiety, which may stem from trauma or a fear that you’re not good enough. No matter what, it’s good to know that Anxiety is a messenger (says Linda Ugelow); it can make you aware of unresolved conflicts or unhealed traumas or be a sign of an underlying medical condition.

Whatever the cause, anxiety symptoms can be identified, managed and improved, so that you can become clearer, calm and more confident.

In our society, we often look at physical signs, sensations and symptoms. They are obvious and loud and tough to ignore and they are the first signal or ‘messenger’ that something is not quite right. To get to the root cause, it’s also important to become aware of what’s going on beneath the surface (ie: of your physical symptoms). Not all anxiety-reducing or relieving coping strategies are good for all kinds of anxiety. To become more empowered and make progress, you want to know the details. With anxiety, it is very helpful and often necessary to get the help of a professional.

To get to the root (underlying) cause of your anxiety, you want to:

1)Identify WHAT it is that you’re really afraid of and

2)Understand WHY you’re really afraid of it.

Remember to be gentle, kind and compassionate with yourself and to know that you don’t have to earn your self-worth. You are worthy and you are enough, just as you are! You may want to see yourself as the younger you, your inner child. Treat yourself as you would a loved family member or friend.

Time for some SELF-EXPLORATION:

-you may first want to take some deep breaths, placing one hand on your belly, feeling it expand as you inhale and exhale, and the other hand on your chest (or over your heart). Certain breathing techniques can help reduce your anxiety, so that you can think more clearly and can introspect.

-grab a journal or notebook and write down thoughts, ideas and hunches that come up, using these prompts or ideas (writing on paper works better here):

1)stay kind and self-compassionate.

2)Detail how your anxiety works: when it occurs, where, what’s going on around you at that time, physically and mentally and also, how long the anxiety symptoms last.

3)Write a list of your fears. Start with, “I am scared of……….”. Do not judge yourself. Some of the fears may appear silly or embarrassing to you; it doesn’t matter. Just write them all down. Then, you can go a bit deeper and question yourself:

A) When do I recall first having this anxiety or fear?

B) What was going on, at that time? (This may go back into your childhood or mayhave occurred later on).

4)Look for patterns and for a common thread between situations, even if they’re quite different.

5)Look at your childhood. This is not to blame your parents or others; they did the best they could with the resources they had. That being said, their words and actions still could have had an effect on you. Some questions:

A) What were the relationships within my family like?

B) Did I ever, or often, feel that I was a burden or that I wasn’t good enough?

C) Was it okay to express my real, genuine self? If not, what effects did this have on me?

D) Did I sometimes, often feel shamed, dismissed, ignored, afraid or ridiculed? (In my case, ‘you’re too sensitive’).

E) Look at your Habits. Some habits can provoke anxiety, like not sleeping enough (increases daytime anxiety), drinking more, etc. You can look if and how your habits have changed and take action toward changing them.

F) Check for underlying physical problems that may cause anxiety symptoms: tumors, hormones (ie: hyper and hypothyroidism); infectious diseases (ie: lyme, untreated Strep, Guillain-Barre syndrome); nutrition (ie: B12 deficiency); central nervous system (ie: traumatic brain injury, neurological conditions) or others: sleep disorders, IBS (irritable bowel syndrome), fibromyalgia, food allergies. Electrolyte abnormalities, environmental toxins and drugs, recreational and over the counter, herbal supplements, food additives and excess caffeine, can also cause and add to anxiety. Go get a checkup, if you’re not sure or recognize some of these.

If your anxiety is recurring, it may be a sign of unresolved problems or unhealed trauma. Though relaxation, breathing and other techniques will help you, it’s beneficial to get to the root of the anxiety so you can understand what’s really going on and can find long-term and effective solutions to change it. Know that you CAN manage your anxiety, whether you get to the specific cause or not. Again, it’s helpful to reach out for help!

With smiles and love,

Dr Gigi

PS: Please contact me @www.gigiarnaud.com or @drgigiarnaud at the social media links below, to learn how to identify, manage and change your anxiety, so that it helps and benefits you in your personal and professional life! Anxiety is not easy but it has so much to teach you if you learn about it and how to reframe and use it, for learning, growth and amazing self-improvement.

Change your Mind to Change your Life!