In last week’s blog post and the first of this series about Anxiety, we discussed the basics: definition, anxiety disorders, symptoms and TIPS for living with anxiety.

This week, we get a little more into How Anxiety Affects the Brain.

Before we go there, let’s differentiate between STRESS and ANXIETY.  These terms are often used interchangeably but they’re actually different feelings. When you feel stress, it’s because of a known source, ie: work deadline or your kids not listening. This stress may show itself as sadness, irritability or anger. On the other hand, anxiety is a specific feeling of dread and/or fear. The trigger may not be known. If you have an anxiety disorder, you may wake up feeling anxious for no obvious reason. Chronic stress can eventually cause anxiety. If you have a constant and consistent surge of stress hormones, due to fear and worry, running through your body, then you’re at higher risk for developing generalized anxiety.

When your brain encounters an actual or perceived threat, it releases a surge of chemicals, like cortisol and norepinephrine, which boost your speed, perception and reflex time. They also cause your heart to pump faster and you pretty much, go into ‘survival mode.’ This can be helpful and is necessary when we encounter a real threat (ie: attack) but, over the long-term, this causes damage to our bodies. Chronic stress can lead to a weakened immune system, heart disease and more. Prolonged stress and anxiety may cause impaired functioning of the prefrontal cortex, which in the mammalian brain, is the most recent to develop (after the reptilian or automatic brain and the limbic system or emotional brain). The prefrontal cortex is the cerebral cortex which covers the front part of the frontal lobe (behind your forehead). It’s the part of the brain that’s largely responsible for decision making, personality and social behavior (ie: executive functions).

The GOOD news, when it comes to chronic stress and anxiety, is that some of the damage is ‘reversible’. Just a few years ago, we didn’t believe this was true but recently, we have learned a lot about the brain’s plasticity (neuroplasticity). Our brains are capable of change so, there is a certain degree of regrowth and regeneration. Thank goodness….. Of course, the best ways to protect our brain and body from the detrimental effects of chronic stress and anxiety is to learn how to manage it, which we will discuss further on.

 

HOW ANXIETY AFFECTS THE BRAIN:

1)Anxiety floods your brain with stress hormones: when anxious, your body goes on ‘alert’, and your brain goes into ‘fight or flight or freeze’ mode. To fight off (or flee), your brain floods your central nervous system (CNS) with cortisol and adrenaline (norepinephrine). These hormones warn your body of danger and try to help you cope with this danger. So, your senses become sharper and your reflexes, faster.

In a non-anxious brain, once the danger is gone, the sympathetic nervous system (SNS) takes over and calms you down. In an anxious brain, the stress hormone rush causes your brain to release even more stress hormones until you feel overwhelmed (inability to calm down). So, over time, your baseline anxiety level increases and you go from mild anxiety (like most people) to moderate anxiety, which makes you feel agitated and nervous on a regular basis. With more severe anxiety, you may have panic attacks.

2)Anxiety makes it hard for your brain to reason rationally: anxiety seems to weaken the connections between the amygdala and prefrontal cortex (PFC). When the amygdala alerts the brain to danger, the prefrontal cortex should kick in, so that you come up with a logical and rational response (look above) and you’re able to process information in an analytical way, make informed decisions and it helps you to solve problems. In anxious brains, this connection is weak, and the rational, problem-solving part of the brain isn’t heard, which can lead to less rational thinking and behavior.

3)Anxiety makes your brain hyperactive to threats (dysregulated nervous system): with anxiety, your amygdala (located in the limbic system, the brain part dealing with moods and emotions) gets larger. With a larger and hypersensitive amygdala, you get a lot of false alarms (to perceived threats) so that your brain starts sensing threats even in non-threatening situations.

4)Anxiety often trains your brain to hold onto negative memories: stress (and anxiety) shrink the hippocampus, which process long-term and contextual memory, so it can become harder for your brain to hold onto memories. Anxiety tricks the hippocampus into thinking that memories related to anxiety are safe to remember and store. So, it seems that anxiety wires the brain to remember threat, failure and danger. Your happier memories; like accomplishment, achievement, success and safety get buried deep down in your brain. (Wow; this is eye-opening for those of us who have lived with anxiety).

 

Anxiety is a regular part of life. Anxiety increases your breathing and heart rate, which concentrates blood flow to your brain, where you need it, to prepare you to face an intense situation. A persistent or excessive state of anxiety can have a very negative effect on your physical and mental health, keeping you in a constant state of alert, with a dysregulated and hyperactive nervous system and a less than ideal functioning of your prefrontal cortex (for reasoning and logical thought).

 

MANAGE YOUR ANXIETY:

Please refer to last week’s blog post and go to TIPS. Here are some more (and a bit deeper):

1)Question your thoughts: it’s important to be the ‘objective observer’ of your thought patterns. Negative thoughts can take root in your mind and often, distort the importance or severity of an experience or situation.

Ask yourself: Is this thought true? Can I be sure that this thought is true? How would I feel (mind, body, spirit) if this was true? How would I feel if (a different) thought was true? When you feel neutral, calm or at peace, that is the right thought for you.

2)Aromatherapy can be helpful for stress and mild anxiety. I come from a French family and love Provence (south of France), famous for lavender, sunflowers and stunning colors and light. For me and most others, lavender is a relaxer; I have it all over my apartment: fresh, as an essential oil and dried in sachets, which I place in my drawers and closets. It can also help to keep some insects away. Chamomile (ie: tea) and sandalwood can also be very soothing.

The idea of aromatherapy is that it activates particular receptors in your brain, easing anxiety.

3)Practice deep, focused breathing: I have used the 4-7-8 technique for my coaching clients and for my dental patients. You inhale (nostrils) for 4 counts (1 and 2 and 3 and 4), then, hold for another 7 counts, then, exhale slowly (mouth) for 8 counts. You want your exhale to be twice as long as your inhale. There are many other breathing techniques I teach. Please get in touch if you want more information.

4)Move: go for a walk (in nature is even better), practice mindfulness, meditate, do some yoga, qi gong, or any practice that focuses on your body (and not so much in your mind).

5)Write down your thoughts: get them out of your mind and onto paper. It helps!

6)Identify and learn to manage your triggers: and then try to limit your exposure to them, if you can (ie: caffeine, smoking, certain people) and get help (ie: therapist, coach, etc.). If you can’t limit exposure (ie: work situation), there are other coping strategies.

7)Keep your mind and body healthy: move regularly, eat balanced meals, get restful sleep and stay connected to people who care about you------------these are wonderful ways to stave off anxiety symptoms.

8)Medications: There is nothing wrong with taking meds, when necessary. Even just a little change or relief can do the trick.

 

Some general TRIGGERS:

-a stressful work environment or job

-genetics: can run in your family

-traveling, driving

-side effects of certain medications

-withdrawal from certain medications or drugs

-trauma

-phobias: ie: agoraphobia, claustrophobia

-Chronic pain

-chronic illness: ie: diabetes, asthma, heart disease

-depression or other mental illness

-caffeine

 

Anxiety affects all of us but some of us, more often and more intensely, than others. The good news: these days, there’s so much you can do about it. Important to know: you don’t have to do it alone. Reach out to others; reach out for help and know that you’re not alone! Many of us have or still do suffer and struggle with anxiety (me included); it doesn’t mean that you can’t live a happy, healthy and successful life………..actually, it can teach you a lot; about empathy, compassion and self-compassion and about what makes humans tic….

 

With smiles and love,

Dr Gigi

 

PS: Reach out to me @www.gigiarnaud.com, for Mindset Coaching and/or Hypnosis, both incredibly helpful for stress and anxiety relief. Or DM me…..

Change your Mind to Change your Life