Healthy people experience anxiety with only mild severity on a regular basis. When they feel anxious, it's a subtle and barely noticeable form of worry.
Written By: Sponsored | Published : April 27, 2023 4:58 PM IST
All of us experience anxiety, and most of us experience it on a daily basis. While most people consider anxiety a bad thing, it does serve some useful purposes and it's arguably necessary from a survival standpoint.
In this context, anxiety can be healthy. So, at what point does anxiety become unhealthy? And, what can you do if you cross this threshold?
Healthy vs Unhealthy Anxiety
First, let's talk about the core differences between healthy and unhealthy anxiety. Healthy anxiety occurs naturally in response to stressful situations; anxiety heightens our focus, increases our heart rate, and generally prepares us to deal with those stressful situations. If you're in danger, this can allow you to flee or fight back the famous 'fight or flight' response. Anxiety can also help us process and cope with longer-term stressors.
Because of this, we don't need to think much about healthy anxiety. It arises for totally understandable reasons and disappears relatively quickly.
Unhealthy anxiety, on the other hand, may rise in response to illogical sources, it may persist for excruciatingly long times, and it may influence your behaviour in undesirable ways. If you're dealing with unhealthy anxiety, it's important to talk to a therapist for anxiety, who can help you better understand this issue and deal with it.
When Does Anxiety Become Unhealthy?
So, when exactly does anxiety become unhealthy? Usually, you can tell anxiety is unhealthy because of some or all of the following traits:
Excessive frequency: Anxiety can be unhealthy if it occurs too frequently. There's nothing wrong with feeling short bursts of anxiety a few times a day, but if you constantly feel anxious, if your anxiety lasts for days, or if you feel anxiety in response to almost any regularly occurring event, it becomes a problem.
Excessive severity: Healthy people experience anxiety with only mild severity on a regular basis. When they feel anxious, it's a subtle and barely noticeable form of worry. If your anxiety is severe enough that it dictates your behaviour and eclipses all your other feelings, you're drifting into unhealthy territory.
Illogical sources and causes: It's totally normal to feel anxious about being late for work or having to share some bad news with someone important to you. It's not normal to feel anxiety when brushing your teeth under usual circumstances. If your anxiety manifests as a result of strange sources and causes, you should probably take the time to address it.
Immunity to coping strategies: For most people, simple coping strategies are sufficient for eliminating or reducing anxiety. Deep breathing, meditation, and even simple counting exercises can make you feel less anxious. If these don't work for you, you may have a deeper problem.
Influence on relationships: Is anxiety influencing your relationships in a negative way? For example, does your anxiety preclude you from being open and honest about your feelings? Does it make you behave in strange or harmful ways to the people around you?
Influence on your job/career: Similarly, is your anxiety holding you back at work? Is it preventing you from advancing your career or working a consistent job that you need to survive?
Difficulty sleeping: If anxiety is interfering with your sleep patterns, it's also important to take action. Anxious feelings shouldn't keep you from sleeping on a regular basis.
Other physical symptoms: Anxiety can also be categorised as unhealthy if it produces other physical symptoms in you. For example, does your anxiety make you feel exhausted? Does it increase the frequency or severity of headaches, stomach aches, and other bodily effects?
What to Do When Your Anxiety Becomes Unhealthy
So, what do you do when your anxiety becomes unhealthy?
Keep a journal: Start taking action by keeping a journal. Write down how you feel in response to different situations throughout the day and pay attention to the sources of your anxiety. It can help you better manage these feelings and set the stage for tracking your progress in the future.
Identify and eliminate root causes: Next, identify and eliminate root causes when it makes sense to do so. For example, if you feel heightened anxiety during traffic jams, you may consider leaving your house earlier so you can avoid them.
Reach out to a mental health professional: Finally, consider reaching out to a mental health professional who can help you understand and manage your anxiety.
Like it or not, anxiety is something we all have to deal with. But none of us should have to cope with unhealthy volumes or types of anxiety. As long as you're willing to work on this problem, and tap into the mental health resources available to you, you can find a way to manage even the strongest and unhealthiest forms of your anxiety.
Disclaimer: Above mentioned article is a Consumer connect initiative, This article is a paid publication and does not have journalistic/editorial involvement of IDPL, and IDPL claims no responsibility whatsoever.
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