Dealing with Anxiety When Anxiety is a Rational Response
But what if I’m right to be worried???
I’ve struggled with anxiety my entire life. It’s become so commonplace to me, that sometimes I forget some people don’t experience it.
It’s become the norm for me, to the extent that saying I struggle with it is almost inaccurate. I’m pretty good at anxiety actually. And I’m pretty used to managing it.
There’s two kinds of anxiety. The borderline neurotic catastrophizing and seemingly cause-less worry is one.
But then there’s anxiety in response to genuinely stressful situations or stimuli.
I experience both.
And honestly, it’s a little easier sometimes when your anxiety has no reason behind it. I’m literally just driving to work.
Why is my pulse suddenly picking up?
I turn up the music, sing along. Focus on how big and blue the sky is. Think about seeing my work friends.
When anxiety asks, “what if something goes horribly wrong?”, and there’s no basis to think that, you can reply: “what if it doesn’t?”
But what about when I’m right to be worried?
When the new year brought news of H5N1 cases in people, including a confirmed death in Louisiana. 1
When the President-elect used his first speech after being confirmed to threaten foreign countries. 2
When the best platform for teeny tiny artists like myself to find an audience gets banned. And the implications for free speech and the free market are worrying, indeed. 3
When LA burns in January. When Texas freezes. New York sees vicious attacks against subway goers. New Orleans is visited by terror.
Existing as a woman on the street, knowing that this country has no qualms with letting rapists and abusers rise even to the highest office.
Why is my pulse picking up?
I have too many reasons. It’s easy to list and list and list, chronicling worst fears and worst case scenarios.
My pattern recognition skills seem to primarily focus on causes for alarm. So, while it’s important to be informed, it’s harder to deal with the kind of anxiety that comes from pressing current events.
I begin to feel like I’m in Pride and Prejudice: “I’m 27 years old, I have no money and no prospects and I’m frightened!”
“I’m 21 years old, average rent is more than my monthly income, and I’m frightened!”
So, how do you deal with worry when you’re right to be worried?
Clearing your head
This is the part where you log off and touch grass. No, really.
There’s a curse and a blessing to modern technology. It’s easier than ever to get news from all over the world, on a host of topics. But when your social media feed is full of bad news and the TV screen shows foreboding footage, it’s little wonder why you lie awake at night.
I believe it’s important to stay up to date and informed. It’s also important to take time and get away from the flow of information.
Turn off the input and turn on the output switch in your brain.
Go take all that information you’ve consumed and brain dump it in a journal. Call a friend and ramble, if they have the headspace for it.
Get creative. Write a poem about how that headline made you feel; write an essay about why that politician shouldn’t be appointed.
“Anxiety is the handmaiden of creativity.” — T.S. Eliot
As human beings, it’s just not healthy to keep taking in heaps of information without doing anything about it. You need a place to put that down.
You also need the ability to get away and literally get some air.
Step outside. Look at the sky. What do the clouds look like today? Go on a walk if you can. Pet the nearest available animal. Talk to a real life human being.
Taking Action
Unfortunately, when your worries are justified, distracting yourself is not enough. If all you do is log off, distract, and stick your head in the sand, your repressed anxiety will only build.
If you care about an issue, do something about it.
I know that’s easier said than done, but none of us are as helpless as we feel.
If you’re passionate about polluted oceans, read up on solutions. Talk about it, write about it, spread awareness. Recycle. Maybe join the effort to clean a beach near you. Try to find a way to enjoy the environment you wish to protect too.
Try to take the focus off of the things you can’t do and onto what you can.
“I can’t do all the good the world needs, but the world needs all the good I can do.” — Jana Stanfield
If you’re watching the choices of elected officials with horror, good news!! Free speech actually enshrines our right as Americans to be total nuisances.
If you want someone removed, there are usually legitimate ways to try and do that. If nothing else, you can make a fuss and do your part to keep them from being elected next time.
And in the meantime, call your representatives4 when you think they’re making a bad call. Actually, let them know when you agree with them too!
If you’re like me and have an aversion to using your phone as a phone, there are other ways to contact your representatives. Email works great. There are even organizations that can send a message on your behalf—all you have to do is put your name.
The bottom line is to take action.
Democracy dies when citizens take themselves out of the equation.
It’s literally our job to insert ourselves into the conversation. And, when needed, remind the government that they work for us. Not the other way around.
I know life and money and work and stress get in the way of taking action.
But if you’re watching with white knuckles as the world seems to go down the toilet, you need to do something.
You cannot wait for someone else to come along and fix whatever’s stressing you out. You owe it to yourself to stand up for what you believe.
It can be as simple as signing a petition.
Donating to a non-profit.
Picking up trash at the beach.
Even staying home when you’re sick can help prevent public health scares.
If getting involved in national politics freaks you out, maybe try showing up to your own city council’s next meeting.
“For everything that’s good, become a defender.” — Travis Knapp
Talk About It
Whatever you do, don’t just stew silently in your anxiety. The discomfort and embarrassment of being a Certified Worrier can lead you to isolate. You’ll come to believe you’re the only one who feels this way.
You’re not.
Whatever headlines freak you out, other people are freaking out about them too. Whatever issues scare you, other people are scared too.
Talk to your neighbors, talk to your friends and family, talk to the internet. Talk about anxiety and its causes.
Let’s talk about what we can do together, to take care of each other and respond to these stressors.
It’s easy to fall into autopilot when stress has a grip on you. But when we step away from stressors to process, take action, and share these feelings with other people, anxiety becomes more manageable.
We can begin to breathe through it and work through it. We can support each other in it.
Discomfort is a sign that something needs to change.
“We need not to be let alone. We need to be bothered once in a while. How long has it been since you were really bothered? About something important, about something real?” — Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
What would it look like if you acted on your anxiety in a positive way today?
Let your anxiety spur you to leave the world a better place. Let it motivate you to connect with other people and act on issues you care about.
Read the CDC’s report on bird flu cases in the U.S. here: https://www.cdc.gov/bird-flu/situation-summary/index.html
Watch President Trump’s full speech here:
No one asked me, but personally I think it’s wrong for the government to force any company to sell 🤷♀️ Read the latest news on the TikTok ban here: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/amp/rcna188256
Don’t know who your representatives are? I didn’t either til I looked it up. Find out here: https://www.house.gov/representatives/find-your-representative
such a great piece, bethany. as someone who seems to be anxious a lot of the time about many things, i think you really hit the nail on the head. and i’ll definitely try the things you suggested :)