Self-Help for Anxiety—Some Simple Rules

What most people do not know is that there are several techniques of self-help for anxiety. What is anxiety actually? In very simple terms, anxiety is excessive worry. Worry is a universal human trait; it is present in everyone. However, in people who are overtly anxious, the worry can go to great lengths. In extreme situations, it can cause social anxiety disorder, which can manifest itself in various physical ways. At such times, methods such as hypnosis and cognitive behavioral therapy need to be used for the treatment. However, in most cases, methods of self-help for anxiety can be used and the problem can be snuffed out before it assumes monstrous proportions.

 

Stop Building Extreme Case Scenarios

 

Most people who worry out of proportion to what the situation warrants actually worry about extreme case situations. They may take a small thing and blow it out of proportion. If they see a single mosquito, they will think that they will suffer from malaria. This is just an example of how their thinking works.

 

You must stop worrying on these counts. Remember that it is only the rarest of situations in which things go to the extreme limit. You have to rationalize things. You have to understand that there are various ways in which a particular thing can happen and most solutions are always convenient. If you are basing your worry on what you have seen in movies and read in books, you are only inviting depression and panic attacks to be your long-term companions.

 

Don’t be Judgmental about Yourself

 

A lot of people build impressions about themselves – often negative – and then live their whole lives within it. They build notions such as, "Oh, I am too dull; I can't make anyone happy" or "I am too old, I cannot do this or that". This causes a lot of worry when particular situations arise. The effect of projecting one impression onto others makes the situation worse. If a person thinks he or she is a bad conversationalist, for example, they would not like to attend any parties.

 

You need to control anxious thoughts, especially those that relate to your 'perceived' weaknesses. What you term as weaknesses are probably present in a lot of people out there.

 

Personalization and Generalization

 

Two things that compound worry are personalization and generalization. Personalization is the habit of directing the causes of every problem toward oneself. For example, if a thing does not pan out the way it should, these people would think, "I am surely responsible in some way!" Generalization is the habit of applying the result of one incident on all other similar ones. "I scored badly in this exam. I can never do any exam right." The problem with personalization and generalization is that it makes the person constantly blame the self.

 

One of the solutions for coping with worry is to remove self from the picture and then evaluate things. This can surely be done through self-help, but if the situation is too drastic, therapies such as hypnosis can help put a right perspective on things.

 

Self-help for anxiety works if used in the right measure and the right time. Since self-help for anxiety comes from within, it is one of the most effective measures for curbing the problem.