The Anxiety Paradox
Unravel the enigma of anxiety, a complex emotion that both cripples and catalyzes. Explore the paradoxical nature of this ubiquitous human experience, its intricate relationship with our survival instincts, and its profound impact on our daily lives.
Pathological anxiety
The more we try to avoid our fears, the stronger they become
- When it comes to anxiety, doing what feels most self-protective often just reinforces our fears
- Exposing ourselves to our fears and learning how to tolerate anxiety is the key to its extinction
- Anxiety can be conceptualized along a spectrum that ranges from the normal to the pathological
- At the normal end, anxiety represents an adaptive human response that’s part of the body’s warning system that alerts us to dangers
The Power of Exposure
Exposure is the most likely to lead to extinction
- Treating pathological anxiety often requires allowing ourselves to feel anxious
- That doesn’t mean “white-knuckling” it or subjecting ourselves to terror; it’s more about engaging with and confronting our fears “one step at a time” in a safe and therapeutic setting with someone at your side
Wanting to Escape the Source of Our Fears
When we’re afraid of potential threats rather than actual threats-like when we face situations that trigger our trauma-based fears-running away isn’t always the best option.
- The source of our fear is the worry that’s in our heads more than anything else, and often the only imagined escape is to turn off our minds by doing something like drinking alcohol or using other drugs.
- Self-medication is counterproductive and ineffective.
Therapeutic Interventions
Evidence-based interventions to treat pathological anxiety typically involve the opposite of avoidance
- Medications like selective serotonin-reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) don’t dampen anxiety in the moment the way that something like alcohol or a benzodiazepine can
- Psychotherapies like acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) encourage us to sit with our anxiety, compassionately acknowledge its presence, and let it go in the present through mindfulness meditation
- Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) involves challenging the cognitive distortions that might be causing undue anxiety