The changes being experienced after the COVID- 19 pandemic has caused a lot of pressure on people, families, and societies.
It has affected the way people live and work. The work community is adapting to the new ‘normal’, while some others are waiting for life to get back to what it used to be. Work life and home life is gradually merging.
The pressure to work smarter is on the rise as the need for physical offices and manual service is on the decline. To crown it all, the present inflation rate has affected everything including food, shelter etc., with little relief in sight. All these factors can lead to a feeling of anxiety.
Anxiety is an expected feeling for an average adult. One gets anxious about several issues like meeting up deadlines, preparing a tough presentation or meeting up new clients.
Anxiety is necessary for survival. An example would be in the face of danger, where the feeling of anxiety is expressed in form if a raised heartbeat, defensiveness, sweating or alertness.
Anxiety becomes dangerous and eventually a disorder when the feeling of worry is not proportional to the cause. An anxiety disorder can also be detected by the length of time the anxious feeling lasts.
It is important to know what activates anxiety as this will help prevent its escalation into a disorder. Some of the most common causes of anxiety are classified belowbyMedicalNewsToday:
¤ Environmental stressors which include family issues, relationship issues, work issues.
¤ Social stressors which include stage fright, fear of rejection and humiliation, fear of negative judgement and public embarrassment.
¤ Medical factors which include symptoms of a disease, effects of a medication, withdrawal from substances/medications.
¤ Genetics
Some red flags to look out for when an anxiety is
becoming a disorder are:
¤ When anxiety is affecting one’s routine for example losing focus, fidgeting, or displaying extreme nervousness, sleeping disorders also known as insomnia, eating disorder.
When one starts withdrawing from social activities, suddenly introverted or prefers to be alone.
¤ When one starts experiencing physical symptoms like high blood pressure.
When the severity or duration of an anxious feeling is not proportional to the trigger or the stressor.
What to do when red flags are spotted as suggested by
Medical News Today
Apply stress management techniques like making a to-do list, organize tasks according to due dates, delegate where necessary, taking time off to rest.
Apply relaxation techniques like taking deep breaths, practicing meditation, taking long baths/showers, taking vacations, exploring favorite hangout spots, yoga.
Practice positive thinking by consciously replacing reoccurring negative thoughts with positive believable thoughts, hanging out with positive minded friends.
¤ Build a support network – always have someone trustworthy to talk to like a friend or a family member.
Engage in physical exercise – this helps release chemicals in the brain that produce happy feelings, it also improves self-image.
¤ Seek medical help.
In conclusion Anxiety is a normal emotion, however it
can easily become a disorder which can lead to depression and mental health disorders.
Deliberate actions to maintain work-life-balance, having a good social network and investing in a balanced diet can help control anxiety. “It is health that is real wealth. And not pieces of gold and silver.” Ghandi, Look out for yourself and a friend.
