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If you are someone who experiences a lot of anxiety in your life, learning to cope with it can potentially be the most important thing you can do. Below are several major coping styles that you can apply to improve how to tackle your anxiety. For more specific strategies, check this article.
Model of Stress
Before discussing coping, it is important to highlight an overview of how people generally deal with stress. The first stage is that a stressful event is experienced. Next, the person appraises the event as positive, neutral, or negative, with the negative including potential harm, threat, or challenge. Third, the individual determines if the stressor is within personal control, and searches for coping strategies and how to deal with the stressor if possible. Finally, the stress response can include physiological changes, emotions, and a behavioral response.
Problem-Focused Coping
This coping style is focused on dealing with the stress itself to make changes and bring relief. For example, if you get a reduction in pay at work, it can cause stress and anxiety. A problem-focused approach would be to try and regain some of the pay at work or to find another job that would replace the income. This method is effective when the person actually has some control over the stressor, or can make adjustments to reduce the impact of it.
Emotion-Focused Coping
This style focuses on reexamining the stressor and dealing with the emotional response to it. One part of an emotion-focused approach is identifying feelings associated with he stressor. A second part is reframing the stressor as something that is less anxiety-provoking or stressful. An example would be a breakup. Identify the emotions associated with the breakup (sadness, anxiety, anger), and then think of ways to take away the power of this. Examples might be thinking that “This is a chance to do something new” or “It is for the best.”
Avoidance Strategies
Many people use a variety of avoidance strategies to deal with stress and anxiety. Simply avoiding the problem, denying its existence, or minimizing it can be effective short-term strategies. But overall, they will prove to be ineffective in most situations. Learning to tolerate a temporary increase in stress and anxiety and employing one of the other strategies can let you experience a shorter duration of stress and anxiety overall.
Problem-Focused Coping for Anxiety
Coping with Anxiety Anxiety Symptoms Anxiety Disorder How to Relieve Stress How to Deal with Depression
Problem-focused coping is a style of coping with anxiety that attempts to directly deal with the stressor that is causing anxiety as a way to bring relief, such as learning financial skills to deal with money problems that are causing anxiety. If you're wondering why these things cause the sensation of anxiety, it may be helpful to read about the origins of anxiety.
Example of Problem-Focused Coping
The classic example of using problem-focused coping for anxiety is a scenario about something we all do: Pay bills. Suppose you realized that the money you make at work may no longer be able to cover your current living expenses. For most people, this would rightfully lead to some anxiety.
But for people with generalized anxiety disorder, this could cause a significant amount of worry and even debilitating anxiety about the potential outcomes. Instead of worrying and ruminating about the situation, try to take a problem-focused approach.
5 Ways to Cope with Anxiety
This style could look different for each person but all would result in action. Some potential problem-focused solutions would be to take action to find more income, reduce expenses, talk with the companies that you owe money to, and make a plan of how to deal Learning how to cope with anxiety, particularly for people with generalized anxiety disorder, is essential to living a satisfying life. Beyond professional and self-help treatment methods, these pieces can help you manage daily anxiety. Read more on coping styles and anxiety here.
1. Reassurance
As a therapist, I think that the most helpful coping method is simply reassurance. Learning how to reassure yourself that you will be OK, that you can tolerate the feelings you are experiencing, and that the moment will eventually pass, can be profoundly helpful. Doing this regularly and trusting it are the keys.
2. Identify the Source
Many people with GAD struggle to identify the actual source of their anxiety. Some of this may be due to a fear of what it could possibly be, and thus some people do not allow themselves to find it. Being honest with yourself and searching for the cause, whether it is what you hope it to be or something more serious, is important for coping effectively.
3. Solve the Problem
Anxiety compels us to take action and solve problems. If the problem is something you can have some influence over, taking thoughtful action can be a great way to calm anxiety in the short term. Unfortunately, not all problems are solvable. Learning to manage uncertainty and lack of control is another important part of coping and treatment.
4. Remember it Will Pass
Few things in life (if any) are permanent. This includes the stressor you are experiencing, your internal physiological state, and your current stage of worry. Being able to stay strong when the fire of anxiety gets hot, holding tightly to your confidence, and remembering that it will pass are important during periods of increased stress and anxiety.
5. Relaxation
Learning some quick relaxation techniques can be a great way to cope. Doing a brief muscle-relaxation exercise, breathing slowly from your diaphragm (not your chest), and having a quick mindfulness meditation session will do wonders to calm your body and mind. Read more on mindfulness here. with the economic reality. All of these are using the natural anxiety as a fuel to take action, which will likely lead to reduced anxiety.
