Monthly Archives: March 2020

We were talking about some of the ways to manage or minimize anxiety in the 2nd part of the series. This last segment continues with some more techniques:

a) Breathe deeply and slowly (inhale for 4 counts, hold for 2 seconds, exhale for 6 counts);

b) Keep your perspective, see the big picture (not only the negative aspect of the situation);
c) Entertain yourself with activities that cheer you up and soothe your nerves.
d) Accept that you have an anxiety problem, tolerate the palpitations/nervousness but continue on with what you are doing.

e) Don’t take things too seriously and learn to laugh at yourself (e.g. so what if you make a mistake in front of the class?)
Really, the major contributor to our anxieties is the kind of thoughts we entertain in our minds! Monitoring and choosing our mindset, therefore, is one of the most effective ways to counter anxiety!!!

We can better manage anxiety by managing our thoughts. Anxiety is often due to a tendency to think negatively whether by: a) anticipating/predicting that what one is about to do will go badly (e.g. I will make a mistake & my classmates will laugh at me!”), b) focusing on the negative aspect of situations (“gosh, I can’t believe I made a mistake twice!” – after a 20-item test) or c) making a problem to be bigger than it really is (“I’ll never forgive myself for making that mistake!”).

Here are some techniques we can use to better manage and even minimize anxiety:

1. a) Reflecting on our thoughts and recognizing how they fall into one or all of these above mentioned negative patterns;
2. b) Depending on the kind of negative thinking one engages in, one can use the appropriate technique to counter the thought;
3. c) Instead of predicting a disaster, visualize the opposite and use the image to predict a more positive outcome;
4. d) Emphasize on the positive rather than on the negative aspects of situations.

More techniques in our 3rd and last installment.