Let’s talk about anxiety. What does it really look like? Is it just excessive worrying? While anxiety does
include worry, it is more than that. Anxiety is not only mental, but it is physical as well. The more we
know about anxiety, the better we can help to manage it.
Anxiety management begins with awareness. The more aware we are of how anxiety manifests itself,
the better we are able to control it. This starts with understanding how anxiety can impact your body.
Some of the ways we experience anxiety is through our physical form. Do you ever catch yourself at the
height of your anxiety and you find your entire body has become tensed and your heart is racing? That is
your body responding to anxiety. However, before you reach this stage, there are many warning signs
along the way. For some people, when a person becomes anxious their palms start to sweat, they can
become flushed or feel their temperature increasing in degrees. The more aware we are of these early
symptoms, the better we are able to manage them.
There are not only the physical aspects, but also the mental aspects of anxiety. Do you ever find
yourself getting ‘stuck’ on a problem? Sometimes, when we become overwhelmed by a problem, we
can’t see past it. When this happens, we can start down a negative spiral, leading to negative thoughts
about yourself or even the future. Becoming aware of how these negative thoughts can impact one’s
emotions and behavior helps to begin the change process. This is where therapy can be helpful. Therapy
works to implement change into people’s unhealthy cycles of behavior. The more we learn about the
way we think, the better we are able to manage our symptoms.
So, what can I do about my anxiety? There are three steps that you can begin today to start managing
your anxiety. Step 1: Increase your mindful awareness. This begins with starting to take note of your
physical responses to anxiety. The earlier you can catch your anxiety, the sooner you can start to
implement coping strategies. Step 2: Take note of your thoughts. When you are becoming anxious, start
to observe your thoughts. Are they more negative in nature? Do they have tones of negative self-talk?
By increasing our awareness of our thought patterns, we can start to make the necessary changes. Step
3: Observe your emotions. Our thoughts influence our emotions and behaviors. When we start to

observe our emotional response style to anxiety, we can start to better understand our patterns so to
begin to lay the foundation for implementing healthier behavioral patterns.