Knowing that Anxiety Will Pass Reduces Its Effects

Many anxiety-sufferers, including those afflicted by severe social anxiety, become very wrapped up in their head about the anxiety that they know that they will soon experience. For example, a person is heading out to the local fast food restaurant and is afraid of talking to the operator at the drive-thru, and the mere knowledge that this is going to happen and that this is going to cause anxiety is something that causes even more anxiety for the person in question.

One of the main fears of those affected by anxiety is the anxiety itself, and the knowledge that when it is present, life is going to be more challenging and the individual in question is going to have to deal with its effects. These effects can be terrifying in themselves as well.

One powerful anxiety-recovery tool, aside from the many others available, is the knowledge that even though this anxiety is going to happen and is going to disrupt a person's life in some way, that eventually the anxiety will pass and everything will be feel much more manageable once again.

The scariest part about anxiety for those affected by it is not knowing how to handle it and knowing that instead, life is simply going to be miserable for some time.

A useful metaphor for thinking about this is for one to envision one's self driving along an open road on a flat stretch of desert land. Everything is peaceful and harmonious. However, the driver sees a huge mountain up ahead (similar to a person knowing anxiety is going to calm and that he or she cannot handle it), and he or she becomes very intimidated by its presence, knowing that it will be difficult to traverse. Once the driver arrives at the base of the mountain, he or she becomes overwhelmed because he or she now realizes that the mountain is huge and will take some time to cross over. However, this person knows that after much difficulty, the mountain will be passed, and eventually the other side will be reached and all will be well again.

With the knowledge that anxiety will pass, it is possible to turn these mountains into speed bumps. The metaphor now has a change. The driver is driving along on a flat stretch of desert land once again, but instead of noticing an upcoming mountain, the driver notices a slight speed bump. Compared to the mountain, this is simple to navigate, and therefore the driver remains at ease. He or she simply slows down the vehicle as the speed bump is approached, and then he or she simply passes over it without much stress at all.

The second metaphor depicted is what the knowledge that anxiety will pass can do to a person's anxiety level. The anxiety level can be greatly reduced and managed so that the effects it has on a person's life are minimized. While it is very difficult to believe that anxiety will pass at times, especially when one is first beginning to explore anxiety recovery, the more that one believes it, the more that anxiety reduces and loses its harmful effects.

Every person who perseveres in anxiety recovery will realize, sooner or later, that the duration and intensity of the anticipated anxious experience greatly reduces, and especially so as one realizes that he or she can successfully manage his or her anxiety.

This is just yet another tool available to the anxiety sufferer in order to help him or her manage his or her anxiety. Good luck to all anxiety sufferers out there as they seek to manage their anxiety and live healthy and happy lives!