Anxiety Friend or Foe?

Why Anxiety? Explore what anxiety is and how it pervades the human condition- it has the capacity to be both helpful and pathological depending on the biological and environmental factors an individual is subject to. Ie Resilience versus illness.

What is Anxiety? Normal emotional reaction to a perceived threat- It aids performance! An adaptive response to protect from harm Adrenaline release Fight or flight response When in real danger, anxiety and its accompanying cluster of physiological symptoms serve to promote our safety When the anxiety reaction becomes overly sensitive it can disrupt normal life and become extremely debilitating Stuart

Key Messages Anxiety can impair people’s CAPACITY TO FUNCTION and can link and lead to many other presentations and difficulties Anxiety effects us all at times. When the body is in ‘FIGHT OR FLIGHT’ it is bombarded with chemicals including Cortisol and Adrenalin. Performance is enhanced by low level anxiety but when you are FLOODED this impairs your capacity to learn and retain information. Higher order brain functioning cannot be accessed. Read extract from ‘What to do when you worry too much’ DG 9.10

Anxiety Curve

Discuss? When have you avoided a task or commitment because you were anxious or overwhelmed?

Avoiding situations where anxiety may occur Behaviours Avoiding situations where anxiety may occur Leaving situations when anxiety begins to occur Thoughts Overestimation of danger Underestimation of ability to cope Underestimation of help available Worries and catastrophic thoughts CBT model of the anxious individual response Physical reactions Racing heart Muscle tension Sweaty palms Light-headedness Rapid breathing Moods Nervous Irritable Anxious Panicky

Stress Vulnerability Model “As long as the stress induced by challenging events stays below the threshold of vulnerability, the individual… remains well within the limits of normality. When the stress exceeds the threshold, the person is likely to develop a psychopathological episode of some sort…. When the stress abates and sinks below the vulnerability thresholds, the episode ends” (Zubin and Spring, 1977)

Exercise. Have a go yourself, thinking of all of these domains within the contexts of your own lives?

Coping Strategies Mindfulness, Exercise, Breathing, Relaxation,Distraction, Visualisation, Problem solving, Activity, Sensory management, self soothing, walking. Read extract from ‘What to do when you worry too much’ DG 9.10

Mindfulness Why? Who uses Mindfulness or some other stress management approach within the workplace? It- Helps with emotional regulation Helps to take back control of thought processes. Restores Homeostasis.

Mindfulness It is a way of taking back control of the mind. Being in the present moment rather than ruminating about what has happen in the past or worrying about the future.

Mindfulness Emotional mind is hot. Rational mind is cold, task orientated.

Mindfulness Skills What Skills Observe Describe Participate How Skills Non-judgemental Effective One-mindful (focusing on one thing) Emotional mind is hot. Rational mind is cold, task orientated.