Anxiety Disorder is the most common mental health condition that Affects up to 18% of the population. It is a body’s natural response to stress. We all get worried and scared sometimes; however, those with anxiety may feel consumed by fears of things that might seem challenging to others. It is tough to relate these concerns, whereas many people don’t know how to help someone with anxiety.
You may be able to see isn’t easy symptoms precisely is challenging to know exactly what the persoessentialing with. So, it is essential to be sensitive to what the person with anxiety is going through, even if it does not make sense to you. There are many ways to support people who are experiencing anxiety, but it is essential to recognize the physical symptoms of anxiety, including;
- sweating
- diarrhea
- restless
- shortness of breath
- fatigue
- nausea
List Of Ways To Support Someone Who Is Experiencing Anxiety
1) Find an approach to make use of any intuition they have about their anxiety
If your loved one has an intuition about their anxiety, You can help them spot when their anxiety-driven patterns are occurring. It is helpful if you know each other’s pattern and has a trusting relationship where you can point out each other’s habit. People who have insight into their anxiety may feel compelled to their anxious thoughts. For instance, a person with health anxiety might know that going to the doctor every week for a test is unnecessary. Still, they can’t help solve it; it is the best idea to encourage them to see a clinical psychologist specializing in treating anxiety.
2) Help someone anxious to take care not to reassure your loved ones that their fear won’t come to pass per their perception
Typically, anxious people have a natural bias toward thinking about the worse case scenarios. You can use a cognitive therapy technique to help or support them; some won’t come to pass. It is the best way to emphasize their coping ability. If your loved one is feeling anxious that someone else is angry with them, it is often helpful to remind them that you can only ever choose your actions and not control other people’s responses.
3) Offer support, but don’t take over
Avoidance is a core aspect of anxiety, so sometimes, we may feel pulled to support out by doing things for our avoidant loved ones and inadvertently feed their avoidance. For instance, if your anxious roommate seeks out making phone calls incredibly stressful and you end up doing this for them, they never push back through their avoidance. Also, sometimes loved ones are so gripped by an anxiety disorder that they are in survival mode and require more hands-on help to get things done. In less extreme circumstances, however, it’s best to offer support without taking overdoing the reassurance.
4) Understand differences in how anxiety perceived
Because of evolution, we are tense to react to fear by either fight or flight. For different people, one of these responses dominates. When you understand that anxiety is designed to put us into a mode of threat sensitivity, it will be easier to understand if someone feels cared for or not and act out by being defensive to find compassion for them. By paying attention to how anxiety perceives the person you care about, you can identify their pattern an,d be in a better position to support them.
5) Match your support to their desires and attachment style
It is better to ask someone what kind of support they prefer rather than guess. However, we know from research that people with an avoidant attachment style are likely to respond best to solid displays of concrete, practical support. That could include supporting the anxious person to break tasks into manageable steps like how to respond to angry emails and how to deal with a difficult situation.
Other people are more likely to prefer emotional support, those who are securely attached or who have a preoccupied attachment style due to a fear of being abandoned, but when you have a close relationship with someone, then you can offer support based on intimacy and understanding your loved ones pattern of the anxiety.
