Opposing Anxiety with Present-Minded Thinking
By Thomas Buchanan - Greenville Counseling Associates
Anxiety is often spoken of in a negative way. However, God created all things, so emotions, including anxiety, must fall within that ‘good’ category. Anxiety allows us to focus our attention on an immediate threat. If a car is coming at me, anxiety recognizes the danger before I consciously can. The anxiety hyper focuses on the danger and engages my senses so I’m able to avoid the threat or danger. My heart rate increases to send more blood to my muscles, my muscles tense to get ready for action, my brain hyper focuses on the danger. In this scenario, it would allow me to jump out of the way. In these situations, it is clear that anxiety serves a clear and helpful purpose. For thousands of years, anxiety has helped people survive real life dangers. As safety and comfort have become more readily available, anxiety starts to focus on potential dangers in the future rather than immediate physical dangers. Our brain does not distinguish between a deadline at work and an oncoming car. Anxiety perceives a deadline as a threat, and the same reaction takes place as our senses are engaged; hyper focus on the problem, accelerated heart rate and tense muscles, but, unlike with the car, there’s no immediate action to place our energy. So the energy, instead, goes to our head, which often means stewing on every possible scenario trying to solve a problem that does not exist. If we have time to sit with an anxious feeling, chances are the problem exists somewhere in the future. If we have anxious thoughts regarding a past event, the anxiety is wanting to prevent that from happening again in the future.
One way to combat anxiety regarding future possibilities, is to bring focus to the present moment. Some helpful questions to ask when we are feeling anxious are, “what is my anxiety trying to protect me from?” and “what action can I take right now?”. The answer may be as simple as setting a phone reminder, making a list, or it may be acknowledging that there is actually nothing to do at all. By bringing ourselves back to the present moment, we are telling our brains that there is no immediate threat and our body can come back to a peaceful state. You can practice this by “grounding” yourself to the present reality using your five senses. If you can see, touch, hear, smell or taste it, then it exists in your present reality. Intentionally take in your surroundings, and you’ll find peace in the present reality, as opposed to getting wrapped up in what could be, which with anxiety is often the worst case scenario.
Acknowledging what our anxiety is trying to protect us from can also bring us into a state of gratitude. For example, if I’m anxious about missing a deadline, I’m ultimately afraid of losing my job. By stepping into the present moment, I recognize I have a job to be thankful for, and I’m able to take an action step towards the upcoming deadline.
You may have heard the question: “If I tell you not to think about a pink elephant, what are you thinking about?” We all of course naturally think of the pink elephant. However, what if I say, “Don’t think about a pink elephant, think about a blue butterfly.” You may have both of them in mind. Now, I’ll take it a step further: “Don’t think about a pink elephant, think about a blue butterfly… and really focus on the pattern of the wings… and the texture of the wings … and the motion of the wings going up and down…” We are now much more focused on the details of the butterfly than anything else, including the pink elephant. We can think of anxious future thoughts as the “pink elephant” and present neutral thoughts as the “blue butterfly”. We can waste a lot of time and energy trying to rid our mind of the pink elephant while unintentionally getting up close and personal, or we can use that energy to refocus our attention on the blue butterfly of the present moment.
In essence, recognizing anxiety as a signal for potential danger and learning to redirect its energy toward the present reality can lead to a more grounded and grateful existence. It's a practice that requires mindfulness and intentionality but can profoundly enrich our daily lives.