Mind Over Matter

There is a lot of proof showing that your mind is a huge part of controlling how your body behaves. When people think they're sick, they tend to exhibit symptoms of being sick, even if they aren't actually sick. There's also the placebo affect, where people think they're getting a cure for something, and so their problem goes away. Every year there is more and more evidence proving that our minds have a huge affect on our physical health.

One of the huge keys to overcoming anxiety is cognitive rethinking. You have to change the way you think about things and how you approach situations to help minimize those parasitic thoughts that trigger your anxiety. 

Anxiety doesn't come out of nowhere. All our physical behaviors are triggered by thoughts. All of our thoughts are triggered by events happening in our lives. For example: many people get anxious when they find out they have to public speak, often times when they have to give a presentation in school or work. Where does this anxiety come from? The base of anxiety is fear, but fear and anxiety are very different. "Fear is immediate, perceptual, and reactive. Anxiety reflects a future threat." When you're afraid, it's because you are in an immediate situation that was unexpected. Usually anxiety comes from knowing of a future situation that has yet to come about that you view as a threat because you believe something bad is going to happen. With public speaking, people often are afraid they are going to mess up, say something stupid, say the wrong information, trip, stutter, sweat too much, etc. etc. etc. Everybody has their own beliefs of what is going to happen. Most of the time, none of these things happen. One of the biggest struggles for people with anxiety is to figure out what thoughts are triggering their anxiety, and then figuring out why they think those things and then if they are actually realistic or not. 

Cognitive rethinking is a very hard thing to do, but it is worth the effort. If you can change the way you think, you can change the way you act, as well as how your body reacts. You can take control if you are willing to put in the work and the time.