DEALING WITH MILD TO MODERATE ANXIETY
Stephen D. ZoBell, PhD
1. Those with severe anxiety may need to seek professional assistance and may need to consider medication.
2. Panic attacks require immediate assistance. Prolonged and ongoing they are difficult to treat and may require medication. Mild or moderate panic attacks may require coaching to change fear based thinking, understanding triggers and how to reinterpret them, experiencing and normalizing emotions, training on relaxation skills and relearning responses to sensory and thought experiences
3. Mild to moderate anxiety may be treated through some of the following approaches with the client taking responsibility to:
a. Be willing to continue moving forward with duties while experiencing discomfort
b. Focus on the ‘here and now’ and leave the past behind
c. Anchor into the concrete world of the home, the street, houses, circumstances: build, fix, clean, polish, lift, help with your hands. Put your nervous energy to work. Find a hobby, help a friend, create.
d. Rather than asking ‘why?’ ask ‘what?’ and ‘how?’
e. Learn and applying relaxation techniques, deep breathing, body relaxation and mind relaxation
f. Set specific simple goals based on values and principles
g. Replace negative, worried and pessimistic thoughts with positive, constructive and happy thoughts
h. Trust in the religious teachings, pray for positive desires to overcome negative resistance
i. Read uplifting material
j. Talk to a friend, a leader, a family member
k. Show an interest in others, get to know others
l. Get regular aerobic exercise
m. Bring light, hope and encouragement to others
n. Learn to serve and to sacrifice for a cause greater than self
o. Avoid comparing and competing with others regarding personhood
p. Summon up courage to face fears
q. Seek comfort through religious teachings
r. Remember, there is hope
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