Jul
Articles, Health & Mental Wellness
All About Anxiety
All About Anxiety
Every single one of us knows the feeling of fearing the future and dwelling in the past. It’s been the human condition for a long time, and if we don’t keep those thoughts in check they can end up consuming our lives.
Anxiety is defined as “a mental health disorder characterised by feelings of worry or fear that are strong enough to interfere with one’s daily activities.” It’s a spectrum – anxiety ranges from a diagnosable disorder to an occasional affliction. No matter how it manifests, there’s not a single person who hasn’t experienced it to some degree.
Anxiety is particularly common in our 20s. It’s a time of transformation and uncertainty, where we move from a comfortable structure that’s been set out for us our whole lives into the vast and unfamiliar territory of adulthood. We now have to create our own structure and forge our life paths, which can be a lot of pressure. This constant fear of the future and feeling of worry around where we’ll end up and what’s wrong in our lives can persist for a long while and is often hard to deal with.
Our culture pushes a narrative of onwards and upwards. It’s easy to feel like we’re only valuable if we’re the perfect girlboss, succeeding in our careers as well as having a full social calendar all the time. This pressure, which is exacerbated by social media, can leave us with no time for self care and can even affect our sleeping patterns. This will inevitably result in an anxious disposition.
Taking time for yourself as well as getting a solid 7-9 hours of sleep per night is essential in managing anxiety. You need to take a moment to step away from your obsessive thoughts or it may get to a point that they will consume you. When we constantly focus on what has or will go wrong, there’s no time to appreciate the beauty of the present!
We live in an era where it’s hard to escape the pressure to be “perfect”, and one where we’re encouraged not to display our anxieties and emotions for fear of not seeming “put together”. Advertising convinces us that we need to buy some or other product to get to where we want to be, and social media tells us that we’re not good enough if we’re not looking like and living that life of edited Instagram models. Whether you’re concerned about your career, your social life, hitting milestones by a certain age or your self image, know that it’s all perfectly normal. You’re not alone in your anxieties, and you shouldn’t be afraid to express them! Bottling it all up will only serve to make it worse.
You are incredible and you’re exactly where you should be right now. If you feel that anxiety is taking over your life, talk to your doctor to see what options you have.
For more mental health resources visit https://www.opencounseling.com/hotlines-za.
rubies let us know in the comments below if any of you have been struggling with anxiety? We are all in this together!
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Eish anxiety is another thing that we experiencing,more especially with this corona and what is currently happening in our country and it causes us to panic
I struggled with anxiety after the birth of my baby, I had to go through an emergency C section because my baby’s heart had complications… I really enjoyed this article. Especially the part that says Anxiety is particularly common in our 20s,This constant fear of the of the future and feeling of worry around where we’ll end up and what’s wrong in our lives can persist for a long while and is often hard to deal with… That’s the real truth
this article is very close to me as we are all going through the most, we need to spread love to those around us as we never know what people are dealing with personally… love and light to everyone
I am living with anxiety and must say one can do without medication it is not good to be depended on it as for a young lady in get 20s it doesn’t get easier
I battle with Anxiety and unfortunately, my triggers are things I cannot workaround. I honestly do not know how to cope.
I still in the battle isn’t hard but i will get over and through this situation.
Meaning it’s easy very hard journey and i can’t deal with it….as i miss my normal life.
Wow, This is a nice article very encouraging. I am inspired. I always though i was very careful with everything and everyone that i come in contact with up until i had Covid. I was terrified and have been very anxious. I was sick for a bit longer than i believe i should have. To cut the story short, Every time i need to use a public transport to go to work i used to panic. Thank you for reminding me that I am incredible and I am exactly where I should be right now.
Anxiety has become a reality for me recently. I’ve been stressing about almost everything and being a new mother has added to the stress. The world we once knew has changed and it’s scary knowing that this is the knew reality our children are exposed to. Apart from all the other factors that’s been plaguing me, This is the most important to me. However, I believe that instilling great morals and faith in my child’s life is good enough to keep him and me going.
Reading comments from other ladies who are going through the same thing has helped me to look for the positives in my own life. It’s not easy overcoming anxiety and dealing with stress but speaking to someone takes the weight off your shoulders. Every person has a different method of dealing with anxiety but keep trying different methods untill you find one that works for YOU.
This article really Hit me anxiety is something I have been struggling with for many years. I always pray when things become to much for me caus I’ve found that the only thing that really helps me.
It is really an interesting article, we struggle day to day but life is not perfect and I don’t know who set that standard but we have to learn to take things easy a day at a time, otherwise we will have fear of the future.