If you suffer from situational anxiety, then you’re not alone. Many people experience a sudden jolt of fear and heightened stress when faced with a worrisome situation or change. Anticipating the anxiety itself can cause even more stress, which only makes the situation that much worse. However, there are various ways to manage situation-based anxiety that are simple. These seven tips on how to cope with situational anxiety can help you manage stress and start confronting scary situations with courage.
Circumstantial or situational anxiety disorder occurs as a response to a particular situation. This form of anxiety is pretty common, and almost everyone has situations that they’d consider to be legitimately anxiety-inducing.
Some situational anxiety examples we see the most include job interviews, “first days,” attending social events, first dates, and flying on airplanes. Although situational anxiety is not the same as a generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), it can still be frustrating when you can’t seem to remain calm in a particular situation, no matter how many times you go through it.
If you can relate, there are seven tips below that can help you to cope with situational anxiety symptoms.
#1 Be Realistic About the Situation
Anxiety-inducing situations aren’t always as stressful as they seem. Oftentimes, our anxiety is the result of us thinking about the worst-case scenario. We immediately jump to the conclusion that the worst will happen, and boom, anxiety takes hold.
It’s crucial in moments that tend to cause you anxiety that you reevaluate the situation, especially if you’ve experienced them before. Once you take a glass-half-full rather than half-empty approach to the situation, it won’t seem as bad the next time.
#2 Breathe
Although this one might seem a little obvious, sometimes we forget to breathe when we’re presented with a stressful situation. Sometimes we hold our breaths in literal anticipation of what could happen.
Research shows that certain breathing techniques help us physically and mentally relax in stressful and anxiety-inducing moments, so as obvious as it may seem to breathe, there are different ways you can do it.
One breathing technique you can try is belly breathing. Find a comfortable, quiet place to lay down or sit. Place one hand on your upper chest and the other hand on your belly below your ribcage.
Relax your belly and breathe in slowly through your nose. Your stomach should rise with your other hand and fall inward toward your spine. Exhale slowly through slightly pursed lips. Do this three to four times a day for 10 to 30 minutes.
#3 Face Your Fears
Often, anxiety about a situation can occur simply because we aren’t prepared or don’t have any idea what to expect. A great way to challenge these fears is to face them.
Exposing yourself to the particular situation you fear can help you slowly become accustomed to it. The goal is to eventually be able to face this situation without experiencing anxiety.
Exposure therapy is a gradual approach that people may take to overcome certain mental health symptoms. Start slowly, maybe by thinking about the situation that makes you anxious, and then gradually work your way to actually facing the situation.
#4 Develop a Routine
Once you understand what kind of situations make you the most anxious, you can adopt certain strategies to reduce this feeling even before you’re placed in said situation. One of the most common ways to do this is to create a “pre-performance routine.”
This is basically a dress rehearsal for whatever it is you’re preparing for, but without the outfit change (unless that would help). The goal is to go through the motions of the feared situation until it’s no longer as scary.
Familiarity greatly reduces anxiety, stress, and fear in many situations, so it’s understandable why this exercise can be so beneficial to someone with situational anxiety.
#5 Tell a Friend
Is there someone you like to spend time with that can ease your mind in stressful situations? Ask them to tag along with you if they can.
For instance, if you’re going to a job interview, ask them to go with you and have them sit outside while you’re meeting with your potential new employer. Just knowing that they’re out there can help reduce your stress and anxiety.
Having a close friend or companion who can accompany you to other stressful situations like doctor’s appointments, funerals, court dates, and even social events can comfort you because you’re with someone familiar. Having someone you know and trust around can also encourage you to speak and socialize and reduce any awkwardness you may feel.
#6 Have an Escape Route
When coping with situational anxiety, a lot of the stress we experience is the result of us feeling trapped. However, creating an “escape route” or a plan B can reduce this stress.
Come up with an alternate plan that accomplishes the goal more comfortably. For instance, let’s say you have your annual check-up with your doctor, but you’re too nervous about going in person, and your go-to companion is busy.
If you don’t have any pressing concerns, ask if you can meet with your doctor over video chat or on the phone. Thanks to the advancements in telehealth and telemedicine, you can often connect with your physician without having to leave your home.
However, remember that plan B is not plan A. At some point, it’s important to gradually expose yourself to these situations, so you become accustomed to managing the anxiety they produce.
#7 Speak to a Professional
For some people, situational anxiety is paralyzing, and if it begins to happen even outside of the feared situation, then there may be a more serious problem at hand. If all else fails, consider speaking to a mental health professional about your symptoms or seek out a mental health program, such as anxiety treatment.
Don’t be embarrassed or ashamed to seek out help for your mental health. Remember that dealing with anticipatory anxiety or situational anxiety is common, and mental health specialists treat all degrees of anxiety with compassion and thoroughness.
Our rehab in Boca Raton, Florida, offers inpatient mental health treatment for a variety of disorders, including anxiety, depression, PTSD, OCD, and more. Our team is composed of trained and certified specialists with years of experience helping people learn how to manage their symptoms and understand their disorders so they can live happier and more productive lives.
For more information about our in-person and telehealth mental health services at our Boca Raton Banyan rehab, you can call Banyan Treatment Centers at 888-280-4763 or simply visit our facility in person. We’re here for you 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
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If you deal with anxiety, there are strategies you can use to avoid feeling consumed by it. Here are some quick solutions to help you address the situation immediately, as well as long-term methods to combat a recurring issue.
Know that feeling of your heart beating faster in response to a stressful situation? Or perhaps, your palms get sweaty when you’re confronted with an overwhelming task or event.
That’s anxiety — our body’s natural response to stress.
If you haven’t recognized your triggers yet, here are a few common ones: your first day at a new job, meeting your partner’s family, or giving a presentation in front of a lot of people. Everyone has different triggers, and identifying them is one of the most important steps to coping with and managing anxiety attacks.
Identifying your triggers can take some time and self-reflection. In the meantime, there are things you can do to try to help calm or quiet your anxiety from taking over.
If your anxiety is sporadic and getting in the way of your focus or tasks, there are some quick natural remedies that could help you take control of the situation.
If your anxiety is focused around a situation, such as being worried about an upcoming event, you may notice the symptoms are short-lived and usually subside after the anticipated event takes place.
1. Question your thought pattern
Negative thoughts can take root in your mind and distort the severity of the situation. One way is to challenge your fears, ask if they’re true, and see where you can take back control.
2. Practice focused, deep breathing
Try breathing in for 4 counts and breathing out for 4 counts for 5 minutes total. By evening out your breath, you’ll slow your heart rate which should help calm you down.
The 4-7-8 technique is also known to help anxiety.
3. Use aromatherapy
Whether they’re in essential oil form, incense, or a candle, natural scents like lavender, chamomile, and sandalwood can be very soothing.
Aromatherapy is thought to help activate certain receptors in your brain, potentially easing anxiety.
4. Go for a walk or do 15 minutes of yoga
Sometimes, the best way to stop anxious thoughts is to walk away from the situation. Taking some time to focus on your body and not your mind may help relieve your anxiety.
Getting some quick exercise can help boost your mood and calm your mind.
5. Write down your thoughts
Writing down what’s making you anxious gets it out of your head and can make it less daunting.
These relaxation tricks are particularly helpful for those who experience anxiety sporadically. They may also work well with someone who has generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) when they’re in a bind!
However, if you suspect you have GAD, quick coping methods shouldn’t be the only kind of treatment you employ. You’ll want to find long-term strategies to help lessen the severity of symptoms and even prevent them from happening.
If anxiety is a regular part of your life, it’s important to find treatment strategies to help you keep it in check. It might be a combination of things, like talk therapy and meditation, or it might just be a matter of cutting out or resolving your anxiety trigger.
If you’re not sure where to start, it’s always helpful to discuss options with a mental health professional who might suggest something you hadn’t thought of before.
1. Identify and learn to manage your triggers
You can identify triggers on your own or with a therapist. Sometimes they can be obvious, like caffeine, drinking alcohol, or smoking. Other times they can be less obvious.
Long-term problems, such as financial or work-related situations, may take some time to figure out — is it a due date, a person, or the situation? This may take some extra support, through therapy or with friends.
When you do figure out your trigger, you should try to limit your exposure if you can. If you can’t limit it — like if it’s due to a stressful work environment that you can’t currently change — using other coping techniques may help.
2. Adopt cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT)
CBT helps people learn different ways of thinking about and reacting to anxiety-causing situations. A therapist can help you develop ways to change negative thought patterns and behaviors before they spiral.
3. Do a daily or routine meditation
While this takes some practice to do successfully, mindful meditation, when done regularly, can eventually help you train your brain to dismiss anxious thoughts when they arise.
If sitting still and concentrating is difficult, try starting with yoga, or walking meditation. There are many free guided meditations on apps like InsightTimer that can help you get started.
4. Keep a journal
It can be helpful to create a habit of writing down your thoughts and emotions in a journal each day. The process of writing down thoughts itself can be calming for some.
However, it can also help you keep track of when you experience anxiety, how it makes you feel, and what sort of things trigger it.
5. Socialize
Although each person is different, and some people experience social anxiety, spending time with friends and family on a regular basis may help you manage your anxiety.
Socialization can help relieve stress, encourage feelings of laughter and togetherness, and decrease loneliness. Research has shown that social connectedness can help you become more resilient to stress in the long run.
6. Try supplements or change your diet
Changing your diet or taking supplements is definitely a long-term strategy. Research shows certain supplements or nutrients can help anxiety reduction.
These include:
- lemon balm
- omega-3 fatty acids
- ashwagandha
- green tea
- valerian root
- kava kava
However, it can take a few months before your body is actually running on the nutrition these herbs and foods provide. If you’re taking other medications, make sure to discuss herbal remedies with your doctor as there can be adverse reactions.
7. Keep your body and mind healthy
Exercising regularly, eating balanced meals, getting enough sleep, and staying connected to people who care about you are great ways to stave off anxiety symptoms.
8. Ask your doctor about medications
If your anxiety is severe enough that your mental health practitioner believes you’d benefit from medication, there are a number of directions to go, depending on your symptoms. Discuss your concerns with your doctor.
Identifying what sort of anxiety you’re dealing with can be somewhat challenging because how one’s body reacts to perceived danger can be entirely different compared to another person.
It’s likely you heard anxiety as a blanket term for that general feeling of worry, nervousness, or unease. It’s often a feeling in response to an upcoming event that has an uncertain outcome.
Every person deals with it at one time or another, because it’s part of our brain’s response to a perceived danger — even if that danger isn’t real.
That said, there are times anxiety can get serious and turn into anxiety attacks that initially feel manageable and then gradually build up over a few hours. (This is different from a panic attack, which is out of the blue and subsides.)
Signs of an anxiety attack
These are some of the more common mental and physical symptoms of anxiety:
It’s also possible to experience an anxiety and panic attack simultaneously. The quick coping strategies mentioned above may also help with a panic attack.
Other mindful strategies to cope with panic attacks include focusing on an object, repeating a mantra, closing your eyes, and going to your “happy” place.
If you notice that quick tips haven’t been working, you may want to consider seeing a professional for help. Especially if you believe you have GAD and it’s interfering with routine activities and causing physical symptoms.
A mental health professional can help with streamlining the process of identifying your triggers, maintaining long-term strategies through behavioral therapy, medications, and more.
Anxiety may always be a part of your life, but it shouldn’t overtake your day-to-day. Even the most extreme anxiety disorders can be treated so that the symptoms aren’t overwhelming.
Once you find what treatment works best for you, life should be a lot more enjoyable and a lot less daunting.
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