Anxiety is a secondary emotion. A secondary emotion is something we feel because we are suppressing another emotion. Those are called primary emotions. Those emotions can include such things as scared, worry, hurt, uncertainty, sadness, or disappointment. We can easily make the mistake of thinking that a situation or occurrence has made us anxious when in fact the true emotion is something different. For most people who feel anxiety on a regular basis, this can be complicated. Most of us experienced anxiety, and it is a relatively expected and familiar feeling. People that feel anxious all the time tend to have some sort of disposition to experience the world in a way that is anxiety-provoking, and most of their life is seen through this lens. Symptoms can vary from person to person and may include,
Persistent worrying or obsession about small or large concerns that are out of proportion to the impact of the event
Inability to set aside or let go of a worry.
Inability to relax, restlessness and feeling keyed up or on edge
Difficulty concentrating or the feeling that your mind goes blank
Worrying about making decisions for fear of making the wrong decisions
Carrying every option in a situation all the way to it's possible negative conclusion
Difficulty handling uncertainty or indecisiveness
Physical signs and symptoms are
Fatigue
Irritability
Muscle tension or muscle ache
Trembling, feeling twitchy
Being easily startled
Trouble sleeping
Nausea, diarrhea
Headaches
If we can ask ourselves “What is the feeling that could be underneath my anxiety right now?” then we should be able to understand the feeling that is causing us to feel anxiety. If you allow yourself to be open to that possibility rather than anxiety you are taking great leaps forward in understanding yourself, having greater emotional intelligence and having the ability to make efforts to improve your situation based on other underlying feelings. If you are left with some sort of fear, then your anxiety is in the right place. And that is ok. Its ok to feel anxiety in the right places. So give this a try and see if it can reduce your worry, and help you make life changes that will actually alleviate the true negative feelings you have, rather than miss your experience and cause continued worry for “no reason” as many people do who feel anxious all the time.
I want to offer to you that it is ok to feel all these things. We will not be trying to get rid of these feelings. They are yours. What we can do is open your mind to see that these feelings are all caused by a thought that you are creating in your mind. And that is optional. You have control over that. We will talk more about that soon. For now I want you to focus in on your feelings and recognize them. See if you can see the primary emotion that could be causing your anxiety. Pay attention when you are feeling anxiety and see if you can recognize it. And then let's talk and see if we can figure out why you are choosing to feel that way. This is amazing work we are going to be doing. Get ready to have your mind Blown! For now strap on your anxiety backpack and get going! You got this! I you would like to learn more and work with me, click the link below for a free mini session.
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