Common Triggers That Can Make Your Anxiety Worse

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Anxiety is a mental health condition that causes fear, worry, rapid heartbeat, and tension. Some people living with the condition can also experience panic and extreme physical symptoms like chest pain. While many people live with anxiety without much health implications, there are always times when the symptoms can go into overdrive and make it difficult for a person to live their everyday lives. So, do you struggle with anxiety? Is it detrimentally affecting your life?

Here are some common triggers of the condition you might want to note.

1. Negative thoughts

Negative thoughts, in general, are one of the most common triggers that make your anxiety worse. Speaking negatively to and with yourself creates the perfect feeding ground for stress and anxiety to grow, no matter what you’re worried about. It is important to be kinder to yourself and feed your thoughts with positivity. Doing this can help prevent your feelings of anxiety from worsening. 

2. Fear of separation

Another common trigger that can worsen anxiety is the fear of separation or losing a loved one. Expecting the passing of a loved one alone can be a massive source of stress, especially when you feel helpless about preventing it. As emotionally hurtful as losing someone can be, the best you can do is cherish the moments you have with them and honor their memory when they are gone. Thankfully, you can find memorial options, including urns, wood caskets, and so on – anything that helps you say farewell in the best way and start the healing process. 

3. Spending too much time alone

Everyone needs to be able to spend time with themselves once in a while. But believe it or not, there is such a thing as spending too much alone time, especially if you have anxiety. According to experts, the more time alone you spend with your thoughts, the more chances of you sinking into a rabbit hole of one negative thought after another. That means you’ll end up piling up layers of stress and heaps of anxiety. Even if you feel like hanging out with other people, try taking a walk or visiting public locations that offer many distractions. The gym and museum are great places to start. 

4. Drinking too much caffeine

You may think that drinking caffeine is an excellent way to raise your energy levels to face the day. However, if you have anxiety, then drinking anything with too much caffeine is an absolute no-no. Caffeine can increase the epinephrine levels in your body. The human body produces the epinephrine hormone to help in the fight-or-flight response. 

That means when you consume too much caffeine, you can easily trigger anxiety and ill feelings that will leave you on edge. If you love your coffee, try to limit your intake. 

5. Smoking

If you need another reason to quit smoking in general, this is it. Smoking is generally bad for your health. But many substances in cigarettes, for example, can affect your mental health as well. As relaxing as a quick drag may make you feel, the calming effects are only temporary. The adverse mental health effects, however, are more lasting.