When you have an anxiety disorder, it may be very difficult for you to deal with some things on a daily basis that others take for granted. Anxiety derives from many sources, but there are also many consistent symptoms and situations that increase those symptoms, such as loss of control.
The feeling of loss of control is a primary factor that evokes anxiety among people with anxiety disorders. The experience of losing control can occur in hundreds of different ways, but some of the most common include:
Being a Passenger
When we find ourselves in a situation where someone else is driving a vehicle, and we are the passive passengers, we’re likely to experience a feeling of loss of control. While some people have no problem with this feeling, those with anxiety may find it extraordinarily uncomfortable to give-up this control.
Others may call us back-seat drivers, or simply not understand why we feel anxious. It’s important to explain the feelings of anxiety we’re likely to, or are, experiencing to friends, family, acquaintances, coworkers, or anyone we find ourselves in the vehicle with as a passenger. Therapy is also a great way to learn the roots of why we feel out of control as a passenger.
Crowds
Even those without anxiety disorders can experience significant anxiety while in crowds. For those with anxiety, however, the feelings often come from feeling trapped or confined, which again relates to a sense of loss of control. Part of the ongoing healing process of anxiety disorders may include avoiding large crowds, as well as learning breathing and calming techniques through therapy.
Deadlines
Anxiety may also increase when we are faced with deadlines, especially with employment, because we don’t have control over when we complete a task or project. The feeling may start-off small and slowly get bigger as the deadline draws closer. The anxiety then slows us down, and we spend more time dealing with the anxiety than focusing on tasks.
Therapy can help us deal with, and eventually better accept, areas of our lives we don’t have control over, which in turn will help decrease anxiety levels and symptoms over time.
To schedule an appointment with a caring professional counselor in the North Dallas area, contact us today.