Anxiety

Anxiety is a normal emotion. Our body has been equipped with a small almond shaped organ in our brain called the Amygdala and it acts like a “smoke alarm”. Depending on the situation, this alarm alerts you when something is going on either internally or externally. What is going on that could be causing your anxiety?

Anxiety often is first noticed in your body. It can make you feel tense and uptight. You may experience tightness in your chest, or butterflies in the stomach, nervousness or feeling shaky. It can create a raised heart rate, sweating, a rush of adrenalin, and hypervigilance towards people, sounds and / or surroundings (to name a few). Anxiety may be covering up other emotions you aren’t comfortable with. It could be negative or fearful thoughts that intrude and hijack your peace. Do you find yourself saying, “What if…. this happens? What if…. they think this about me?” These intrusive thoughts just seem to take over and you can’t real them in. Be curious. What is this all about?

Sometimes we don’t know how to listen to these body reactions and the anxiety gets worse to the point of experiencing a panic attack. The rush of adrenaline and exaggerated heart rate can cause you to feel like you can’t get your breath or you encounter pain in your chest. You might think you are having a heart attack. [NOTE: If you are feeling like you are having a heart attack, then GET TO THE HOSPITAL IMMEDIATELY. Call 911 and talk to someone who can advise you or can send an ambulance]. It is always better to be on the safe side and get yourself medically checked. Once you have been evaluated, doctors will treat the symptoms accordingly. A panic attack or having high anxiety that you can’t seem to get under control may require medication for a while until the underlying causes can be resolved.

Your anxiety can be scary if you don’t know what is going on. You might feel out of control which exacerbates the anxiety which makes you feel more out of control and the cycle goes on. Get to know yourself. Be curious. What are these reactions trying to tell me? What do I need to feel better? If you don’t know, then contact a professional therapist who has the tools to help you.

God’s intention is for you to have peace. He compassionately says in Phillippians 4: 6,7, “Do not be anxious or worried about anything, but in everything (every circumstance and situation) by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, continue to make your (specific) requests known to God. And the peace of God (that peace which reassures the heart, that peace) which transcends all understanding, (that peace which) stands guard over your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus (that peace is yours!)” . Amplified Bible

There are some incredible techniques that can calm the smoke alarm inside of you. EMDR (Eye Movement, Desensitization, Reprocessing) and EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique) are two such techniques. You don’t have to remain in an anxious state. There is hope! Call me for more information. (913) 649-9200

May God give you peace ~Jane Head~

[NOTE: I am in the process of developing an app for anxiety. My goal is to have it ready to launch in January of 2023. Feel free to come back to my Website for more details when it is launching!]