Low-Grade Anxiety: Are You Coping or Preventing?

I am not a psychologist.  But I deal with psychology every day.

Mental health has to be one of the hardest things to learn about.  You have to think about thinking.  Think about that…

Last week was quite the week.  I had many people express their anxiety.  I respect that.  Vulnerability is powerful.  Episode 18 of Speaking of Impact highlighted what it’s like to acknowledge your shortcomings and use them for good.  This is a great way to make an impact.  

We are all psychologists to some degree. 

The Big Things and the Little Things

It’s easy to identify things that stick out.  For example, I know I am a terrible singer.  It would be obvious if I joined a choir and tried to participate.  They may be extremely inviting and accepting, and that might make it even more obvious.  But, what about things that aren’t so easy to recognize?  In some cases, these can be worse than those more extreme issues.  

I have easily solved the issue with my singing.  I just don’t sing (avoidance).  Perhaps I could figure out a way to turn that into positive message to inspire people.  Either way, it’s a glaring weakness, but not a problem.  There are certainly things, such as major health issues, that create challenging situations.  They should not be taken lightly.  But what about things that aren’t as easy to recognize?…things that may be having a mild effect, but are unnoticed.  

Slightly different than last week, this week’s podcast with Ed Coambs (Episode 19, out Thursday) is more about therapy, which is defined as “treatment intended to heal or relieve a disorder.”  There are certain issues that mildly effect us for long periods of time.  It could be tendinitis in a runner’s knee or a tennis player’s elbow.  Or, it could be mental.

Low grade anxiety is a sneaky thing.  It may not be unbearable.  It may be unnoticed.  It may be hard to explain.  It wouldn’t warrant examination if it lasted for a an hour or even a day.  However, I’ve noticed that it tends to become “normal” for us.  We become used to dealing with it.  The problem is, we’re not actually handling it properly.  We’re just pushing through and distracting ourselves with life.

Dealing with it

I will reiterate my lack of expertise in this area and defer to an article from Health guard about Generalized Anxiety Disorder.  It seems to me that there is a spectrum.  How is this related to what Justine Harman writes about in her article “Have You Met My Life Partner, Low-Grade Anxiety?”

I may not be able to provide an explanation or technical details on how the brain works, but I can speak from experience.  Mild stresses add up. 

Last week I wrote about The State of Motivation.  One ticket out of the state is low-grade anxiety.  It can be a battle.  You want to do great, but you feel it’s impossible.

Stress that Adds Up

I’ve spent the last five years of my life worrying about my digestive system.  You know I’ve had serious health issues in the past.  Nothing was physically harder than battling cancer.  But nothing has been more mentally taxing than the confusion and concern I’ve had over my gastrointestinal tract.

Five years is a long time.  Most of the time, I haven’t been in pain.  But my mind has been very distracted.  I can identify just a few isolated incidents where I felt overwhelmed beyond control.  I have had numerous panic attacks, but I file those under the “physical ailments” tab.  I want to concentrate on the mental here.  

Most of my concerns have been mild, but this is the brain.  It’s complicated.  It’s not like food.  

When did Mexican restaurants start asking you if you wanted jalapeños on your nachos?  What are nachos without the spice?  On the side?  Lame.  Without the peppers they’re simply corn chips and scoop of everything in a good Mexican kitchen.  

I’ve noticed that the amount of spice you want on your food is becoming more and more detailed these days.  Check out this menu of wing sauces at Wild Wing Cafe.  How many different levels do we need to have?

A group I was with ordered guacamole at Rocco’s Tacos a few years ago and it took multiple attempts to calculate the ideal level of spice for our table.  I love spicy food, but my fellow diners preferred just a little spice, or even none at all.  We compromised and ordered “mild”.  The server said someone would come to our table to make it.  Talk about fresh.  

A few minutes later, another employee appeared from the kitchen area like a Mexican wrestler/guacamole king (you’d have to see the decorations in this place) in shining armor.  He seemed heavenly strolling out into the dining room pushing a cart full of ingredients (primarily the most beautiful avocados you’ve ever seen).  He came up to the table and confirmed our “mild” order.  Another hang up I have is why do we default to the lowest level of spice?  Maybe my dining experience will be unenjoyable if the dish is too mild.  

After we confirmed “mild”, we had an overwhelming experience nailing down how “mild” we wanted our guacamole.  The cart had so many different items on it was unclear as to the recipe for “mild” or whatever variation of it that we chose.  It shouldn’t be that hard to make something to dip your chips in.  

Our “guac-champ” pulled out what looked like a machete and in the smoothest fashion, cut open a few avocados and removed the pits. He whipped together the guacamole in a fraction of the time it took us to decided on how spicy it should be.  I need to indicate that this is not a shot at Rocco’s Tacos  The guacamole was great and so was our entire meal.   

I didn’t mentioned anything to the people that I was with, but the experience was stressful.  I had recommended the restaurant and I was looking forward to what I thought was the perfect appetizer.  

Here we are years later and the stress is long since gone.  Any burning sensation that anyone had in their mouth from a bite of overly spiced guacamole is forgotten. 

An occasional bite of food that is too spicy doesn’t add up.  Try a bit of ghost pepper.  Let me know what you think.  It hurts.  But it goes away.  It’s resolved.  Low-grade anxiety doesn’t work like this.  Even the smallest of unresolved issues piles up stress.  

Coping

I’d like to provide some steps to take when dealing with these type of issues.  Here are 4 Quick Tips to Manage Low-Grade Anxiety.  

I have learned that there is no perfect way to cope.  Everyone is different.  Different practitioners will research different things and come up with unique ideas to help.

Measurement and Consistency

Mental health can be challenging and more complex than many things, but I’ve determined two common concepts can applied.  Just like most things, measurement and consistency are keys to success.  

Have you heard of the saying “everything in moderation?”  It’s relevant in many situations, but I’m not as much of a fan of it as I used to be.  

I prefer measurement to moderation.  Some things are good in large quantitates.  You can’t drink too much water, right?  Actually, you can.  Water intoxication is rare, but it exists.  This is why measurement is applicable.  I’m not referring to exact measurement to the milliliter, but just being aware.  I am aware that some things, like medications, do require a more exact calculation and should be taken only in moderation.  But, measurement encompasses more.  

Anxiety is no different than the things above.  A certainl level of it is appropriate.  It can be healthy.  It shows that we are aware of the world around us.  

The question is how much anxiety is appropriate.  Maybe low-grade anxiety is a bad way to describe it.  I think that consistency is what makes the difference.  

A mild amount of anxiety is ok as long as it is measured.  You might say a moderate amount of it.  But like I alluded to previously, what is moderate?  What is it for you?  

You must be aware of your anxiety.  Don’t let it take it’s place in your mind unannounced.

Preventative Measures

There are numerous techniques that people use to manage and release stress.  I support yoga, breathing exercises, working out, healthy diets, meditation, prayer, breaks, therapy, and the occasional scream (measured).  However, I would like to stress (pun intended) preventative measures (another pun!).  

WebMD has certainly caused some of my own anxiety over the years but here they answer the question How Can I Prevent Anxiety?  I love this page because it’s short and simple.  Two things stick out as preventative.

Trim a hectic schedule.

Learn to say “no” and how to step down from responsibilities.  Avoid additional low-grade stresses.  Your primary passions are where you will make the most impact.  Don’t ever forget that.  As an impactmaker, there will be other things that pull you.  It’s better you leave them to those who have the skill, passion, and capacity to do the best work.

Keep an anxiety journal.

This may seem reactionary, but it’s actually preventative.  Identify the things that could cause anxiety or the small stresses that you can avoid in the future.  Learn what tends to bother you and how to avoid it.  You are unique.  Ironically, most people don’t know all the things that cause them anxiety.  They know the biggest most prominent issues, but not the little things that add up.  

I also need to reiterate the need to Celebrate Your Daily Wins.  Fill up your mind with all the good stuff.  As much as I’ve communicated about technology and multitasking, you can only think about so many things at once.  Be careful to not avoid responsibility, but keep the great things fresh and push the stresses out.  

I would imagine that if most people could identify their ideal mental space, our world would be a much nicer place to exist.  Anxiety would be the great tool that it is and our stresses would not overwhelm.  Our differences would be less divisive.  

Impact starts with you.  An aware mind is a healthy mind and a healthy mind is the best mind for making a difference.  

Start your anxiety journal today.