For BTS ARMYs out there, who are getting ready for BTS comeback, like everyone else, you’ve, surely, encountered anxiety in your daily life. You’re not alone.
The feeling of butterflies in your stomach as you wait for the boys to perform on stage denotes anxiety.
The increased heart palpitations you undergo before a job interview expresses your anxiety as well. You will encounter anxiety daily and you cannot run away from it.
You may tend to ignore these anxiety symptoms because you think they’re not significant. However, If you don’t know how to turn your anxiety off, it can turn into a serious problem that can affect all aspects of your life, including your health, family life and career.
You can harness this, supposedly, ‘negative’ power into something positive that could help you triumph in all your undertakings.
Yes, you can, and I will show you how. I will reveal concrete steps that you can accomplish to reach your goals. Through this method, you can manage your anxiety properly and turn it off according to your needs.
The first step is to recognize the symptoms of anxiety. How would you know that you have anxiety attacks? Some of the typical symptoms associated with anxiety are: hyperventilation, increased heartbeat, nervousness, weakness, and restlessness. These symptoms can vary based on each individual’s psyche.
Whatever your perception of anxiety is, you can turn this off and be happy and successful. Grab the opportunity now to live your life to the fullest by reading the rest of this book and applying the concepts properly.
What are the root causes of anxiety?
Before you can understand these topics, you have to learn first about the brain.
The brain is called the center of the Central Nervous System (CNS) because it’s responsible in secreting hormones that trigger or inhibit the release of various substances in your primary organs. These secondary hormones initiate the biochemical and physiological functions that occur in your body.
Most stimuli, such as pain and emotions are sent to the brain to elicit the corresponding responses, such as increased heartbeat, decreased insulin and similar reactions. When the brain doesn’t recognize the stimulus, the body doesn’t react. Hence, for your body to respond according to your needs, the brain has to accept and acknowledge the stimulus first.
For the emotions, such as anxiety and fear, there’s one specific part of the CNS that initiates the responses, and this is the amygdala.
When an impending danger accosts you, you would have to decide whether to fight or flee. However, many of these ‘expected’ fears causing your anxiety are unfounded.
An example is when you fear that your airplane would crash and be anxious during the whole flight. For your own sake, this is a negative behavior, which would only cause you pain and anxiety.
The Amygdala
The amygdala is called the brain’s fear center because it is where the brain processes for fear and anxiety are initiated. To let you understand more, it’s a proven fact that animals without amygdala don’t feel fear and anxiety. Thus, without these anatomical structures, you would exist without emotions.
You have two amygdala (plural and singular form), which are parts of your Limbic System. Together with the hippocampus, they form your memory and emotions of fear and anxiety.
An example is when a child is exposed to fire and gets burned; that memory will be stored in his hippocampus. So, the next time he sees a fire, he would automatically fear it.
This would then trigger the “Flight or Fight” response and induces anxiety. The question of facing head-on the object of fear, or running away from it will be a decision the person involved has to make.
You can compare the mind to a computer and the brain as the processor. You can feed it with data and these data is processed only by the brain. It is human nature to worry, and the brain is programmed to do just that – unless you learn how to re-direct this energy.
Garbage in will be garbage out (GIGO).
So, be careful of what you feed your super-processor (brain),
Unknowingly, you may be fueling anxiety with your negative thoughts. Negative thoughts are the main causes of fear and anxiety. Whatever you feed your brain; this tends to influence your behavior. If you constantly worry, and wallow in them, you’re encouraging anxious behavior.
You can do away with all these endless fears by doing a simple meditation or breathing exercise.
Here are the 4 simple steps you can do:
Step #1 – Sit comfortably in a safe chair.
Keep your shoulders back and your chest out. Ensure that you’re in a place that is neither too cold nor too warm. You should not be interrupted by anyone during this activity. Lock your door or instruct everyone not to intrude into your privacy. Your hands comfortably placed on each of your laps with the palms up.
Step #2 – Close your eyes and perform your breathing exercises.
Breathe in (inhale) deeply through your nose, and hold it for 6 seconds by counting 1,001, 1,002, 1,003, 1,004, 1,005, and 1,006.
Then breathe out (exhale) forcibly through your mouth. You can say the ‘huh’ sound while doing it. As you do this, mentally instruct your muscles and body to relax.
Do this several times until such time that you feel your body ease up, and your muscles relax.
Step #3 – Visualize in your mind of you facing your fear without anxiety.
Let’s say you have fear of spiders. Create a picture in your mind that you’re staring at the spider without fear, or that you have stepped aside calmly when confronted by a spider. Create other scenarios that emphasize you reacting calmly to your fears.
While doing this, continue with your breathing exercises. Do these several times until the image of the spider in your mind provokes no fear.
Of course, it won’t be easy at first, and the changes won’t happen immediately, but if you do this daily, you would eventually conquer whatever your fears are.
Step #4 – Feed your mind with positive thoughts
Imagine yourself responding positively to any negative stimulus. Believe in yourself and your power to overcome your fears and anxieties. Count your blessings.
There are countless of things to be thankful for; your normal body, the roof over your head, the square meals you are able to eat, your parents, your siblings, your friends, your fellow ARMYs and of course – BTS.
Focus on the blessings and not on the ‘negatives’, and you would come to notice that there are indeed, so many things you should be thankful for.
BTS’ RM, in one of his interviews, mentioned about how he looked at the mirror and told himself daily about positive thoughts, such as “I’m good,” “I love myself”, and similar positive thoughts.
This is actually self-hypnosis and self-reaffirmation.
Do this too every day, aside from the meditation/respiration exercises and you would gradually get yourself out of the rut of fear and anxiety, you constantly place yourself in.
Good luck everyone, especially BTS ARMYs on your journey towards freeing yourself from fear and anxiety, and finally loving yourself.
