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How Misreading Body Signals Can Cause Anxiety
Nervousness is perfectly normal and often manageable, but for some individuals, it can be far more severe and frequent. Even if you've never been diagnosed with an anxiety disorder, knowing how to manage anxiousness could be tremendously beneficial. Finding the best psychiatrist for anxiety in Tallahassee, FL, and learning coping mechanisms as well as cognitive reappraisal methods could help you manage daily stress and difficult situations. Unfortunately, misreading your body's signals can exacerbate anxiety instead of mitigating it. Fortunately, there are ways to tackle this problem.
Interoceptive Accuracy(IAc)
Let's say that you're preparing for an important presentation. Your PowerPoint is ready, and you've memorized all of your talking points. You're as prepared as you could be. However, before the meeting begins, you become acutely aware of your sweaty palms, dry mouth, and thumping heart. Awareness of these body signals is known as interoceptive accuracy or IAc. Heartbeat perception is a key component. People generally have some awareness of these body signals. You may notice your palms are moist and wipe them on your jeans. Dry mouth may trigger you to grab your water bottle. Being aware of these signals isn't bad. In fact, it can be quite helpful, but being overly aware of or fixating on these body signals can exacerbate symptoms of anxiety and make the experience more severe.
When you're already anxious, it's easy to fixate on the problems that you're facing or the panic that you're experiencing. Unfortunately, these perceptions aren't always accurate. It's easy to overestimate your heart rate or even to begin hyperventilating when there's no legitimate reason to be gasping for air. Accurate IAc can be helpful. Overly fixating on biofeedback or an inaccurate estimation of these signals can be troubling. In fact, it could contribute to the catastrophization of a panicked state. No one wants to experience a panic attack. Luckily, there are ways to reduce your anxiety before reaching that point.
Coping with Anxiety
This is where working with a psychiatrist pays off. One of the first steps is simply accepting your anxiety. This doesn't mean that you have to give up or that you can't do anything about it! There are many ways to handle anxiety. Acknowledging that it's an issue and realizing that you need to work towards calming your mind and establishing a calming environment is a huge step forward.
Meditation and exercise are great for long-term care, but a short-term response is different. In these instances, deep breathing is very important. It can help you regulate your breathing and reduce your heart rate. If you have a few minutes before the meeting begins, excuse yourself and take a brief walk. Getting some fresh air and momentarily changing your environment could allow you to relax and destress. Remember that managing anxiety is both internal and external. How you talk to yourself or perceive events is crucial.
Cognitive Reappraisal
Cognitive reappraisal is more than positive thinking. Reappraisals take facts into account. They're reality-based, not merely wishful thinking. Instead of considering how your presentation could bomb, remind yourself how prepared you are and how far you've come to have this project under your control in the first place. Feelings aren't facts, but you can use facts to influence your feelings. Rephrase and reappraise the situation in a more positive light.
Working with a mental health psychiatrist in Tallahassee, FL, can enable you to tackle anxiety more easily and successfully. Contact Florida First Psychiatry Specialist at 
850-765-8120 if you have any questions or would like to schedule an appointment.
Florida First Psychiatry Specialist
Dr. Prasanti Tatini, Psychiatrist
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