What is anxiety?
Anxiety is a feeling of fear, dread, and uneasiness. It might cause you to sweat, feel restless and tense, and have a rapid heartbeat. It can be a normal reaction to stress. For example, you might feel anxious when faced with a difficult problem at work, before taking a test, or before making an important decision. It can help you to cope. The anxiety may give you a boost of energy or help you focus. But for people with anxiety disorders, the fear is not temporary and can be overwhelming.
What are anxiety disorders?
Anxiety disorders are conditions in which you have anxiety that does not go away and can get worse over time. The symptoms can interfere with daily activities such as job performance, schoolwork, and relationships.
What are the types of anxiety disorders?
There are several types of anxiety disorders, including:
Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD). People with GAD worry about ordinary issues such as health, money, work, and family. But their worries are excessive, and they have them almost every day for at least 6 months.
Panic disorder. People with panic disorder have panic attacks. These are sudden, repeated periods of intense fear when there is no danger. The attacks come on quickly and can last several minutes or more.
Phobias. People with phobias have an intense fear of something that poses little or no actual danger. Their fear may be about spiders, flying, going to crowded places, or being in social situations (known as social anxiety).
What causes anxiety disorders?
The cause of anxiety is unknown. Factors such as genetics, brain biology and chemistry, stress, and your environment may play a role.
Who is at risk for anxiety disorders?
The risk factors for the different types of anxiety disorders can vary. For example, GAD and phobias are more common in women, but social anxiety affects men and women equally. There are some general risk factors for all types of anxiety disorders, including:
- Certain personality traits, such as being shy or withdrawn when you are in new situations or meeting new people
- Traumatic events in early childhood or adulthood
- Family history of anxiety or other mental disorders
- Some physical health conditions, such as thyroid problems or arrhythmia
What are the symptoms of anxiety disorders?
The different types of anxiety disorders can have different symptoms. But they all have a combination of:Anxious thoughts or beliefs that are hard to control. They make you feel restless and tense and interfere with your daily life. They do not go away and can get worse over time. Physical symptoms, such as a pounding or rapid heartbeat, unexplained aches and pains, dizziness, and shortness of breath
Changes in behavior, such as avoiding everyday activities you used to do. Using caffeine, other substances, and certain medicines can make your symptoms worse
Most of us have experienced the familiar feeling of anxiety in our lives. Maybe you’ve anxiously waited for test results, worried about a loved one’s safety, been stressed about finances, or burdened with anxiety over a relationship or social situation. Maybe it’s a more clinical (PTSD)/Trauma, lingering anxiety that you need professional help addressing. Whether anxiety has affected your life in big ways or small, it’s probably also led you to ask questions about your faith in YHVH. Is this an issue of not enough faith? Am I just not trusting YHVH enough? Is anxiety a sin? Can faith help me in my anxiety, or do I need to deal with it first? You are not alone.
Let’s look into scripture to find out how we can support each other and grow into the promise of YHVH’s peace.
The Bible frequently warns us about experiences or emotions that frequently crop up in our lives. The more often the Bible brings up certain subjects, the more obvious are the things that consistently arise in our hearts. Otherwise, the Bible would not work so hard to address them. Think, for instance, how often Scripture warns us against anger. Not only is anger a common problem, but too often, it can lead to deadly consequences.
YouVersion | The Bible App | Bible.com
Mattithyahu (Matthew) 6:25-34 “Because of this I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you shall eat or drink, or about your body, what you shall put on. Is not life more than the food and the body more than the clothing? | The Scriptures 2009 (TS2009) | Download The Bible App Now
So the Bible talks about anger a lot.
We see this for anxiety and worry as well. Anxiety comes up often in the Bible:
“Cast your cares on YHVH and he will sustain you,” (Psalm 55:22).
“Cast all your anxiety on him for he cares for you,” (1 Peter 5:7).
“Do not worry about your life . . .” (Matthew 6:25).
“Do not let your hearts be troubled . . .” (John 14:1).
“Do not be anxious about anything but in every situation, by prayer and petition and with thanksgiving, present your requests to Elohim,” (Philippians 4:6).
If we never had reasons to be troubled, worried, nervous, or anxious, we would not have to be directed so often in Scripture to give it all to Elohim.
What Is Anxiety?
Most of us recognize that anxiety or worry can vary significantly in cause, intensity, and duration. On some level, you might feel anxious while you wait to hear what you expect will be good news: about a hoped-for pregnancy, a response to a proposal, or about a promotion at work. Excitement at the prospect of good news can feel a little like anxiety. We don’t find this kind of anxiety problematic. We also expect a certain level of anxiety while awaiting lab results that might reveal cancer, or waiting for news from a loved one caught in a natural disaster or going about daily life when a son or daughter is mowing away. Not all anxiety can be avoided.
However, anxiety and worry may so consume a person every day that it renders him or her incapable of functioning or concentrating on a task, perhaps even praying. This can be a clinical disorder in need of serious attention, and perhaps longer-term counseling and therapy. No one should presume to judge the quality of a person’s faith on account of a seeming inability to just cast one’s cares upon YHVH and go on with life in some carefree, trusting manner. It’s not always so simple.
Is there a form of anxiety that could be considered more of a spiritual issue of faith than a clinical one? Perhaps. If we insist on trying to deal with our anxieties completely on our own and never pray about them or entrust them to YHVH’s loving hands, then we may produce in ourselves a potentially long-term faith issue. Worse, if we conclude that YHVH does not even care about the things that worry us—to the point we don’t even bother to pray about them—we would need spiritual care and counseling to address our faith and core trust in YHVH’s loving care for us.
Clearly Yahushua does not want us to spend our lives fretting about every little detail of life, particularly if our lives have been so well provided for already. If there is food in the pantry and money in the bank and more clothes in the closet than we need, then nursing a constant anxiety about our finances or obsessively searching for ways to make even more money could result in a discontent that amounts to sin, or at the very least a spiritual issue that needs to be addressed (Matt 6:25). If we have evidence YHVH Yireh is caring for us, then running around in life in a constant panic is not fitting.
A Faith-Filled Response to Anxiety
A popular song from the late 1980s had the comically infectious refrain, “Don’t worry, be happy.” If only it were that easy! But for us as believers dealing with anxiety due to the circumstances we face, we know that we can and must pray about such worries. We can and must try to cast our anxieties on YHVH and ask for His Ruach Spirit to see us through dark nights of worry when sleep will not come. Our YHVH does care for us. It is not always easy to rest in this truth, but we can trust YHVH’s faithfulness above all other things.
With YHVH’s help, may we feel our anxieties dim even as our faith grows brighter.
Mattithyahu (Matthew) 6:25-34 TS2009
[25] “Because of this I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you shall eat or drink, or about your body, what you shall put on. Is not life more than the food and the body more than the clothing? [26] Look at the birds of the heaven, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into storehouses, yet your heavenly Father does feed them.10:43
Are you not worth more than they? [27] “And which of you by worrying is able to add one cubit to his life’s span? [28] So why do you worry about clothing? Note well the lilies of the field, how they grow. They neither toil nor spin, [29] and I say to you that even Shelomoh in all his esteem was not dressed like one of these. [30] “But if Elohim so clothes the grass of the field, which exists today, and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, how much more you, O you of little belief? [31] Do not worry then, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ [32] “For all these the nations seek for. And your heavenly Father knows that you need all these. [33] But seek first the reign of Elohim, and His righteousness, and all these shall be added to you. [34] “Do not, then, worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow shall have its own worries. Each day has enough evil of itself.
https://bible.com/bible/316/mat.6.25-34.TS2009
Practical methods that might help:
- What is the 3 3 3 rule for panic attacks?
The 3 3 3 rule is a grounding technique designed to help anchor you back into the present during overwhelming moments. Here’s how it works:
- Look around and name three things you see.
- Listen carefully and identify three sounds you hear.
- Move three parts of your body. This can be as simple as wiggling your fingers, tapping your foot, or nodding your head.
This helps divert your attention from the panic attack and reconnect you with the world around you.
- What is the 5 5 5 rule for panic attacks?
The 5 5 5 rule, like the 3 3 3 rule, is another grounding exercise but with a slightly extended approach. When panic or anxiety strikes:
- Breathe in deeply for 5 seconds, hold for 5 seconds, and breathe out for 5 seconds. This slows down your rapid breathing and helps you regain control.
- Then, identify five things you can see, five sounds you can hear, and five things you can touch around you.
This aims to slow down your breathing, thus calming your nervous system.
- How can I calm my panic attacks ASAP?
There isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution, but there are steps to help you find relief:
- Focus on breathing: Try deep, diaphragmatic breathing or the box breathing technique to anchor yourself during a panic attack.
- Ground yourself: Techniques like the 3 3 3 or 5 5 5 rules can divert your attention from panic and root you back in the present.
- Use positive affirmations: Remind yourself, “This is temporary,” or “I’ve gotten through this before, and I can do it again.”
- Find a quiet space: Sometimes, reducing external stimuli can help you focus on calming your mind.
- Prayer and Stilltation : listen to (safe) guided prayer/meditation/music designed explicitly for moments of intense anxiety or panic, helping to guide your mind back to tranquility.
- Talk to a loved one/friend that brings sunshine into your life. Get counseling help: If you need to, find the best approach for you.
