The 5 most common myths about anxiety

Several erroneous beliefs circulating about this very common form of discomfort.

Anxiety is certainly one of the most well-known reasons for psychological discomfort.. In modern societies, due to the pace of work and high load of obligations that people, especially city dwellers, tend to have, more and more disorders related to poor management of stress and anxiety are diagnosed. Traffic, crowds, pollution, pressure at work or family problems are some of the causes.

However, some experts warn of the erroneous beliefs erroneous beliefs that exist about anxiety, the myths about this disorder and the. For a long time, some ideas have been taken for granted that, to day of today, have been categorically refuted by the diverse studies on the matter.

What is anxiety?

Anxiety is a mental state or situation that causes us an intense stress, an insecurity above the usual, and that can become chronic and that can become chronic if we do not take the necessary measures to combat it. It is a totally involuntary reaction that the body generates in the face of stimuli, both external and internal, which are perceived by people as a threat.

Generally, this state puts us in a state of alert until the problem is solved.It activates the mental defense mechanisms and this leads to situations of a very worrying, negative feeling. Obsessive thoughts, discomfort in professional and personal life are the causes of anxiety. And insomnia is one of the most common symptoms among individuals suffering from affliction, a fact that also conditions our physical integrity (going to work tired, low defenses).

Another element to take into account is that anxiety, in a very high number of cases, is generated by a feeling based on a worry without a real, imagined basis. a worry with no real basis, imagined. That is, sometimes people imagine or project a negative situation that does not have to happen, as well as giving excessive importance to a problem of minor consideration.

5 myths of anxiety

Nowadays we have easily accessible tools to determine what happens to us if we find ourselves in an abnormal situation that causes us anxiety. However, this progress has not been reflected in the degree of knowledge that people have at a popular level about this psychological phenomenon. In the following lines we will see the most recurrent points at the time of thinking of the incorrect way in the anxiety.

1. Anxiety is not so normal

We always downplay the importance of moments of stress and worry. "You'll get over it, read for a while, go out and play sports". These are the most frequent pieces of advice we give each other. A serious mistake, we must not fall into the normalization of this problem.. In the United States alone, almost 20% of the population suffers from anxiety, and this has a clear impact on the health system.

2. It does not represent a serious problem

At Columbia University, USA, professors of psychiatry and specialists in human behavior, advise not to underestimate the importance of the phenomenon, as it it can lead to disorders. Anxiety does not travel alone, and it can turn into health disorders such as addiction to harmful substances or a long-lasting state of depression.

3. Anxious individuals are weak and fearful.

Anxiety disorder is usually correlated with the feeling of fear. This is a serious mistake, according to specialists.

It is true that many of the psychic pictures reveal a certain degree of fear certain degree of fear that provokes anxietyBut it is not a condition that must be present in an essential way, nor linked only to low self-esteem. Also the human beings of strong mentality and personality suffer anxiety.

4. Time heals everything

The investigators of the University of Columbia explain advice to follow when we are presented with a situation of a friend or relative that presents symptoms of anxiety; as curious as it may seem, people resort a lot to temporality to cure this type of disorders, but that does not work. What we have to do in these cases is show empathy, understanding. It is very reassuring to the patients in the consultation.

5. A trauma as a cause of anxiety

Certainly one falls in the incorrect diagnosis of the people with anxiety when asserting that this one comes from a trauma or a past pity, as well as a bad premature experience. There are obvious cases of this, such as children who grow up in a hostile environment and as adults manifest what they could not fight. But the reality is that very often, this problem is based on genetic predispositions. is based on genetic predispositions and on anxiogenic environments in which what malfunctions does so over long periods of time, not in one-off events.