Why am I always so angry and overwhelmed?!
How anxiety can overwhelm our coping skills and be disguised as anger
Anxiety can really mess with our ability to regulate emotions, especially when it comes to women's issues. We all know that anxiety can be a real pain, but understanding its impact on our emotional well-being is crucial. Let’s explore it further:
First off, anxiety has a knack for cranking up our emotional reactivity. Picture this: you're juggling work, school, social life, family responsibilities, self-care tasks, dealing with body image struggles etc etc etc etc. Anxiety steps in and turns the dial up to eleven, making your anger, frustration, or fear hit the roof. Suddenly, regulating and managing these intense emotions becomes a real challenge.
Identifying and labeling your emotions can also become a bit of a blur thanks to the whirlwind that anxiety produces in our brain. It's like trying to sort through a messy closet with no labels. Anxiety can throw a wrench into the works, making it hard to untangle these emotions and regulate them effectively.
Our cognitive functioning takes a hit too. Anxiety messes with our ability to think clearly and make rational judgments, even in simple situations. It's like trying to navigate a maze with foggy glasses – making us feel like we can’t keep up with things anymore
Ah, the never-ending loop of rumination and overthinking. Anxiety loves to keep us stuck in that loop, a breeding ground for anxious thoughts. It's tough to shift our focus and regulate our emotions when we're constantly tangled up in negative thinking.
Now, here's the kicker: anxiety often pushes us toward avoidance and safety behaviors. We try to protect ourselves from discomfort and distress by steering clear or seeking safety. But here's the catch – avoiding these issues prevents us from addressing and processing our emotions in a healthy way. It's like putting a band-aid on a broken bone. Sure, it might provide temporary relief, but it won't fix the underlying problem.
When anxiety takes the wheel, it can mess with our self-compassion and empowerment too. Suddenly, we're hit with self-doubt, self-criticism, and a sense of powerlessness. These roadblocks hinder our emotional regulation and make it harder to navigate women's issues effectively. But trust me, sister, you are strong, and you deserve to embrace your own power.
Here are some specific ways in which anxiety can affect a woman's ability to regulate her emotions:
1. Heightened Emotional Reactivity:
Anxiety often intensifies emotional responses, causing them to be more overwhelming and intense. Women may find themselves experiencing heightened levels of fear, worry, irritability, or sadness in response to relatively minor triggers. This increased emotional reactivity can make it difficult for women to regulate and modulate their emotions appropriately. If you’re already at a Level 8 on your Overwhelm Scale, then any small inconvenience is going to push you to a Level 10. For those around us who can’t see how overwhelmed we already were, it looks like an overreaction.
2. Difficulty Identifying Emotions:
Anxiety can cloud your ability to accurately identify and label your emotions. It may be challenging to differentiate between different emotions or recognize the underlying causes and triggers for her emotional states. This lack of clarity can impede effective emotional regulation strategies - making you feel (and look) like you’re freaking out for no reason.
3. Impaired Cognitive Functioning:
Anxiety can impair cognitive functioning in women, making it harder to think clearly and make rational judgments. This cognitive fog can hinder your ability to assess and understand your emotions, leading to difficulties in implementing effective regulation strategies.
4. Rumination and Overthinking:
Anxiety often leads women to engage in repetitive, intrusive thoughts and excessive worrying. This rumination and overthinking can keep your mind preoccupied with negative or distressing thoughts, making it difficult to shift your focus away from these thoughts and regulate your emotions effectively.
5. Avoidance and Safety Behaviors:
Anxiety can drive women to engage in avoidance behaviors or safety-seeking strategies to manage their distress. While these behaviors may provide temporary relief, they can interfere with healthy emotional regulation. Avoidance prevents you from confronting and processing emotions, leading to long-term difficulties in regulating them. Overeating, undereating, withdrawal, compulsive shopping, and self-harm - all of these behaviors serve as avoidance strategies for our anxiety.
6. Interference with Relaxation and Self-Soothing:
Anxiety can make it challenging for you to relax and engage in activities that promote self-soothing. It can be difficult to find relief or engage in behaviors that typically help regulate emotions, such as practicing mindfulness, engaging in hobbies, or seeking social support.
7. Physical Symptoms:
Are you always tired? Always have a headache or upset stomach? Anxiety often manifests with physical symptoms like increased heart rate, muscle tension, and restlessness. These physical sensations can further intensify emotional experiences and make it more challenging for women to regulate their emotions effectively.
Remember, we're all unique, and anxiety affects us differently. Seeking support from a therapist who understands women's issues can be a game-changer. They can help us develop strategies to manage anxiety and enhance our emotional regulation skills specifically when it comes to these concerns.
So, my friend, take a deep breath. You're not alone in this journey. With a little understanding and some self-care, we can navigate the twists and turns of anxiety and reclaim control over our emotions.
All of our Keeping Peace therapists have extensive training and experience supporting people struggling with anxiety. Check out their bios and booking links here!
