We underestimate the power of body and mind to heal themselves. No less true of anxiety disorder as anything else.
Our nervous system can only take so much stress, worry, overwork, grief, disappointment, you know, the usual suspects. Then our nerves become hyper sensitive and all those symptoms that blight our lives make themselves known.
But almost immediately a recovery process kicks in: given time, peace and quiet our mind will heal itself and our shattered nerves. All too often this process is undermined by our own clumsy efforts to help ourselves.
We switch into fighting mode, "I must beat this thing", adding further stress and strain to a nervous system crying out for peace. We start to imagine the worst case scenario and frighten ourselves half to death: soon we're pumping out more stress and fear hormones that only serve to further the hyper sensitivity of our nerves. We refuse to believe the diagnosis of doctors who say it's all anxiety and waste time treating ourselves for illnesses we don't have - causing ourselves more trauma in the process.
So much for the peace and quiet our nerves crave for so they can calmly repair themselves.
The best thing we can do to recover is to do nothing. Accept the symptoms calmly and without fear and leave recovery to your mind's own healing force. Engage in what Claire Weekes called Masterly Inactivity*. Here's how she described it: "Masterly inactivity means to give up the struggle, to stop tensely holding on to yourself, trying to control your fear, trying 'to do something about it' while subjecting yourself to constant self-analysis. It means to cease trying to navigate your way out of breakdown by meeting each obstacle as if it were a challenge that must be met before recovery is possible."
There you have it from the Doctor who directly and indirectly has helped more people find recovery than any other therapist.
The natural human response to any problem is to fight it tooth and nail. Where anxiety disorder is concerned it's best to leave recovery to your mind and body and avoid getting in the way.
*Dr. Claire Weekes, M.B.E., M.B., DSc., F.R.A.C.P. 'Self help for your nerves - Learn to relax and enjoy life again by overcoming stress and fear' 1995 edition.
