Coping with anxiety is a difficult and frustrating problem: some rock solid tips to getting back on track

Living in today's hectic world is enough to produce anxiety in the most mellow of souls. People who tend to be nervous and the worrying sort are far more vulnerable to anxiety. Even when things are going just fine, we can always find a situation that invites stress and worry. Some of us are just prone to anxious feelings. If you're that type, you know that coping with anxiety is no fun at all.

Anxiety is a natural product of the flight or fight syndrome. When you feel there is some threat or imminent danger, your body responds with a rush of adrenalin to meet the challenge.

However, with all the real worries each of us has to deal with every day, it's easy to get caught up in a vicious circle of anxiety. While it's unfortunate that we must endure problems our grandparents didn't experience on an hourly or daily basis, coping with anxiety is a reality. In today's world, it's necessary to come up with solutions that free us from the chronic anxiety syndrome. Here we've got some answers.

Your first step is to determine what sort of events and problems trigger your anxiety. Keep a little notebook in which to jot down notes of what types of situations get your adrenalin racing. Remember that nothing is too silly! Anxiety can be triggered by something as simple as too much coffee. That caffeine is a stimulant and may set your blood racing, right along with your mind. Those nagging thoughts, such as making ends meet next week, or just having too much on your plate, get right in your face. You soon find yourself unable to concentrate on the task at hand. Anxiety sets in and can easily get out of control. If you tend to procrastinate, putting things off to the last minute, you might panic, wondering how you're going to squeeze in that must-do task into your schedule today. Finding out what your triggers are is the first step to coping with anxiety effectively.

You'll soon enough see a pattern in the life events that bring on anxiety symptoms. Once you've determined the main sources of your anxiety, you can start eliminating such situations. Drink less coffee, or opt for decaf. Get your budget in good order. If you anticipate a problem in meeting financial obligations, make alternate arrangements ahead of that due date. If that's not possible, accept that you can only do your best. If you're the perennial procrastinator, recognize the problem and retrain yourself.

Sometimes, dealing with anxiety is not quite so simple. If you experienced traumatic events during your childhood, the effects can linger on into adulthood, resulting in chronic anxiety. In this case, you might want to get some professional counseling to help you discover effective ways of coping with anxiety on a psychological level. Working through anxiety produced by past events can allow you to eventually put those events behind you. During this process, your doctor may prescribe medications to control anxiety attacks.

There are also many practical steps you can take each day in coping with anxiety on an ongoing basis. For severe anxiety attacks, try breathing into a paper bag, slowly and evenly, inhaling and exhaling. This prevents hyperventilating, a main culprit in escalating anxiety attacks. Your notebook is useful here too. When you start feeling anxious, stop what you're doing and go for a brief, but brisk walk. Put your immediate worries out of your mind and focus on your surroundings, taking deep breaths. Stretching exercises can relieve muscle tension and anxiety. No matter how tight your schedule may be, make time for yourself to truly relax every day. Vow to set aside your worries during this period!

Coping with anxiety is difficult, but doable. It's a matter of identifying, refocusing and changing ingrained habits that trigger your anxiety.