Notice that you have the ability to label and describe things in real time. For example, if you see a movie you really like, you may say, “It was amazing” or “That was great.” If you watch something you dislike, you may label the movie as “bad” or something you wouldn’t watch again.

Recognizing that you have this ability to label, describe, and draw your own conclusions, there are certain things you may evaluate and think you should be anxious about. This becomes more apparent when remembering that anxiety is often seen or used as a signal for danger. There are times when you knowingly or unknowingly evaluate something as dangerous or something you should be anxious about — for one or more reasons. As a result, the body is designed to honor that evaluation and trigger physical anxiety whenever that thing(s) enters your conscious awareness.

Some psychology researchers hold the view that anxiety/fear is an evolutionary tool humans use for life-or-death reasons (1). That said, you have probably recognized that yo can be anxious about non-life-threatening situations and get anxious about imagined events. This shows that anxiety can be used for non-life-threatening purposes. Until proven otherwise, this also suggests that anxiety is just that, a tool given to humans by our creator that we can apply as we see fit.

You likely used anxiety in your past as a way to take care of ourselves. We likely didn’t know of alternative ways to respond to your environments and may still use anxiety as a way to take care of ourselves today.

Note: The cause of anxiety is backed by the cause of negative emotions described here.

What’s the solution?

Step one, which you’ve done by reading this, is obtaining the awareness that we can unconsciously/unknowingly use anxiety. The next step is to decide that you no longer want to use anxiety as a way to protect yourself. Instead of viewing things you’d like to avoid, dislike, think are unacceptable, etc, as reasons to be anxious, you can honor the fact that you really dislike those things. Instead of viewing things you think are extremely threatening in some way as reasons to be anxious you can be cautious about those things (to any degree of your liking). A key is to be comfortable with your desire to be cautious and actually honor it even when others label your cautiousness as fear, cowardice, etc. You may also have to start listening and acting on your true desires over the desires and wishes others think you should honor or pursue. As you do the work of eliminating your triggers, you’ll naturally reveal the different ways you unknowingly/unconsciously use anxiety. If you have specific questions, don’t hesitate to reach out in the comments or on any of the solutions on Clarity.

If you struggle with social anxiety, self-esteem, or low self-confidence, our partner Clarity, has one of a kind solutions to help you address the root cause beliefs behind your triggers and fears.

Graphics and summary of this insight are below

https://www.canva.com/design/DAGRBchoQqg/view

Resource: How to uncover the root causes of a trigger and reprogram your brain to eliminate it – see the anxiety solution

To validate the insight from the graphics for yourself, we recommend you consider the following questions:

A) Why is it that two people can witness the same event, and only one person gets anxious? You may have experienced or witnessed this phenomenon yourself.

B) Think of your most understood anxiety trigger. What is it about that object (your trigger) that makes you anxious? If you’re able to provide at least 1 answer then you’ve likely uncovered one of the reasons why you think you should be anxious about the trigger? In other words, the anxiety doesn’t just take over you but you experience it for a particular reason(s). Also consider: does everyone in the world have the same trigger as you?

C) Think of something that used to make you anxious in the past. What is it about that thing that made you anxious? Why aren’t you anxious about it now? We think you’ll find that the anxiety is gone because you no longer currently have or see reasons to be anxious about the old trigger today.

Citations

(1) Clark, D. A., & Beck, A. T. (2011). Cognitive Therapy of Anxiety Disorders: Science and Practice. New York: Guilford Press.

– Fear is an evolutionary tool (p.6)

(2) a more comprehensive list can be found here

About the author behind the research statement in the graphic:

Dr. Aaron T. Beck is globally recognized as the father of Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) and one of the world’s leading researchers in psychopathology. He is credited with shaping the field of mental health, and The American Psychologist has called him “one of the five most influential psychotherapists of all time.”

He found that his patients’ thoughts about a situation influenced their reactions — more so than the situation itself, a construct he termed the “cognitive model.” He helped his patients change the way they thought about situations…He also worked with them to address underlying maladaptive beliefs about themselves, others, the world, and the future. He called his new therapy “Cognitive Therapy,” which was later termed Cognitive Behavior Therapy, or CBT.

The results of the first major clinical trial comparing CBT to antidepressant medication were published in 1977, showing CBT to be the first talk therapy to be as effective as medication for the treatment of depression and twice as effective in preventing relapse. After a second clinical trial in the UK replicated the results, Cognitive Behavior Therapy received international recognition and interest. Since then, over 2,000 studies have found CBT to be an effective treatment for many mental health challenges and medical problems with psychological components.