What Causes Anxiety?

So many women ask me this question.

When you’re in the midst of feeling anxiety it can seem like it’s coming out of left field!

That’s how it was for me, life was fine, we were rolling along, in school, raising two kids, I got to stay at home and be a mom, we didn’t have much money, but life was simple and we had everything we needed…so why was I wigging out!?!

What causes anxiety, is a bit of a loaded question.

There are a TON of things that can cause anxiety. A LOT of it has to do with what is going on in your head, meaning the thoughts you are thinking.

However there’s a lot of external things that can influence anxiety as well:

Finanaces

Parenting (*cough* motherhood!)

Stressful Lifestyle

Stress in ANY area of your life, family, relationships, health, work, school…

Traumatic Experience

Nutrient Deficiencies

Caffeine

Medication Side Effects

Sleep Deprivation (*cough* motherhood!)

Blood Sugar Imbalance

Hormone Imbalance (again…motherhood!)

Social Situations

Fears

and there’s probably a huge list of more causes!

Mel Robbins describes anxiety as “The habit of worrying spun out of control.”

I think this is a pretty accurate description because you can worry about any of the things listed above can’t you?

You have the power to choose how you’re going to respond to the family member or the stressful situation at work.

You even have the power to choose how you respond to one of your kids that doesn’t listen when you ask them 5 times to hang up their coat and put their shoes away…this has never happened to me by the way 😉

If we start worrying about whatever it is that’s going wrong, we will definitely make any situation WORSE!

So the answer to what causes anxiety? A lot of things!

What do we do about it? A lot of things!

First identify what could be the possible triggers of your anxiety.

START JOURNALING!!!

This will help you recognize what is causing you stress. Stress spun out of control turns into anxiety.

SOME stress is normal! Remember that. You’re not weird because you’re stressed! You are definitely not alone in this game of motherhood. We’re all doing our best, and the fact that you’re here learning how to gain control over your anxious feelings is awesome.

Once you recognize what is causing the anxiety then you can take steps to improve it.

Feeling anxious is a signal that you need to take better care of your physical and mental well-being!

That’s it.

If you can’t for the life of you figure out what the heck is causing it then start with a few tangible tweaks like cutting out most sugar and white carbs, and focusing on whole foods.

Start by drinking a green smoothie every day.

Get your body moving for 20 minutes a day. Just 20 minutes of exercise is enough to decrease cortisol and boost happy mood chemicals, AND the effects last for days!

Put good things into your mind like positive podcasts and audio books. Listen to calming music! The more good you put in your mind the less room you have for worrisome thoughts!

Think of it as brain food.

If you search my blog for “anxiety” you’ll find a lot more suggestions on what you can do to get a grip on this annoying feeling!

Ask any questions you have in the comments below. I’m here for you!

I’d also encourage you to book a call with me to chat more about your anxiety. Sometimes just talking about it with someone who’s been there and come through the other side is so comforting! Book a call here.

Book A Call!

I’m rooting for you!

Hannah