Symptoms
What is one symptom of anxiety that impacts your body?
muscle tension, upset stomach, heart racing
Anxiety can impact how we learn at school
TRUE...why?
Name one positive coping skill you can do outside
Go for a walk, play a sport, hike, swim
a negative way to interact with others when we feel anxious
yelling, screaming, ignoring
The first stage of the cycle
nausea
Anxiety is something that stays with us forever
FALSE...why?
Name one positive coping skill you can do inside
Talk to family, read, watch a show/movie, play a game, call a friend
hiding in our room for the entire day because we are too anxious to see others
isolating
Our most common reaction when we feel anxious about something and we do not want to think about it
avoidance
a painful sensation in any part of my head
headache
Anxiety can be treated only with medication
FALSE...what else can help?
You inhale for a period of time and exhale for a period of time
deep breathing
Telling ourselves that we will never get past our worries and that we are a loser for feeling anxious
negative self talk
A period of time where we feel GREAT because we pushed our anxiety aside for the day
short term relief from anxiety...why is this bad?
feeling lightheaded, faint, or as if the world is spinning
dizziness
Anxiety is different from worry
TRUE...why?
Find a spot, make it cozy and comfortable, add calming tools or distractions to the spot, discuss how and when to use it
creating a calm down spot
Telling others that they are the reason we are anxious even if they are not
Blaming
How can we make the anxiety cycle stop?
By reframing our thoughts, using coping skills, challenging ourselves to sit with anxiety, and not letting ourselves avoid it anymore
pain in my abdomen that makes it difficult to concentrate
stomach ache
Talking about my anxiety will make it worse
FALSE...why?
Speaking to ourselves in a way that challenges our anxious thoughts
cognitive restructuring or reframing
Staying home from fun events or activities because we are too anxious about what will happen
avoidance
Will anxiety feel worse if we avoid it over and over and over? Can we avoid it forever?
Avoiding anxiety does make it worse! If we ignore the problems to get short term relief, we aren't challenging ourselves to overcome the anxiety. We cannot avoid anxiety forever and will eventually have to use positive coping skills to manage it.