Our Central Nervous System can be understood by thinking of it as having two distinct operating modes: Fight/Flight/Freeze and Rest/Digest. The Fight/Flight/Freeze response has served us well throughout history by quickly reallocating our body's resources to survival pathways when a threat is present. Our pupils dilate to take in more information from our surroundings, our heart rate accelerates and airways open to more effectively oxygenate, our muscles tighten for quick action, and we get a quick burst of energy to take necessary action. In addition, unnecessary pathways are largely shut down because the body's resources are needed elsewhere. For instance, it's not important to digest last night's dinner, do high-order mathematics, or get an erection when you're running away from a bear! Digestion, executive function, and reproduction are essentially shut down as other pathways are prioritized.
These physiological shifts are helpful in the event that a legitimate threat is present, but anxiety is an unwanted activation of the Fight/Flight/Freeze response when there is only a perceived threat. Perceived threats are not actual threats to our life or safety, but threats to our social standing, our relationship status, our financial security, sitting with the uncertainty of the unknown, or the possibility of losing something that is important to us. For many of us, these perceived threats are so pervasive that we feel some level of anxiety all the time. This can make for a fairly miserable existence and result in some potentially self-damaging behavior as we scramble to feel more comfortable in any given moment. Most of us have found that avoidance of some kind helps to alleviate the discomfort of anxiety for a short period of time, so we lean into the behaviors that provide relief. This could be a self-medicating behavior like using substances or food, or distracting behavior like social media, video games, porn, or television. The use of these avoidant behaviors tends to cause more discomfort long-term since we are perpetually borrowing from tomorrow each time we seek that immediate relief. Think about the last time you bought something you absolutely didn't need for a quick burst of pleasure. Inevitably, the credit card bill comes and whatever we were avoiding when we bought that shiny new thing, remains unresolved.
Therapy can include the development of new coping skills; adaptive ones that can build a better tomorrow! Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) includes specific techniques of altering our thoughts and behaviors to decrease anxiety over time.
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