Understanding Anxiety

How It Functions

Anxiety is something we all feel—it’s a natural part of being human. It’s that little voice that tells us to look both ways before crossing the street, or think twice before eating that lukewarm dish at the potluck. In small amounts, anxiety is protective. It keeps us alert, careful, and tuned in.

But sometimes, that helpful voice turns into a loudspeaker. It starts sending warning signals even when there’s no real danger. Suddenly, things that used to feel manageable—like driving, making a phone call, or going to the grocery store—start to feel overwhelming or even impossible.

That’s when anxiety stops being helpful, and starts getting in the way.

Anxiety’s Tricks

When anxiety shows up often, our natural response is to try to get away from it. That makes perfect sense—who wants to feel panicked, frozen, or constantly on edge? This usually leads to unhelpful coping strategies like avoidance. You might skip the social event, putting off the work task, or steering clear of places that feel “unsafe.” In the short term, avoidance works—you feel relief. But over time, avoidance shrinks your world. You might start organizing your life around what anxiety won’t let you do.

Reassurance-Seeking is another unhelpful coping strategy. This looks like asking others, “Are you sure it’s going to be okay?” or googling symptoms or scenarios again and again. Reassurance feels soothing… for a moment. But it actually strengthens the anxiety cycle, because your brain never gets the chance to learn that it can handle uncertainty.

Another very common maladaptive tool are use of Safety Behaviors. Maybe you only go places with a “safe” person. Or you always carry a water bottle “just in case.” These life hacks can seem helpful, and sometimes they are—but they can also reinforce the idea that you can’t cope without them.

Anxiety is sneaky. It convinces you to play it safe, but safety starts to look a lot like limitation. Over time, anxiety can quietly take over the steering wheel of your life. In our practice, we treat Anxiety Disorders and Phobias with evidence based treatments such as Exposure Therapies, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy and SPACE (Supportive Parenting for Anxious Childhood Emotions).