How to Manage Anxiety in 4 Simple ways

After months of fear, isolation, soaring unemployment and uncertainty, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that the Census Bureau estimates one-third of Americans are anxious about the future.

Stress and uncertainty produce anxiety. COVID-19 has produced not only a health epidemic, but also an anxiety epidemic:

• Once we thought we were invincible; now we feel fatigue as we ponder our own future
• Once we sprang out of bed because we had things that needed to be done; now we crawl to our home office with a sense of resignation and indifference
• Once we planned vacations and conferences; now the most exciting part of our day is streaming video

Anxiety is fed and watered by the sustained presence of fear. Fear is a strong negative emotion meant to keep us safe when our brain senses danger. Not everything new and different is a threat to our safety, however. If we’re mentally tough, we can control our emotions and give our thinking brain enough time to assess our situation.