As we can read on Beyond Blue website: https://www.beyondblue.org.au/the-facts/anxiety
“Anxiety is more than just feeling stressed or worried. While stress and anxious feelings are a common response to a situation where we feel under pressure, they usually pass once the stressful situation has passed, or ‘stressor’ is removed.
Everyone feels anxious from time to time. When anxious feelings don’t go away, happen without any particular reason or make it hard to cope with daily life it may be the sign of an anxiety condition. “
In other words, anxiety, like any other emotion, exists for a reason. It alerts as, helps as prepare for the upcoming threat. However, like any other ‘excess’ in our life, when we cannot control it, that’s when it becomes problematic. When constant worry affects our sleeping and day to day functioning, then it might be time seek some help.
People often don’t realise that they are already developing coping strategies to help them manage anxiety. While a frequent response could be avoidance, what I often see is perfectionism.
Some people are not willing to see it as a coping strategy, as there are a lot of benefits of perfectionism. And again, you want to see what works for you. What are the pros and cons of being perfect? Check, if it is something you want to change.
What I often find in my practice is that a lot of times perfectionism creates a vicious cycle and fuels anxiety. “I need to be perfect to be in control” but when the expectations are too high (unrealistic) then I fail and when I fail I feel even worse. Sounds familiar?
Hey, but there is good news! It’s something that you can learn to manage. Start by deciding if perfectionism is an issue for you. Then start adding other useful tools like practising self compassion or setting realistic goals.
And if that doesn’t help, seek help 🙂
See below what Brene Brown writes about perfectionism.
