Unexpected Benefits of Anxiety
Anxiety may be taxing, irritating, and painful to live with. Anxiety problems can rob you of sleep, joy, and confidence. When it comes to understanding anxiety, though, there is a lot you can learn and benefit from. In fact, anxiety can work in your favor in various ways. Identifying your anxiety and investigating how you deal with it may lead you to some of your most significant strengths and valuable skills.
In this article, we compiled the 10 unexpected benefits of anxiety that will surprise you. Continue reading to find out how anxiety can actually be a good thing:
10 Unexpected Benefits of Anxiety
Living with an anxiety disorder can be extremely difficult, but there are numerous benefits as well. It's tempting to see mental health difficulties as a disadvantage. But for every negative, there must be a positive! While anxiety can sometimes be overwhelming, there are some surprising positives to living with an anxiety illness! Here are 10 unexpected benefits of anxiety.
#1. Empathy
Suffering indeed increases our capacity for empathy as people, and anxiety sufferers are no exception. You've probably grown more empathic as a result of your own struggles with unpleasant anxiety feelings. As a result, you might be more understanding, caring, and accepting of close friends, family members, and other individuals who are going through difficult times. More sympathetic people make the world a better place.
#2. Anxiety makes you smarter
A person who tends to be anxious may also naturally be highly naturally intelligent may also have a tendency toward anxiety. Anxious people can be excellent researchers, critical thinkers, and analysts. In addition to having a natural tendency toward higher-level cognitive processing, anxiety can make you wiser as you learn more about it. Developing a deeper awareness of your anxiety can help in your learning to deliberately evaluate your options and handle situations with composure. That ability raises your emotional intelligence.
#3. Challenges aren't intimidating
People who experience anxiety tend to overthink everything, so they are naturally equipped to handle any challenge that comes their way. They frequently experience their lowest points and have come through on the other side. Therefore they are confident they can overcome the upcoming difficulty. They always assure us everything will be OK, even on bad days. They have survived worse days before and have learned to cope with them. Challenges are not scary – we can do this!
#4. Resilience
When we take on a challenge and push ourselves to the limit, the stress and worry that comes with that can actually fortify us so that we can handle new challenges better. An inoculating effect from moderate stress and anxiety “may lead to higher than average resilience,” according to research. When you start a new job or take on a more difficult responsibility at work, worry may help you become more resilient.
#5. Organizational and multitasking skills
Anxiety can make humans naturally very organized and very good at multitasking. As they were used to having a lot on their mind, dealing with complex situations easily came to them. If you struggle with anxiety, try to see how it might benefit you under pressure. Do you tend to overcome them, while others might be easily overwhelmed? Can you handle multiple tasks at once without dropping the ball?
#6. Provides the energy necessary for taking action
For many people, anxiety causes a perceived incapacity to act rather than overachievement. Do you ever feel paralyzed by anxiety and unable to move forward? The good news is that you can profit from this stress reaction. Thanks to the energy that drives nervous thoughts and behaviors, you have all you need to act and unstick yourself from a situation. If you don't do anything, the energy builds up inside you and goes in circles. Anxiety is stifled by a mind wanders or a body trembles or panics. The stress response can give you the energy to take action, which helps channel and release that pressure.
Training the body and mind to use that energy to take tiny acts over time, such as going outdoors for a walk or striking up a conversation, can be helpful, especially for someone who also has issues with depression and anxiety (rather than playing it out repeatedly in your mind).
#7. Cautiousness
Anxiety is made to keep us safe from harm and help us respond quickly to situations. The stress response known as “fight-or-flight” includes anxious feelings. In California, for instance, when the brisk Santa Ana winds begin to blow in the fall, anxiety may cause you to become vigilant and drive you to cut the vegetation around your home in case a brush fire breaks out. On the other side of the country, you might use sandbags to safeguard your property out of concern for floods caused by an impending hurricane.
Anxious people also tend to be more careful, which is advantageous. The U.K. A study found that adolescents who experienced anxiety had fewer accidents and unintentional deaths in their early adult years than those who did not. Anxiety in situations like this could help to keep you alive and safe!
#8. Good Leadership
Leaders must test various situations and be ready for any result. It turns out that anxious individuals thrive at this and are frequently well-prepared for a catastrophe before it even occurs. These are crucial traits for successful leaders. Anxious persons interpret threats differently and use parts of the brain associated with an action. In dangerous situations, anxious people move swiftly and are more tolerant of unpleasant emotions.
Anxious leaders inspire their staff to be more resourceful, productive, and creative if these traits are used wisely.
#9. Motivation
While excessive anxiety might immobilize you, some can spur you to action when facing difficulties. Worry highlights how crucial it is to take action to avoid bad results. For instance, stress and worry may inspire you to put forth an extra effort to successfully finish a task at work or school and prevent failure.
Anxiety can be quite beneficial when it comes to test-taking and competitiveness. According to research, students and athletes who felt some anxiety performed better on tests or when playing competitive sports.
#10. Directs you to find your deepest core values
Finding out what you genuinely value begins with recognizing what you fear. When we witness someone being bullied or hurt, we experience little anxiety. When someone says anything that doesn't appear honest, we become uneasy. This response doesn't necessarily imply that we are foreseeing the worst-case scenario; rather, it serves as an essential radar that lets us know what is good and wrong for us. Eliminating self-awareness and discernment would entirely eradicate anxiety.
Anxiety is something you live with daily, but you must learn to use it to your advantage when you can. However, not everyone who suffers from anxiety will be able to connect to the unexpected benefits you experience. So, we hope you will take a minute to consider whether you recognize any of these characteristics in yourself. How can you make the most of your anxiety? You'll be able to appreciate who you truly are on the inside once you recognize your mental health challenges aren't all negative. While moderate levels of anxiety can be beneficial in the ways stated above, excessive anxiety can lead to panic attacks, health problems, and destructive behavior. If your anxiety is out of control or if it's interfering with your daily life, it's time to seek professional help.
