ABSTRACT

Anxiety is the experience of having a feeling of unease, worry, or fear. It can be mild or severe. It is often caused by a situation of stress, either at home or at work, or—most likely—a combination or a build-up of such situations. Anxiety is a feeling, based on a perception of danger that prepares one physically to deal with the danger through the stimulation action of adrenalin. The usually recommended treatment for anxiety is a stepped-care approach: a combination of self-help techniques followed by a psychological treatment like counselling, and possibly later some medication. Any exercise that promotes activity, endurance, flexibility, or general strengthening is a natural anti-depressant, and thus also helps with stress and anxiety. One of the most powerful ways to affect one's emotional state and the involuntary nervous system that is connected to anxiety is through greater control of their breathing.