ANXIETY A. What causes nervousness? B. How do you calm your nerves?

ANXIETY

Feeling nervous is a natural reaction to something that instills fear in us, perhaps a formal presentation, a business opportunity, or a promotional meeting you have arranged with your boss.

Simple, fear makes you nervous and this state of psychological excitement can prevent us from giving the best of ourselves.

A. What causes nervousness?

Nervousness is a mental and physical condition that is caused by your body's stress response system.

It's the same system that kicks in when you feel stressed or anxious, but nervousness tends to occur in response, to very specific events, like a special encounter or a military operation.

Basically, nervousness is caused by your body releasing stress hormones, for example, adrenaline, cortisol.

And the results of nervousness, panic, stress, and anxiety can all cause the following symptoms:

• « Butterflies » in the stomach. • Pains in the chest. • Sleep disorder. • Extra alertness or nervousness. • Faster, shallower breathing. • Feeling of weakness. • Headaches. • Inability to concentrate. • Inability to relax. • Increased irritability. • Increased heart rate. • Irregular heartbeats. • Loss of appetite. • Nausea and want to vomit. • The worry. • Sweat. • The tears. • Visit the toilet more frequently.

Also, after your period of nervousness, you may feel relieved or tired, because your body will have consumed much more energy than usual. Be sure to give yourself the opportunity to rest and refuel when you experience it.

B. How do you calm your nerves?

Although nervousness may seem beyond your control, there are many simple, easy, and effective tasks you can follow that will reduce the difficult aspects of nervousness and, in fact, improve your performance.

1. Try deep breathing: breathing exercises are one of the simplest and easiest activities you can do to reduce the symptoms of nervousness, such as slowing your heart rate, improving oxygen exchange, and thus reducing the effects of combativeness.

2. ChanneI your nervous energy into positivity: It may sound difficult, but there is a distinct link between feelings of motivation and eagerness, and fear and nervousness.

These two states are called eustress and distress, the two sides of the stress coin. You will experience similar reactions to both, such as an elevated heart rate.

So, if you can put the upcoming activity into perspective in a positive way, you may find that your « positive » nervous energy actually improves your performance.

If you find yourself in a particularly difficult situation, ask yourself, « What can I learn from this situation that will help me in the future? »

3. Explore the task that makes you nervous: if you have time, try to practice what makes you nervous.

Going through your presentation, speech, or meeting will demystify much of the process and identify areas where you can improve before proceeding.

4. Listen to music: especially tunes that remind you of positive times or cause happy feelings.

Music can have a distinct effect on calming the body and mind, and this technique can work even if you only have a few minutes to calm down.

5. Talk to someone you trust about how you feel: talking about mental health at work and in society may seem taboo, but it fosters a more open culture, where support can be given more freely. As the old saying goes, a problem shared is a problem halved.

6. Realize that it's okay to be vulnerable: feeling nervous can actually demonstrate a number of positive qualities that you may not have thought of.

Caring about your job role and wanting to do a good job can only help you understand.

7. Get some fresh air: getting away from the current environment that makes you nervous and taking a walk around the block can give you the opportunity to get your normal heart rate back, stabilize your stream of thoughts, and also give you a moment of peace.

8. Get there early: if you are planning to attend a meeting or interview and you are feeling nervous, try to be early to familiarize yourself with the premises.

Simply sitting down for a while will help you visualize the process before it happens. Plus, you can guarantee you'll arrive on time.

9. Drink a glass of water or even take an herbal tea break: combining something mundane and keeping your mouth from going dry are two brilliant ways to reduce nervousness.