When we live with chronic anxiety, moments of calmness and peace can also be triggering. The fact that we suddenly feel the absence of anxious thoughts, can further trigger anxiety for us. Therapist Carrie Howard explained why calmness and peace can also trigger anxiety in us. Here’s why this happens.
When we constantly live in a state of hypervigilance, calmness and peace can make us feel uncomfortable. We may feel that we have been caught off guard.
Due to past experiences and trauma, we start believing that calmness never last, and is usually followed by chaos. Hence, we start to feel triggered thinking that something bad is going to happen.
When we are used to chronic stress and anxiety, calmness and peace can feel unfamiliar. This further threatens the brain and makes us anxious.
When we deeply identify with anxiety, we face identity crisis when we are at peace. This further makes us feel that we are losing out a part of ourselves – this feeling can be very unsettling.
The best way to combat this is by having some calm mantra and affirmations to get us through. We should also practice mindfulness and refrain from creating chaos to be anxious about.
