Coaching practices for How to Cope with Bad Anxiety
Describe almost anything you are working through and IX Coach finds the practices whose real-world fit is closest. For How to Cope with Bad Anxiety, these are the strongest matches in the current practice library.
Does this sound like the set of challenges you might be facing?
- Maybe the bad thing really could happen
- I walk into hard situations white-knuckling to make sure nothing bad happens, so the second I feel any anxiety I read it as proof of danger and grab for a crutch
- Even once the worst of it passes, I can’t get back into the room
- I spend my days bracing for the next wave of it, scanning my body, dreading the moment it shows up
- The voice in my head when I’m anxious is brutal
Practices that may help
- Ask: could you cope even if the worst happened?
Catastrophizing also underestimates your coping capacity — examine that half of the equation.
Decatastrophizing, Made Practical - Reframe from "preventing catastrophe" to "coping with discomfort"
Shift the goal of entering feared situations from preventing disaster to practicing tolerance.
Safety Behavior Fading, Made Practical - Engage with the present moment
Once the edge comes off, redirect attention fully into an activity or your surroundings.
The DARE Response to Anxiety, Made Practical - Run toward the feeling
Actively invite more of the anxiety rather than waiting nervously for it to pass.
The DARE Response to Anxiety, Made Practical - Balanced, compassionate self-talk
Talk to yourself as you would to a friend — accurate and kind, not harsh or falsely cheery.
The Anxiety Toolkit, Made Practical - Rehearse the response before you need it
Learn and practice the four steps in low-stakes moments so they are available under pressure.
The DARE Response to Anxiety, Made Practical - Drop the safety behaviors
Let go of the small avoidances and crutches you use to feel "safe" from anxiety.
The DARE Response to Anxiety, Made Practical - Build an avoidance hierarchy and work through it systematically
List all the situations you avoid because of anxiety, from least to most frightening, then work up the list.
Safety Behavior Fading, Made Practical - Map best case, worst case, and most likely case
Write out all three scenarios to reanchor your thinking in the probable, not just the feared.
Decatastrophizing, Made Practical - Allow the sensations without resisting
Let the physical feelings of anxiety be present instead of bracing against them.
The DARE Response to Anxiety, Made Practical
Related concerns
- How To Deal With Bad Anxiety
Talk to yourself as you would to a friend — accurate and kind, not harsh or falsely cheery.
Balanced, compassionate self-talk
- How To Handle Bad Anxiety
Talk to yourself as you would to a friend — accurate and kind, not harsh or falsely cheery.
- How Do I Deal With My Anxiety
Actively invite more of the anxiety rather than waiting nervously for it to pass.
Run toward the feeling
- How Do I Deal With My Anxiety Disorder
Once the edge comes off, redirect attention fully into an activity or your surroundings.
Engage with the present moment
- How To Cope With Anxiety
Actively invite more of the anxiety rather than waiting nervously for it to pass.
- How To Cope With Severe Anxiety
Learn and practice the four steps in low-stakes moments so they are available under pressure.
Rehearse the response before you need it
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