Breaking Down Worry, Anxiety, and Fear
“You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You must do the thing you think you cannot do.” - Eleanor Roosevelt
Not sure about you, but this edited 30 Rock meme feels about right to me. In past years, January has been a month of recentering and recommitting to routines after the holidays.
However, this January has been filled with uncertainty, grief, and destruction for many. As the dust settles (or should I say ash), the work is far from over. As LA unites in rebuilding, we are reminded of how much community means to us.
Our emotions play a key role in how we perceive events. Some of the more likely emotions in climate disasters will include worry, anxiety, and fear.
These emotions frequently get intertwined and used interchangeably. Understandably so, as they often share similar thought patterns and sensations. They also share a negative connotation as “bad” emotions. Though, I hope understanding their function can reframe how these are perceived.
Let’s take a look at the key differences. Below, I have provided the American Psychological Association (2018) definitions and discuss what the research says.
Worry
“A state of mental distress or agitation due to concern about an impending or anticipated event, threat, or danger.” (2018)
Worry is primarily a cognitive process and experienced as ruminations (compared to the physiological and somatic responses in anxiety and fear). This is our brain’s attempt to problem solve, gather information, and define a threat (Davey et al., 1992). Worry can be adaptive and healthy when the problem is potentially controllable.
When the stressor at hand is outside our circle of control, the monitoring and ruminating of worry merely confirms the threat in absence of solutions. This can perpetuate worrying and lead to pathological worrying, vacillation, or anxiety.
Anxiety
“An emotion characterized by apprehension and somatic symptoms of tension in which an individual anticipates impending danger, catastrophe, or misfortune.” (2018)
Anxiety is all about anticipation. Sometimes this can be perceived as unnecessary, but our brain is connecting something in our environment back to a time where fear was appropriate and warranted. This can be experienced as hyperarousal and hypervigilance.
It’s as if our brain is trying to solve a hypothetical situation. Much of this energy will be consumed by trying to think of what could go wrong or what we can do if something does go wrong. This constant rehearsal can inhibit problem solving abilities and contribute to a perceived lack of personal control (Davey et al., 1992). This arousal can persist even after the stressor has been removed.
Fear
“A basic, intense emotion aroused by the detection of imminent threat, involving an immediate alarm reaction that mobilizes the organism by triggering a set of physiological changes.” (2018)
Fear is a biologically hardwired response to keep us safe. A perceived threat in our environment kicks off a sympathetic response in our nervous system (aka flight or fight response). Intense energy will rush the mind and body in an effort to get us back to safety. This surge of energy is used to avoid the threat and displayed by avoidance and escape behaviors (Sylvers et al., 2011). As we regain safety and the stressor is resolved, this energy quickly dissipates.
I hope you see how integral worry, anxiety, and fear are in our survival and the unique role they play in keeping us safe. As many emotions do, I imagine they will fluctuate in frequency, intensity, and duration in the aftermath of these fires. Be patient, gentle, and compassionate with yourself and your neighbors as we navigate this unprecedented time together. If you have any questions, please feel encouraged to reach out christina@christinakingfamilytherapy.com.
Yours In Service,
Christina King, LMFT 145704
Sources:
2018. APA Dictionary of Psychology. American Psychological Association
Davey, G. C., Hampton, J., Farrell, J., & Davidson, S. (1992). Some characteristics of worrying: Evidence for worrying and anxiety as separate constructs. Personality and Individual Differences, 13(2), 133-147.
Sylvers, P., Lilienfeld, S. O., & LaPrairie, J. L. (2011). Differences between trait fear and trait anxiety: Implications for psychopathology. Clinical psychology review, 31(1), 122-137.