Philosophers call it ‘our best teacher’, psychologists claim it’s ‘essential to the human condition’ and evolutionists credit it for our survival as a species, but anxiety has a really bad rep. Anyone who has experienced it knows just how deeply unpleasant and unsettling it can be — however, emerging data shows that there may be positive side-effects to anxiety. Since there seems to be no escaping this kind of unease at present, now might be the time to start embracing it.
Anxiety is typically defined as a reaction to or anticipation of a potential threat. This is “unlike fear, which is related to the existence of a real threat,” says clinical psychologist and researcher Bettina Moltrecht, who specialises in emotional regulation, explaining that we don’t have to physically see, hear or feel a threat itself to experience anxiety.
Like all of our emotional responses, anxiety has evolutionary roots. As existential psychologist Rollo May notes, “Our very survival is the result of steps taken long ago to confront anxiety,” and while the source of anxiety has changed, the experience remains relatively the same. While we may no longer have to anticipate lions chasing after us, there are many legitimate reasons to feel anxious about the trials and tribulations of modern life.
“We worry about not getting a promotion, another person trying to flirt with our partner, someone bullying our children,” explains Courtney Carlsson, coach and founder of emotional identity app Paradym. Our cultural context can have a huge impact on our experience and, as May argues, it plays a fundamental role in the conditioning of an individual’s anxiety.
A threat to our basic needs
Anxiety is the most common of all mental disorders, but the uncertainty of the Covid-19 pandemic has exacerbated our experience of it, with rates of anxiety globally skyrocketing since March. “We are experiencing a threat to our basic needs, like the threat of not being able to pay rent or unemployment, and the threat to our physical health,” says Carlsson.
While many would think this increase would be a cause for concern, many experts argue otherwise. Akin to its evolutionary roots, research shows that anxiety can protect us from future harm, with the physiological experience acting as an important warning sign of potential threats, motivating us to protect ourselves and escape danger. It can also help push us to pursue or achieve goals.