How much nervousness regarding a situation is considered normal?

Hi Aurora,

Thank you for reaching out and finding us at BetterHelp.

Firstly I would like to clarify and reassure you, you are not a weirdo!

You describe in times of anticipating something, that there is an anxiety you feel. This is very normal and something that most people will experience. As you describe, when something is important to you, 'valuable' as you say, there will be a sense of needing it to all go well because it matters to you!

Anxiety is the mind and body's reaction to unfamiliar situations. You may feel a sense of uneasiness, distress or dread in times where you are doing something new or different.  Of course a certain level of anxiety helps us to stay alert and aware of our surroundings and how we are being in those moments, this is evident when you describe feeling exhausted!

Notice that you know from your instinct that all will be ok most of the time and you understand this before and after the given situation whatever that may be- meeting new people, talking to someone new on the phone, important job or interview, all of these situations depend on us being our best possible self. You are very aware that you overthink these situations which of course creates anxiety - A question that I would like 'you' to ask yourself is 'do you have good self-awareness and belief in yourself'? having a good understanding of who we are helps create confidence in our ability to be fully accepting of ourselves as individuals. The simple fact that you know you do sometimes get anxious and knowing it will be ok, whatever the outcome by understanding the process as it unfolds however frustrating for you,  is good self-awareness.

I would definitely recommend Mindfulness. Learning to practice being mindful can be super helpful for our overall well-being. It simply means to pay attention in the now. We all often suffer great unrest within us as a result of stress, anxiety, depression, loss etc, etc. Often many worrying situations can become distinctively worse because of the pressure we as individuals put on ourselves. We often spend time worrying about the past, or fretting about what the future may be and in doing this totally miss the moment by moment experience!

All that really matters is the now....we can not change the past or predict the future 'good or bad' but what we can do is live fully in the moment!

If this is something you feel may be helpful then talking to a Counsellor/Therapist at BetterHelp may be the way forward for you. 

I hope I have helped a little with better understanding how you often feel. I would also like to leave you with this thought too if ever you feel anxiety may be hindering you..........

That risk you are afraid to take because of the anxiety you feel could be the one that changes your life completely for the better!

Take care.

Gina Kelly