70 Don’t Let A nxiety Run Your Life
exploring how avoidance behaviors can sometimes exacer-
bate your anxiety. We will then review how early learning
experiences contribute to anxiety and how to mindfully and
effectively manage your behavior to reduce your anxiety in
stressful moments.
The Vicious Cycle of A nxiety
and Avoidance
Avoidance is a hallmark of anxiety. W hen you actively avoid
the things that make you fearful or anxious, you also avoid
the emotional experiences associated with anxiety. In the
short term, this can seem like a sensible approach; after all,
most people don’t want to purposefully experience anxiety.
Nonetheless, this strategy can be quite problematic because
it denies you the opportunity to confront your fears. Not
only does this maintain your problematic relationship with
the feared object or situation, it strengthens your anxiety
response for future encounters. This cycle leads to increased
anxiety and worry, loss of confidence in your ability to cope,
more physical symptoms of anxiety, and increased use of
safety behaviors.
For example, if you are scared of dogs and you do your
best to avoid them, you still might encounter one; however,
the more you avoid dogs, the more your anxiety grows. Your
avoidance essentially feeds the cycle of anxiety by preserv-
ing your fear and perpetuating a maladaptive approach to
managing your anxiety through avoidance. If you want to
stop this cycle, you will need to confront your anxiety by
purposefully and gradually subjecting yourself to the things
that make you anxious.