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This week, we’re going to do a deep dive on anxiety: what it is, how it messes with us, and some solid ways to handle it. We’ll explain why it feels different from everyday stress, look at the science behind our fears, and share some practical tools to help you break free from overthinking and comparison traps.

TL;DR

Here are four things you need to know about anxiety:

• It hits differently than stress—it's more persistent and overwhelming.

• Having an anxious mind can be your superpower or your kryptonite.

• Simple coping techniques like reframing thoughts and breathing exercises actually work.

• You might not make your anxiety completely disappear, but you can 100% stop it from running your life.

The Real Deal About Anxiety

Stress vs. Anxiety Many people might use these terms interchangeably, but they’re two different things. Stress often occurs when choosing between options and being pulled in different directions. For example, should you work on that big project or hit up your best friend's birthday party? Anxiety, on the other hand, is more deeply rooted—it stems from multiple worries looming over you.

Anxiety is triggered as your body's natural alert system, and it can disrupt your whole life when it becomes too much or you can’t make sense of it.

Signs your anxious:

• Constant worrying

• Feeling restless and on edge

• Brain fog when trying to focus

• Heart racing for no reason

• Wrecked sleep

Sol Bites: Breaking Free from Anxiety

1) Escape the Overthinking Loop

• Anxiety tricks you into obsessing over problems that might not even exist.

• According to a Cornell University study, 90% of what people worry about never happens.

• Your brain throws thousands of thoughts at you daily, but you only act on a handful.

Embrace: Cognitive Defusion Instead

• Work on detaching yourself from your anxious thoughts. Instead of letting them become commands you have to follow, watch them like scenes in a movie. 

• Say "I notice anxiety is showing up" instead of "I feel anxious."

• Replace "What if I fail?" with "I'll handle failure if it comes."

Understand and Dissolve Fear 

Fear comes from what you think might happen, not what's actually happening. Your amygdala (your brain's alarm center) literally can't differentiate between real and imagined threats, so chronic anxiety keeps your nervous system in emergency mode.

2) Schedule Your Worries

• Write down your biggest fear.

• Take the smallest possible step toward facing it.

• Gradually take more actions to rewire your brain to make it think its not so scary.

• Remember: Fear shrinks when you run toward it, not away from it.

Reset Your Body When Anxiety Hits

• Switch to box breathing: Inhale for four counts, hold for four, exhale for four, hold again for four. Repeat until you feel more at ease.

• Tense all the muscles in your body for 5-10 seconds, then release for 10-20 seconds to reset your stress response. Repeat for at least 10 minutes.

• Splash cold water on your face—it activates your vagus nerve and calms panic.

3) Break the Comparison Trap 

Social media shows highlight reels, not real life. As a result, your brain compares your worst days with someone else's best days. Why is this so bad? A UCLA study found that our brains process social rejection like physical pain, and excessive social media can increase anxiety by 70%.

Clean Up Your Digital Space

• Unfollow accounts that make you feel like trash.

• Replace endless scrolling with IRL connections.

• Write down three things you're doing that align with what matters to you.

• Remind yourself that your journey is yours alone, and no comparison is needed.

4) Accept Uncertainty 

Anxiety is basically the desire to control the uncontrollable. Your brain craves certainty, but life is chaotic, and trying to manage everything will just burn you out.

Tricks to letting go

• Repeat this mantra: "I accept what is. I trust what will be, is for my highest good. Everything is always working out for me."

• Focus only on what you can actually control: your effort, your attitude, and your response.

• Know that real peace comes from surrender, not from control.

The anxiety war rages within your head, not in reality. Because of that, your mind can be your greatest weapon or your worst weakness—it's your call. 

When you build consistent routines and live by your values—even when fear creeps in—anxiety will lose its grip. Your mind holds immense power: It can trap you in suffering or free you. Anxiety won’t ever entirely disappear, but it doesn’t have to rule you. Train your brain to face your fears head-on and strip them of their strength.

Four Steps to Rewire Your Brain and Beat Anxiety—Pill-Free

Anxiety's hidden crisis: 3 in 4 sufferers don’t receive help, and pills aren't the cure.

Video Bite

Sol TV Robin Richardson shares that feelings of anxiety or negativity signal a misalignment within yourself. Often, these stem from false negative beliefs that need to be identified and released.

Words of Wisdom

Want More: Tools to Beat Anxiety

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Mona & The Sol TV Team ❤️

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