Anxiety, Impostor syndrome, Non-guilty relaxation PV236 – TIME MANAGEMENT & EFFECTIVENESS JOSEF SPURNÝ Epidemiology of anxiety § Symptoms of anxiety and depression are by far the most common psychological conditions in population § Some studies reported that approx. 33 % of general population suffered a significant anxiety disorder episode at some point throughout their lives § There is extremely high comorbidity between anxiety and depression à people suffering from anxiety very commonly suffer from depressive symptomatology as well Pre-disposition to anxiety § Hereditary factors §Anxiety in family tree § Parenting factors §Anxious parents strengthen anxious child reactions § § Nature vs nurture à attachment (0-4 years) à personality structure Definition of anxiety §Rudimental fears § from evolutionary perspective, people are often afraid of objects/situations which threatened their lives § insects, snakes, tiny and dark places, heights… “ Experience of fear resulting from threat to mental and physical integrity” Anxiety has central role in our psyche § Regulatory character of our behavior à a balance between anxiety and ego § Motivational aspect §Aspiration for achievement to avoid failure, critique, rejection… §Opting-in for challenges to seek self-confirmation and success § § Inhibitory aspect §Limiting risky behavior §Avoiding situations that can confront our ego § § Impact on quality of life §Does the anxiety level prevent you from doing things you would otherwise enjoy? §Major anxiety episodes (panic attacks) can be completely incapacitating § Processing anxiety Healthy model Diffused anxiety Fear Conscious awareness Adaptation Neurotic model Diffused anxiety Suppression Transfer Diffused anxiety Phobia Processing anxiety Healthy model Diffused anxiety Fear Conscious awareness Adaptation Neurotic model Diffused anxiety Suppression Transfer Diffused anxiety Phobia Awareness is the key to adaptation Hardiness & Fighting spirit §There is no objective measure how people experience stress / anxiety triggers § Research shows that higher amount of negative / stressful life events does not necessary lead to lower quality of life / impact on health § What does make difference is the subjective perception of life events and emotional reaction to them § Hardiness § Personality feature providing courage and motivation to overcome stressful events § 3 dimensions: § Commitment disposition – interest and involvement in life activities § Control disposition – belief that I can affect course of events by own effort § Challenge disposition – believe that change is an opportunity for personal growth rather than threat § Fighting spirit §Personality style characterized by §Determination §Optimism §Constructive approach to problem solving §Active help-seeking §Orientation on resources (information, social support…) §High level of autonomy Anxiety has central role in our psyche Implications for time management: 1.Know yourself (e.g. level of hardiness, response to challenges / stress / incoming deadlines…) 2.Use time management techniques (planning, prioritization…) to control level of anxiety that will ◦Motivate you to deliver ◦Not hamper your productivity and performance ◦Mediate avoidant reactions (procrastination) 1. § § What to do with anxiety? 1.Mitigation ◦Relaxation ◦Raising awareness ◦Support seeking ◦ 2. Strengthening Ego oFocus on success oChallenge yourself oSeek appreciation 3. ◦ Relaxation § Do hobbies you enjoy § Relaxation techniques, guided meditation §Breathing techniques §Safe place imagination §Self-suggestion techniques § §MHealth Apps §AnxietyCoach, SuperBetter, Happify, HealthyHabits, iCouch CBT…. § Raising awareness § Introspection §What is happening to me? §Why am I nervous? §Six thinking hats technique Six Thinking Hats Model § White Hat – facts, statistics, objective reality § Yellow Hat – optimism, exploring opportunities, advantages § Black Hat – pessimism, what can go wrong, risk management § Red Hat – intuition, emotions, “gut feeling” § Green Hat – creativity, brainstorming, “anything goes” § Blue Hat – summarization, reflection upon the whole process Výsledek obrázku pro thinking hat Support seeking Concept of strong and weak links § Strong link §Stable in time §Has great impact on network features §Adding or deleting has major consequences §Close family and friends, long-term relationships §Low probability of unique information § § Weak link §Unstable in time, highly transitory §Can be easily added or deleted without significant impact §Acquittances, friend-of-a-friend, distant family §High probability of unique information §“Strength of weak links” Optimal network Ideal network structure 20 % strong links : 80 % weak links § good integrity and structure, good information processing providing flexibility and adaptation, good stress relaxation Too little weak links: oRigidity oStrength but fragility oLack of flexibility oImpaired adaptation oImpaired relaxation Too many weak links: oWeak structure oInstability oLack of organization oImpaired possibility for growth What to do with anxiety? 1.Mitigation ◦Relaxation ◦Raising awareness ◦Support seeking ◦ 2. Strengthening Ego oFocus on success oChallenge yourself oSeek appreciation 3. ◦ Focus on success § Sometimes people tend to overlook their achievements and exaggerate failure because of anxiety § When feeling anxious, try to calm down and restore balance in your perception of past events § Think of similar challenges you have faced in the past §Were you successful? §Were you admitted to university? §Have you defended your bachelor thesis? § § Do I have achievement that I can be proud of? Challenge yourself § Netflix Story (“Aftershock”) including Sara Safari – First Irani woman to climb Mt. Everest § § Sometimes you need to challenge yourself to have an achievement to be proud of §(not necessarily that challenging J) § What Sara did have was a couch §A partner (strong link) to support and encourage her Seek appreciation § People naturally seek for appreciation by authorities § In our childhood, we (should) receive it from parents à attachment § If not, this can be substituted in adulthood by long-term relationships §Best friend §Partner / fiancée / husband / wife §Professional – coach, psychotherapeutist § § Seek people who appreciate you, who acknowledge your achievements and qualities § In a long run, their support will stabilize your ego and help you reduce the anxiety level Impostor syndrome Pic source: https://www.nussocisoc.org/post/a-sociological-take-on-imposter-syndrome Do you suffer from impostor syndrome? • •Objectively, you perform well • •Subjectively, you think you underdeliver • •You procrastinate because you think you will underdeliver anyway • •You tend to doubt appreciation or compliments from others • •You fear that one day others will find out Impostor syndrome – root cause Psychologist: lack of self-confidence ß attachment Sociologist: socially constructed problems and/or inequalities (e.g., gender, race) at workplace Non-guilty relaxation What we already know: oWe need to do enjoyable things to experience positive emotions oWe need to spend time with friends to receive (and provide) social support oWe need to relax to prevent burnout oWe need to work on ourselves to grow and tackle anxiety o o o How to do that? Non-guilty relaxation 1.Acknowledge the importance of relaxation (we already did) 2.Use time management techniques (planning, prioritization…) to find time for relaxation and actively incorporate it in your schedule Homework assignment Two short reflections: 1.What is your hardiness level? oAre deadlines challenging or threatening? oWhen facing a challenge, do you actively seek ways how to control the outcome? o 2.Which people or what activities in your life help you feel successful / reduce anxiety?