How to Calm Down
Stop Being So Nice
When you find yourself on edge for no obvious reason, it's your body's way of signaling there's a problem you're avoiding, says David Burns, MD, author of When Panic Attacks: The New Drug-Free Anxiety Therapy That Can Change Your Life. Most anxiety-prone people try so hard to be agreeable, he says, that when confronted with an upsetting situation (being denied a promotion though they know they deserve one, for example), they'll sweep their feelings under the rug rather than stand up for themselves.
Look back over the last week or so, he suggests, to see if something like this happened, then take steps to express your thoughts and resolve the situation.
Look back over the last week or so, he suggests, to see if something like this happened, then take steps to express your thoughts and resolve the situation.
From the October 2007 issue of O, The Oprah Magazine