Anxiety Awareness

About this course.

Anxiety is one of the most common experiences in human life. Everyone feels anxious from time to time — before an interview, an exam, a difficult conversation or a hospital appointment — and in small doses this is completely normal and even useful. Anxiety is the body’s natural way of preparing us to deal with something challenging or threatening. The problem is not anxiety itself, but anxiety that becomes persistent, excessive and out of proportion to the situation, so that it interferes with everyday life. When that happens, it can affect a person’s health, relationships, work and overall wellbeing, and it deserves to be taken seriously and treated with compassion.

You will learn the difference between normal anxiety and an anxiety disorder, the fight-or-flight response, how common anxiety is, generalised anxiety disorder (GAD), panic disorder and panic attacks, phobias, social anxiety, the signs of anxiety in yourself and others, talking therapies and professional treatment options, self-help and lifestyle approaches, and how to have a supportive conversation with someone who is experiencing anxiety.