Don't panic!

Managing Anxiety with Mindfulness For Dummies is a
practical guide to overcoming your worries and minimising anxiety
using mindfulness techniques. The National Health Service and the
National Institute for Care and Excellence recommend mindfulness as
a legitimate treatment for anxiety, and its also been proven to
alleviate stress, depression, low self-esteem, and insomnia. This
book explains the benefits of mindfulness, and how it can help you
face your fears and defeat persistent, irrational worries. Learn
how to break the anxiety cycle with an optimistic approach, live in
the present moment, and manage your thoughts using the fundamental
techniques of mindfulness therapy. This friendly guide will
accompany you every step of the way as you understand your anxiety,
identify solutions to your problem, maintain your gains, and avoid
relapse.

Over three million people in the UK suffer from Generalised
Anxiety Disorder, with millions more experiencing phobias, OCD, and
panic disorders. Anxiety is potentially debilitating, but many
people are daunted by navigating the health system and thus fail to
seek treatment. This book provides a way for you to begin managing
your symptoms at home, using simple techniques that can help change
the way you think, feel, and act.

* Understand what anxiety is, and the common causes

* Employ mindful self-compassion to alleviate symptoms

* Discover mindful attitudes and practise mindful mediation

* Transform unhealthy habits into anxiety-busting self-care

Mindfulness can help you break free of the downward spiral of
negative thought and action, and make positive choices that support
your wellbeing. If you're tired of being anxious and long for a
brighter outlook, Managing Anxiety with Mindfulness For
Dummies provides a wide range of effective techniques to help
you enjoy a calmer and happier life.

Joelle Jane Marshall is a freelance speaker and mindfulness coach who works closely with fellow Mindfulness For Dummies coauthor Shamash Alidina on workshops for 'Mindfulness and Overcoming Fear'. She trained in mindfulness with Shamash and meditates and practices yoga regularly.

Managing Anxiety with Mindfulness For Dummies is a practical guide to overcoming your worries and minimising anxiety using mindfulness techniques. The National Health Service and the National Institute for Care and Excellence recommend mindfulness as a legitimate treatment for anxiety, and its also been proven to alleviate stress, depression, low self-esteem, and insomnia. This book explains the benefits of mindfulness, and how it can help you face your fears and defeat persistent, irrational worries. Learn how to break the anxiety cycle with an optimistic approach, live in the present moment, and manage your thoughts using the fundamental techniques of mindfulness therapy. This friendly guide will accompany you every step of the way as you understand your anxiety, identify solutions to your problem, maintain your gains, and avoid relapse.

Over three million people in the UK suffer from Generalised Anxiety Disorder, with millions more experiencing phobias, OCD, and panic disorders. Anxiety is potentially debilitating, but many people are daunted by navigating the health system and thus fail to seek treatment. This book provides a way for you to begin managing your symptoms at home, using simple techniques that can help change the way you think, feel, and act.

• Understand what anxiety is, and the common causes
• Employ mindful self-compassion to alleviate symptoms
• Discover mindful attitudes and practise mindful mediation
• Transform unhealthy habits into anxiety-busting self-care

Mindfulness can help you break free of the downward spiral of negative thought and action, and make positive choices that support your wellbeing. If you're tired of being anxious and long for a brighter outlook, Managing Anxiety with Mindfulness For Dummies provides a wide range of effective techniques to help you enjoy a calmer and happier life.

Introduction 1

About This Book 1

Foolish Assumptions 2

Icons Used in This Book 3

Beyond the Book 3

Where to Go from Here 4

Part I: Getting Started with Managing Anxiety 5

Chapter 1: Peering into the World of Anxiety 7

Comparing Fear, Excitement and Anxiety 7

Investigating fear 8

Clarifying the difference between anxiety and excitement 8

Discovering the Effect of Anxiety on the Mind 9

Finding out the Physical Effects of Anxiety on Bodily Functions 10

Understanding the Fight-or-Flight Response 11

Exploring Why Thinking Negatively Is a Natural Human Trait 12

Recognising Whether Your Anxiety Is Normal or Severe 13

Suffering from excessive anxiety 13

Accepting that mild anxiety can be helpful 14

Applying Mindfulness to Your Anxiety 15

Defining mindfulness 15

Discovering how mindfulness can help your anxiety 17

Trying out a mindful exercise 19

Chapter 2: Finding Out the Common Causes of Anxiety. 21

Exploring Common Causes of Anxiety 21

Discovering your biology and your anxiety 22

Finding out the stress factor 23

Thinking causes most anxiety 23

Understanding the Influences Affecting Your Anxiety 25

Considering the effect of childhood experience 25

Exploring self-perception's impact on anxiety 26

Refusing to identify yourself with anxiety 27

Enjoying the benefits of socialising 28

Realising How Modern-Day Living Can Affect Your Anxiety 29

Stopping negative media from affecting your anxiety 29

Reducing the adverse impact of technology on your anxiety 30

Part II: Learning More about Mindfulness for Anxiety 33

Chapter 3: Discovering Mindful Attitudes Toward Anxiety. 35

Discovering Your Starting Attitude 35

Understanding the Benefits of Mindfulness 36

Let's get physical: Benefitting your health 36

Take me, as I am: Appreciating the power of acceptance 38

Open up your eyes: Focusing on an open mind 39

I've got the power!: Discovering the strength of the present moment 40

We're absolute beginners: Seeing the world with a beginner's mind 42

Challenging Preconceived Ideas about Mindfulness and Meditation 43

Common Misconceptions 44

Letting go of control doesn't mean giving up 44

Practising meditation is for everyone 45

Viewing Mindfulness as a Way of Living 46

Introducing the Mindful Breathing Exercise 47

Practising the mindful breathing exercise 47

Enjoying the benefits of mindful breathing 48

Chapter 4: Managing Your Thoughts Mindfully. 51

Accepting That Thoughts Impact Your Mind and Body 52

Letting up on your mind 52

Giving your body a break 53

Bringing Mindful Attention and Curiosity to Your Thoughts 53

Considering the effect of mindful attention on your thoughts 54

Trying different mindful metaphors 55

Understanding That Thoughts Aren't Necessarily Facts 55

Discovering that thoughts are just thoughts 56

Identifying yourself as separate from your thoughts 56

Accepting your thoughts with nonjudgemental awareness 57

Dealing with unhelpful or disturbing thoughts 58

Discovering the Breathing-Space Meditation 59

Practising the breathing space meditation 59

Finding out the benefits and use of the breathing space meditation 60

Discovering when to practise the breathing space meditatio…