On Feb. 10, the College of Humanities and Social Sciences at UVU presented ‘Mental Health Monday,’ which featured Family Science Professor Todd Spencer as a guest speaker. In his speech, Spencer focused on understanding and managing anxiety.
Spencer began his presentation by distinguishing between stress and anxiety. Spencer identified stress as an external problem, whereas anxiety comes from the internal meaning we prescribe to that problem. With stress, once the situation is resolved, the feelings go away. But with anxiety, the feelings of stress remain after the immediate threat is removed.
After identifying what stress is, Spencer illustrated how stress affects our performance in life. He began by showing audience members that when there is not enough resistance in one’s life, their stress levels are low, but their level of productivity is also low. He then explained that when one enters a healthy level of stress called “eustress,” their productivity is highest. But when stress becomes too much, a shift is made from eustress to distress, and performance plummets again.
Spencer identified the top 12 triggers of anxiety: health, finances, work pressure, relationship challenges, social interaction, perfectionism, trauma, changes in routine, substance abuse, lack of sleep, fear of the future and personal/global crises. Any of these stressors are concerning on their own, but feelings of anxiety are amplified when multiple stressors intersect. Many students are always experiencing the intersection of multiple anxiety triggers.
After identifying some causes of anxiety, Spencer addressed effective methods of managing anxiety. He demonstrated the common coping mechanism of avoidance. When one avoids the stressors causing them anxiety, they experience short-term relief but more detrimental feelings of anxiety in the long term. To avoid this, Spencer recommends becoming aware of avoidance patterns and leaning into the things that cause fear.
Spencer defined a factor that enables avoidance, explaining, “We are in the most dopamine-saturated society of history.” Dopamine hits are available in a variety of ways including social media, but this “reward without effort” leaves feelings of emptiness.
After receiving an excess of dopamine, one will experience a “dopamine deficit,” meaning their brain will produce less dopamine naturally and they must indulge deeper in habits like doomscrolling to feel content. As Spencer expressed, “Dopamine chasing is often paired with avoidance.” We choose to do something that causes us to feel temporary joy in place of what is triggering anxiety.
An audience member pointed out a lack of executive function that those with ADHD experience, which might prevent them from utilizing the solutions Spencer suggests. In response to this critique, Spencer recommended using a clear schedule including specific lengths of productivity followed by frequent breaks. A helpful strategy for improving executive function is identifying one’s “zone of proximal development,” which is the range of one’s potential they can reach without assistance. After that zone has been identified, Spencer encourages slowly pushing oneself past their determined limit.
Next, Spencer displayed what is called the “window of tolerance,” which is what keeps a person in a state of regulation. There are two types of dysregulation, “hyper-arousal” (fight or flight) and “hypo-arousal” (freeze). If one can identify signs of dysregulation before arousal takes over, it is possible to lead themselves back into regulation.
However, the more distressed one is, the less able they are to prevent dysregulation. Spencer revealed, “One of the most unromantic yet liberating things about mental health is that you are responsible for getting your needs met.” Although many of them are out of one’s control, it is important to identify the things that shrink one’s window of tolerance that are in their control.
After identifying what dysregulation is, Spencer provided some techniques for improving regulation. Something he claimed to be helpful was changes in temperature or other sensory experiences. An example of this can be as extreme as taking a cold plunge, or as simple as going outside when it is cold.
Some other techniques are maintaining a healthy diet, engaging in exercise, and being mindful when using substances like caffeine or alcohol. Above all, though, Spencer claims that the most impactful habit in managing dysregulation is being aware of one’s avoidance patterns and relationship with anxiety.
Spencer ended his talk by providing the audience with some means of practicing psychological flexibility. He mentioned the importance of accepting feelings without judging them negatively or positively. He also shared the benefits of “cognitive diffusion,” which means realizing that one is not their feelings or thoughts. It is also important to analyze the intersections of various anxiety triggers to understand why that anxiety is being felt. Living consistently within one’s own moral compass and being intentional in the acts one commits are also important aspects of self-care.
To learn more about mental health, follow @uvuchss to stay up to date with upcoming events. For assistance with mental health, visit the free mental health clinic offered by UVU Student Health Services.
