Anxiety is a contagion

In the coaching world, we talk a lot about states. Outside the coaching world, a ‘state’ is usually derogatory as in ‘what a right old state that person is in!’ In this article, states are referred to as any given emotional state a person may be in, it is all-inclusive of all states, positive, negative, and neutral.

States can be very contagious, infectious even – have you ever noticed a cute little baby smiling and giggling? What is your response? To smile back. Smiling is contagious, laughing is contagious. When looking at states in this way, as contagions it seems to be all positive smiles.

But then we have the states such as anger, anxiety, depression, frustration. These too can be contagious.

Right now, coming out of a declared global pandemic, there are so many uncertainties, so much change, so much that is outside of our own individual control that there is bound to be a significant increase in the levels of anxiety. Anxiety is designed to keep us alive. Anxiety is there to alert us to potential threats. However, for some people, this tips over into becoming an almost unconscious, automated process that runs in the background. This process produces a lot of stress hormones and these, as well as the more obvious cues such as a fast-paced voice, jittery actions, hyper-vigilance, can be picked up on by those around us – especially our families, work colleagues, anyone who spends time in our presence.

We all learn by interpreting the world around us by using our senses – all of them. We interpret states based on what we see, we model the behaviour of those around us – not only the physical behaviours but also the unconscious states we see displayed both verbally and non-verbally.

Neuroscience reports that up to 80% of communication is non-verbal. That means we are constantly picking up non-verbal cues such as facial expressions, body language, tone, speed, and pitch of voice, even hormone levels. We know when others around us are in a heightened state of alert. That then increases our alert systems, and we start feeling anxious too.

The problem is that when this happens, the person may not know why they have a heightened state of alert. Their cognitive senses may not have picked up any cues of their own, they have simply picked up on others. This then escalates the state of anxiety as the state of confusion has also been added. Uncertainty and unpredictability can be a catalyst for anxiety.

In order to overcome this almost expected effect as a result of a global pandemic, firstly you need to be aware of any heightened state of anxiety you may be experiencing. Then find a technique or mechanism to dissolve this state, switch it off, or calm it.

For some, this is meditation, reading, or music. For others, it is exercise, distraction, activity. Whatever helps you restore balance and calm will be the perfect antidote for anxiety – you just need to get the dose right!