Anxiety: Friend or foe?

Tough day!     (Photo by LaurMG)

As with medications, emotions are neither 100-percent friend nor 100-percent foe.  A little can go a long way, a lot can be lethal.

The Huffington Post reports that anxiety which stems from hand-wringing uncertainty can have a silver lining. According to a study from University College London, “the stress we feel during periods of uncertainty may give us a distinct performance advantage.”

So if you’re in the trenches and not at all sure what the outcome will be, uncertainty can be your new best friend.  It might just ramp up your decision-making judgment enough to tip the scales in your favor.  A certain amount of stress can therefore serve as a survival mechanism.

However, too much of a good thing can become a bad thing.  Stress also kills.  The trick is to channel just enough of it to keep things moving forward, while finding ways to let go of the rest. 

Resources

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/uncertainty-stress-study_us_56f5ce4be4b014d3fe23378e

Copyright March 30, 2016 by Linda Van Slyke   All Rights Reserved