Check It Out: Anxiety is like a long-tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs

By Joan Janzen

Someone wrote, “My uncle always used to say he was more nervous than a long-tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs.” I guess that’s what you call being anxious. Everyone experiences anxiety at some time or other; I sincerely hope I haven’t unknowingly contributed to your anxiety levels whenever I feed you political information. To help compensate, I’ll share some wise words on the subject which were delivered by Vladimir Savchuk. He’s a young man who grew up in Ukraine and later moved to North America.

He explained that anxiety disorders are one of the most common conditions plaguing people of all ages. “Young adults report high levels of anxiety just living through normal life,” he said. “They may not have any crazy crisis, but ambient anxiety is when there’s no panic, but there’s still constant unease.”

Constant smartphone exposure tends to increase anxiety and disrupt sleep. Social media breeds unrealistic comparisons. Let’s face it, everyone puts their best image and actions on social media. Young adults also face uncertainty about their future, digital identity pressure, fear of missing out when they’re not in a relationship, peer evaluation, popularity, and they’re the first generation to grow up with a permanent digital memory.

People from my generation are grateful that every stupid thing we’ve ever done wasn’t permanently recorded online. But today’s parents have different anxieties such as algorithms influencing their children, their children’s safety, education and future.

Everyone experiences seasons of anxiety, and I’m in one of those seasons as I wait for a family member to see a health specialist. Vlad assured his listeners it’s OK to have seasons of anxiety, but it’s not OK to remain in a state of anxiety. “Meaning your life is good, but you still find things to be anxious about and live in a state of anxiety,” he explained. “Some anxiety is caused by temporary situations, but if you don’t walk through it correctly, the stressful season will make you a stressful person.”

When those seasons end, we need to step into the new season. “Weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning” is a proverb that encourages us to do so.

He listed information overload as a significant contributor to anxiety. “The human nervous system was not designed for 24/7 global crisis intake,” he said. “Personally I don’t watch the news; I read the news from a few sources and I can quickly browse through it so I can be aware of what’s happening. But I don’t want to sit and watch the shock.”

As for social media, he advised that we weren’t created to know everything about everyone. “Some time ago I deleted social media off my phone and just kept it on my computer. Social media isn’t nearly as much fun when it’s on your computer,” he chuckled. “You are paying for your anxiety by the things you are paying attention to.” As an alternative he suggested we work on our own body, on our own life and on our own talents and abilities.

He listed loss of community as a significant contributor to anxiety. While ancient people lived in tribes, we live online. “We know 3,000 people’s names, but we don’t know our neighbours,” he said. “The digital world made the world smaller but at the same time it made us isolated. Anxiety gets spiked when you prioritize your online community and find excuses to never be engaged with the real community. Your online friends aren’t going to be there for your family funerals, your wedding and when crisis hits. That’s why you need to prioritize a local community.”

Generations before us thrived in community. Talk to any senior and they’ll share treasured memories of time spent with neighbours, on baseball teams, at community dances, concerts and sports days.

“Often it’s minor things that create major anxiety,” Vlad noted. He repeated a quote by Augustine that said anxiety comes from loving temporal things too much; peace comes from loving eternal things first.

“So the goal isn’t to find something bigger to worry about; it’s to find Someone bigger to seek,” he advised.

He also shared a proverb which says, “Anxiety in a heart weighs it down, but a good word makes it glad.” So read a good book, hang out with people who challenge you to become a better person, exercise, spend time in nature, help out a friend, volunteer, watch shows that make you laugh and share a cup of coffee with friends.

Vlad’s advice will go a long way in helping you overcome the feeling of being as nervous as a long-tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs.