Understanding Anxiety: Insights from Dr. Ashley Mahoney
- MHAI
- Jan 13
- 5 min read
Updated: Apr 13
Did you know that according to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), “anxiety disorders are the most common mental disorders in the United States”?
In fact, around 1 in 3 U.S. adolescents and adults experience an anxiety disorder at some point in their lives. Just think about it – in any given grocery store, cinema, school, or place of worship, a third of the people have or will likely experience anxiety.
To put it in other terms, Mental Health America (MHA) reports that around 42.5 million U.S. adults live with an anxiety disorder. The lifetime prevalence of any anxiety disorder is about 31.6%.
Such a common condition means there will undoubtedly be a huge demand for support. And that is exactly where Dr. Ashley Mahoney comes in.
Introducing Dr. Ashley Mahoney
Dr. Ashley Mahoney is a postdoctoral fellow with expertise in psychological testing and individual therapy across the lifespan. Her work focuses on supporting individuals healing from complex trauma, understanding the impact of systemic oppression, exploring neurodivergence, and reconnecting with hidden parts of themselves.
Understanding Anxiety
In a recent webinar, which featured attendees from Mental Health America Illinois, Dr. Mahoney dived into the topic of anxiety. She provided a deeper understanding of anxiety and a toolkit to help control it.
Dr. Mahoney began by highlighting the difference between anxiousness and anxiety. She explained that every emotion has a purpose.
“Anxiousness is a natural emotional response that helps us navigate threats,” she says. This often meant responding to physical threats in our distant past, activating fight, flight, freeze, or fawn responses.
The difference with anxiety is more one of permanence. Anxiety is, according to Dr. Mahoney, “more of a chronic response… we’re kind of always being activated in that state.” In other words, the feeling of “anxiousness” remains active even when there is no immediate danger, negatively impacting our lives.
Common Symptoms of Anxiety
As with any disorder, anxiety displays a number of common symptoms. Dr. Mahoney names the most common ones while acknowledging that individual lived experiences can vary:
Feeling out of control
Constant worry
Sleep disturbances
Stomach issues, aches, muscle tension
Irritability
Fatigue
Difficulty relaxing
Excessive reassurance-seeking
Many of these patterns emerge because of what Dr. Mahoney describes as the “anxiety cycle.” With a healthy nervous system, stress activates us temporarily, then we return to a calmer state. However, with anxiety, we encounter a triggering situation and avoid that situation to achieve short-term relief. The issue is this reinforces anxiety, creating a long-term cycle.
As Dr. Mahoney says, “Anxiety becomes really debilitating when we chronically respond to challenges in this way.” It wears the person down until they find it difficult to navigate life normally.
Foundational Supports for Managing Anxiety
Dr. Mahoney is keen to stress that there are ways to manage anxiety. She outlines several foundational supports to help those who are struggling.
Resources and Professional Help
The first support she highlights is finding the right therapist or support system. She considers this a “crucial” part of overcoming chronic anxiety. Therapy provides a “non-judgmental space and accountability,” helping us regain control of our emotions and our lives.
Physical Health
If there’s such a thing as a universal truth, this is as close as it comes: your physical health impacts your mental health. The link between the two is strong. Many individuals who suffer from mental health issues are more likely to have preventable physical disorders such as heart disease.
So, what can you do to help combat this? Dr. Mahoney offers a few foundational suggestions:
Sleep
Exercise (burns off physical activation)
Balanced nutrition
Incorporating play, joy, and rest
Emotional and Social Health
It is just as important to remain on top of your emotional and social health. All too frequently, we tend to ignore or undervalue the role of building an emotional or social health routine. In the past, we’ve even recommended ways to create physical coping boxes to help build resilience.
Dr. Mahoney highlights other areas of importance to focus on:
Self-compassion
Mindfulness
Understanding what’s in your control
Setting boundaries
Challenging anxiety gradually
Diverse social supports (emotional, tangible, informational, belonging)
Tools to Help You Overcome Anxiety
As part of the webinar, Dr. Mahoney provided attendees with a toolkit to overcome anxiety. She offers a wide range of resources and techniques while emphasizing the role of patience and commitment. “The most important part is to treat these things as if they are a muscle … it takes time… but it can be done,” she says.
Here are some of the techniques and resources she recommends:
Cognitive Defusion (ACT Technique)
This technique reduces the power of anxious thoughts. For example, your original thought may be, “I’m an uncaring partner.” Take a second to step back and think, “I’m having the thought that I’m an uncaring partner.” Once you’ve done that, create even more distance, for example, “I notice I’m having the thought that I’m an uncaring partner.” You can even do it with a silly voice or sing it.
For more information on this technique, Dr. Russ Harris offers free resources on cognitive defusion on his website.
Learning How to Relax Physically and Mentally
There are several techniques you can use to physically relax your body. Some of the ones that Dr. Mahoney recommends are progressive muscle relaxation and bedtime yoga.
She also gives explicit instructions on good breathing techniques such as 4-7-8 breathing. This involves inhaling for 4 seconds, holding your breath for 7 seconds, and exhaling for 8 seconds. This last part is the most important step, according to Dr. Mahoney.
Dr. Mahoney talks about safe space visualization, where you create an internal “safe space” that you can visit mentally during periods of increased anxiety. She also provides a YouTube video to explain it better.
Finally, the last technique she recommends is color breathing, where you visualize inhaling a calming color and exhaling a color representing anxiety.
Do You or a Loved One Suffer from Anxiety?
Anxiety is so prevalent that all of us will either suffer from or know someone who suffers from anxiety. It’s important to know that there is help available. Dr. Mahoney provides a number of resources to help people in the Illinois area.
To find therapists, you can look:
NAMI Illinois https://namiillinois.org/
Use the DHS Office Locator to find a mental health provider near you. Click on the link that follows and when prompted to choose an office type, choose “Mental Health”: DHS Office Locator, TTY: 312-814-5050
If you have health insurance, call the number on the back of the card and ask about mental health providers.
Crisis Lines
Likewise, there are a significant number of crisis lines available, such as:
Illinois Warm Line
- 866-359-7953
Mental Health/Substance Use
- Mon - Sat 8am - 8pm
- Call/Text 988; En español press 2 after dialing 988
You can still call through a videophone if you are deaf, hard of hearing, or have hearing loss.
Use Lifeline Chat on the web.
- Text “HELLO” to 741741
For any other inquiries, you can, as always, contact us directly at MHAI and we will be happy to put you in touch with the right professional or support network for you.
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