Life gives you various examples to prove how unexpected and difficult it can be. In everyone’s life there comes a time when it becomes a bit too difficult for you sustain through the hardships that life brings in front of you. Your mind gives you multiple alarms of giving up but your brain doesn’t allow you to do so. In such a state, you tend to bottle up your feelings, hold everything back in your mind and make another effort to move ahead in life.
There are instances when people succeed in doing so and there are also chances that some of us, in order to pretend fine, create even bigger problems for our minds. Initially we might feel that we have succeeded in overcoming the issue but the bitter truth is that the actual trauma has just started.
This is the very case when a person starts drifting away in the clutches of anxiety and depression. Unlike any other physical disease which can be detected by bodily symptoms, it is almost impossible to understand if a person is suffering from anxiety or depression. There will be a change in behavior of the concerned person but most of the times it goes unnoticed initially.
The patient may himself might not be aware of the fact that he is suffering from a mental condition and that is where dealing with such issues becomes difficult. Convincing someone to accept the fact that he or she is not well and needs medical help is also a difficult job but once it is certain that the person is suffering from anxiety or depression or any other kind of mental sickness, medical help must be employed.
Along with medical help, the patient also needs constant support from family and friends. With his loved ones around him, he might gain more strength to fight the battle going on within himself.
Here are a few tips that will be useful if a person in anxiety needs your help.
Be A Good Listener
For a person suffering with anxiety, asking him or her to be ‘relaxed’ is the last thing that person wants to hear. If it were that easy, he or she wouldn’t have reached this stage. Being a friend or a family member, your first duty is to become a good listener if you really want to help. Read between the lines, and try to understand what is the actual reason of the patient’s anxiety. Also make efforts to understand if it is really an anxiety issue or some stress that is troubling him or her.
Empathize And Validate –
Yes, it is crucial to validate. When a person suffers from anxiety he or she may that they are going insane and that no one understands what they are going through. Tell them that you understand what they are facing. Tell them that you are with them in this and give them an assurance that you both will together surpass this turmoil. You must make sure that the patient believes it when you say that you understand what he is suffering from.
Have Patience –
A person suffering from anxiety may get worked up regarding something in a moment and the other second, he may be absolutely fine. This may repeat a lot of times and you may not even know what to do to calm him down. This is the time when you require the utmost patience. An anxious person that their problems will never come to an end but it is your duty to make them believe that everything is going to be ok in sometime. You need immense patience during this time and only that will help the patient.
Be Calm In Responding To The Patient –
There will be many instances when the person who is troubled with anxiety issues may say something that might sound awful to you. They might sense some threat and unfortunately you may be at the receiving end. Make sure you do not react. Instead, talk to him in a soft, calm tone and try to understand what made him say such a thing. Anxiety is always rational, so you have to be the person dealing with it rationally.
Crying Helps –
Let the patient cry as much as he wants. Crying is the human body’s natural way of releasing stress. If the patient wants to cry out because he is feeling insecure of anything then let him do it. Just sit with him and listen and make sure he doesn’t pass out. Do not ask him to relax or stop crying. Crying is the best way to vent out his or her feelings for an anxious person.
Help Them Cope With It –
Don’t let the patient give up. One of the renowned psychotherapists, Ann Heathcote, suggests that make them realize their inner strength not giving up and keep assuring them that they will be able to beat their anxiety. Remind them of the past situations where they have managed to cope with their stress and become normal. Go out for walks with them,make them do something creative to release their tension. At times this turns out to be extremely helpful for the patient.
Solving The Problem – 
An anxious person always thinks that there is no end to his problems and there is no possible solution as well. Don’t let him believe this. For every ‘what if’ he brings up, give him all the possible solutions, consider all possibilities. Help them in understanding the best possible way out of their problem if they know what they want. There are times when the anxious person doesn’t even know the reason of his or her anxiety. Help them clear out the ambiguity and acknowledge their fears so that you can find ways to deal with it.
Find A Good Counselor Or Psychotherapist-
You already know that your friend is in need of medical help. Find a good counselor, who can help him to deal with the anxiety and also lead him out of it. It is critical importance that the counselor figures out the real reason and then work on solving the problem.