Can I get rid of anxiety? Why We Can’t Get Rid of Anxiety — And Why That’s Okay

Being out in nature to help anxiety

Anxiety Isn’t a Flaw — It’s a Feature of Being Human

If you’ve ever asked yourself, “Why do I have anxiety?” or “How can I get rid of my anxiety?”, you’re not alone. In fact, anxiety is one of the most common mental health experiences across the world and something I can across in therapy all the time. But here’s the truth: anxiety is not something we can completely eliminate—and that's not necessarily a bad thing.

Anxiety is part of our natural survival system. It evolved to help us stay alert in the face of danger, push us to prepare for important events, and keep us motivated. In short, anxiety has a purpose. Anxiety should be able to turn on and off when needed but we live in a world where there is constant demand and not enough resource to cope. We have to be the perfect mom, partner, keep the house clean, go to work, earn enough money to live, exercise, eat right, look after our mental health, have hobbies, connect with others, look good so people wont judge us (I'm exhausted just writing that so no wonder you are). Perhaps we are pushing down how we feel, it doesn't go away; it lies in waiting for the next thing to tip us over the edge! Our nervous system gets flooded and cant cope. We either keep functioning in high anxiety (but feel utterly exhausted) or we shut down, avoid, use alcohol or drugs to cope, worry as a coping mechanism.

The Problem Isn’t Anxiety—It’s When It Becomes Overwhelming

While some anxiety is normal and even helpful, chronic anxiety, generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), social anxiety, burn out and stress can make everyday life feel difficult. If your anxiety feels like it’s always turned on, or it’s affecting your sleep, relationships, or work, that’s a sign it needs attention.

But even then, the goal isn’t to erase anxiety completely. Instead, we can learn how to cope with anxiety in healthier ways. Mental health therapy, mindfulness, movement, breathing techniques, and sometimes medication are all tools that can help you manage it. But first, we need to understand why your anxious in the first place. Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) can be helpful with that. In my sessions, we spend time exploring what may have contributed to you feeling this way, what is maintaining the anxiety and how to change it so that it has less of a hold on you.

Anxiety as a Messenger, Not an Enemy

What if we stopped seeing anxiety as something to destroy and started seeing it as a message from the body? Often, anxiety is trying to tell us something: “I feel uncertain,” “I need reassurance,” or “Something doesn’t feel safe.”

Of course, anxiety isn’t always accurate—but that doesn’t mean we should ignore it. By listening compassionately and learning to respond, we create space for healing. Anxiety can also be rooted in our past; a past that hasn't been fully processed but leaves us with coping mechanisms that may not be serving us well in this present moment. Although, they may have served you once upon a time.

Coping with Anxiety Looks Different for Everyone

There’s no one-size-fits-all solution. But here are a few evidence-based ways to manage anxiety:

• Being out in nature my number 1 go to to cope with anxiety.

• Mindfulness and meditation to ground you in the present.

• Breathwork when done right it can be a game changer to help manage anxiety.

• Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) to look at anxious thoughts, beliefs and coping responses (sometimes the coping response are actually keeping the anxiety going).

• Journaling or Self monitoring to express and track triggers.

• Movement and exercise to reduce stress hormones.

• Healthy sleep and nutrition to support your nervous system.

• Support networks to remind you that you’re not alone

• Rest we forget this one. Rest not just in body but in mind. We live our lives so productively that it can cost us sometimes and certainly contribute to anxiety!

These coping mechanism are vital if we are to get on top of our anxiety. That said, if we are using them to supress, avoid, or numb and not getting to the route of the issue, then they probably wont work! I've seen it happen many times in therapy where people have tried everything and it hasn't been effective work. It's because your trying to escape the anxiety, rather than lean in to it. We have to change our relationship with the anxiety in order to produce the outcome we want; to be able to live a life aligned with a values, to have more confidence and to not feel to overwhelmed and exhausted.

You Don’t Need to Be Anxiety-Free to Live Fully

This might be the most important thing: you don’t have to be completely free from anxiety to live a full, joyful life. You are still capable, worthy, and resilient—even if you feel anxious sometimes.

In fact, many people live meaningful lives with anxiety. I certainly have at times! It doesn’t define you—it’s just one part of your human experience.

Final Thoughts: Embrace, Don’t Erase

Instead of asking, “How do I get rid of anxiety?”, we can ask, “How can I better understand and support myself?” When we shift that mindset, we reduce shame and open the door to compassion therefore, feeling better able to cope with the world demands.

So no—you’re not broken. You’re beautifully human. And humans are complete with complexity.

Want to find out how anxiety be managed in a way thats tailored to you and your difficulties? Please get in touch via the website or email me at: yourbodyandmind1@outlook.com