Accept anxiety as serving a purpose only in the Here and Now.
If you feel your anxiety is in control of you it can make you want it to go away completely. It is your wish to have it gone completely that gives it it’s power.
“I need my anxiety gone completely”
By wanting it gone you are adding more and more stress onto yourself and more and more anxiety about how you can do this, when it is not actually possible. This then feeds into all sorts of negative core beliefs about yourself that “I’m not capable” “I must be stupid” etc.
“I need a warning sign for current dangers”
Instead, identify anxiety as being something you need to ensure you keep yourself safe. If we eliminate it completely then we have no risk radar. That flutter in the tummy, that raised heart beat, those clammy hands all tell us that something is afoot and we need to pay attention to it and prepare ourselves for it. By accepting this feeling is normal then you no longer need to fear it or get rid of it.
“I only need a warning signal for what is in front of me now, not my future”
Also, remember that this feeling is only temporary for the risk that is currently in front of you. Don’t project these current feelings onto the future as this then leaves you worrying about things that don’t need worrying about. There is no purpose to be worrying about things that you don’t know, such as “What if this happens?” or “What if my anxiety affects my future”.
Your future is not here right now so there is no need to be anxious about it right now.
“The “what ‘if’?” doesn’t actually exist…. only “What ‘is’” does.”
What ‘is’ is in front of you now and is the only thing you need to respond too.
So
Accept anxiety as a normal risk response
Accept it is only temporary to deal with the risk currently in front of you. It will settle once this is over and so does not need to be held on to.