If you’re feeling a bit more anxious—or depressed—these days, you aren’t alone.
Anxiety has become the most common mental disorder in the U.S., affecting roughly 40 million Americans over the age of 18. Depression affects an additional 20 million adults, and new research from the American Psychological Association (APA) shows that the nation’s mental health is declining.
The APA’s annual Stress in America survey has tracked a gradual increase in stress and anxiety levels since it began gathering data in 2007. But for 2017, it found that while the national stress level is consistent with the previous year’s findings, many people are feeling the effects of that stress more than ever before.
Nearly two-thirds of those answering the survey said they were extremely stressed about the future of our nation in addition to other major stressors like money and work. And that is showing up with side effects such as lost sleep, irritability, anxiety, depression and fatigue.
“The uncertainty and unpredictability tied to the future of our nation is affecting the health and well-being of many Americans in a way that feels unique to this period in recent history,” says Arthur C. Evans Jr., Ph.D., and CEO of the APA.
Yet the findings also reveal that we are learning better ways to handle the pressure. From the rising interest in mindfulness and meditation to a growing emphasis on how to find balance using nutrition and physical activity, there are plenty of ways to become better equipped to handle the side effects of stress. Learning how to eat more natural foods or just spending more time in nature doesn’t just feel good in the moment; it has lasting, measurable effects on both physical and mental well-being.
Learning to Cope
More than half of the people in the APA survey said they deal with stress through exercise or physical activity, and 12 percent use yoga or meditation as an outlet. Nearly half use music to de-stress, and 29 percent rely upon prayer. That’s important, experts note, because learning how to practice positive mental health in an increasingly negative environment can make a tremendous difference in our levels of anxiety and depression.
“Negative events attract so much attention, and right now [the evening news] seems very disturbing,” says Tayyab Rashid, Ph.D., associate faculty at the University of Toronto Scarborough and a licensed clinical psychologist. “But at the same time, we have to remember that there are far more people doing acts of kindness that we’re not seeing. Every day, mothers are fixing meals for their children. Mechanics are fixing cars. People are opening doors and doing good things for one another every day. We aren’t seeing the whole picture.”
As humans, our innate negativity bias causes us to react more strongly to negative events and information than to positive. Since our survival as humans once depended on quickly locating the threats around us, that negativity bias isn’t all bad. However, in today’s world, it can create some mental health challenges when it comes to handling the onslaught of negativity doled out by social media and the nightly news, not to mention our day-to-day personal ups and downs.
“No mind is neutral,” Tayyab says. “But the good news for the human race is that the positives are more universal. Positive things have more leverage to bring us together than the negative things have to tear us apart.”
Focusing on the Positive
That’s where positive psychology enters the picture. Science shows a strong connection between positive psychology and good mental health; it has proven useful in the prevention and treatment of certain mental disorders and, at the very least, can help us navigate a bad day with a better sense of calm and resilience.
While mental illnesses such as bipolar disorder and schizophrenia are better managed with a combination of care that includes therapy and medication, Tayyab says we have become too quick to medicate less serious psychological conditions rather than change the behaviors inflaming them.
“By and large, we have become too dependent on drugs,” he says. “Life is about exploring the best that’s within you. Medications can give you the strength to walk and sit, but if you want to become truly agile—that comes from real growth.”
Creating positive mental health is key to achieving personal well-being, and Tayyab says that requires committing to real changes.
“You cannot be happy on a long-term basis unless you make long-term changes,” he says. “Medications can make you feel less angry or anxious or paranoid, but they cannot provide you with hope and courage and resilience. There are no pills for gratitude.”
Learning Happiness
The connection between mental well-being and practices such as gratitude, mindfulness and hope go beyond just feeling good; positive practices change the way your brain works. Every thought you have releases chemicals to your brain, and those chemicals have either a positive or negative effect on both your physical and mental state. Learning optimism, gratitude and other practices for developing positive emotions won’t change the world around you, but it can change how you respond to it.
When researchers at the University of Pennsylvania conducted a study on learned optimism, which uses positive affirmations to overcome negativity biases, the results were impressive. Of the two groups participating, 32 percent of those in the group that did not practice optimism were suffering from moderate or severe depression at the end of the 18-month study. By comparison, only 22 percent of those who were taught optimism developed depressive symptoms, and the results were similar for anxiety: The group that practiced optimism showed a 7 percent rate of anxiety, while the other group had more than double that rate of anxiety.
The Benefits of Well-Being
Implementing practices to improve well-being, whether it’s meditation, mindfulness, gratitude or something else, can improve symptoms of anxiety and depression. But studies also show it isn’t just about feeling better; it’s about doing better.
People who train their brains to think more positively are not just happier, but have stronger immune systems, are more productive, live longer and, let’s face it, are just more fun to be around.
Even better, once your brain is trained to think positively, it triggers what Barbara Fredrickson, Ph.D., identified as an upward spiral toward positive emotions. In other words, as you experience positive emotions, you release a cascade of additional positive emotions.
“Relaxing is better than stress, and hope is better than fear,” Tayyab says. “We all have grudges, but somewhere along the line we can open ourselves up to these sanctuaries of gratitude. And those are the things that bring you to the true essence of life.”