on	practice	exams.	The	fear	of	failure	can	energize	and	focus	him	for	the	hard
work	ahead.	Or	a	person	driving	on	a	busy	highway	suddenly	experiences
increased	heart	rate	and	blood	flow	when	she	sees	someone	screech	to	a	halt
in	the	lane	next	to	her.	The	immediate	increase	in	heart	rate	prepares	her	for
action,	so	she	can	steer	toward	safety	if	she	needs	to.	These	kinds	of	anxiety
responses	may	not	be	saving	our	lives,	but	they	are	adaptive	and	keep	things
running	smoothly.
Anxiety	becomes	a	problem	when	a	person’s	fight-or-flight	response	is
triggered	by	cues	that	are	not	threatening	at	all—either	physically	or
otherwise.	For	instance,	the	person	who	obsessively	worries	about	their	health
even	though	tests	have	ruled	out	a	medical	condition.	This	person	is	unable	to
be	present	with	the	people	around	them	because	they’re	constantly
preoccupied	by	what	might	or	might	not	be	going	on	medically.	Or	take	the
person	who	fears	using	public	bathrooms	and	eventually	avoids	all	business
travel	in	order	to	not	have	to	confront	this	fear.	If	travel	is	necessary	for	work,
this	person’s	career	will	be	limited	or	ended	by	what	is,	at	its	core,	an
irrational	fear.
Anxiety