How to Break Anxiety’s Negative Feedback Loop

There is no cure for an anxiety disorder. Though there are several treatment options, there is no universal way to get rid of anxiety.

However, what if there was a universal pattern among people with anxiety? What if by addressing this universal pattern, there’s a chance for anxiety to be cured?

What we’re talking about is better known as a negative feedback loop. The term is about three overlapping events common among people with anxiety; a trigger, a mental reaction, and a physical reaction. Generally speaking, a feedback loop is the way we naturally handle various life events, whether we have anxiety or not.

Throughout this article, we’ll explore anxiety’s negative feedback loops and what you can do to prevent it.

What is a Negative Feedback Loop?

In terms of anxiety, a negative feedback loop is when you experience three overlapping events:

• A Trigger or Environmental Cue – When a situation makes you uncomfortable (i.e. people with social anxiety disorder will feel uncomfortable with public speaking). ¹

• A Mental Reaction – A way for the brain to properly handle the above cue (i.e. negative thoughts, self-talk, paranoia). ²

• A Physical Reaction – A way for the body to properly handle the above cue (i.e. breathing rapidly, fist clenching). ³

Combining these three events usually creates a negative feedback loop, when a person anticipates a trigger due to past mental and physical reactions. ⁴ For example, if you previously experienced an embarrassing moment in public, you may avoid social events. In extreme cases, this can result in agoraphobia.

Most people avoid potential triggers. While you may be aware of this avoidance, you may not understand why.

The Habit of Our Brains

The consequences of a negative feedback loop go beyond what you may initially consider. For example, your negative feedback loop may make you afraid to leave home.

While an inconvenience, this doesn’t pose the largest threat. The threat comes from your mental reaction to a negative feedback loop.

For example, let’s say you were humiliated at a restaurant and the ridicule left you anxious. Then one day in the future, you’re hungry and remember a dish you had at said restaurant. As you’re driving there, the memory of the humiliation sets in. This leaves you with two options:

1. Go to the restaurant and confront the memory
2. Avoid the restaurant altogether

If the memory alone causes a physical and mental reaction, you struggle with a negative feedback loop. ⁵ As such, you’ll likely continue to avoid the restaurant as it’s become a habit.

While this example may seem innocent enough, what if this humiliation occurs all over town? Under the negative feedback loop, it’s possible to avoid going out altogether. As such, this can barrel into feelings of loneliness and symptoms of depression.

Ultimately, this is one of the biggest dangers of anxiety – getting so caught in the negative feedback loop that you forget how to handle everyday situations. Luckily, there is a way to confront the negative feedback loop and, in the long run, confront anxiety as a whole.

How to Break the Negative Feedback Loop

A positive feedback loop is the only way to properly break a negative feedback loop. This means taking your habits in a new direction by facing your fears.

Going off the above example, let’s say you dare to go into that restaurant and have a good time there. Though it won’t happen immediately, your brain will begin to associate the restaurant with “good.”

So, to break the negative feedback loop, you need to do the opposite of what anxiety is telling you. Since this can be difficult to figure out on your own, we recommend talking to a psychotherapist to get a better idea of your negative thought patterns. ⁶

Serotonin and the Positive Feedback Loop

One of the biggest perks of a positive feedback loop is it’s a natural stimulant for serotonin. Let’s say you do something that makes you feel good. It can be as simple as cleaning your room to as big as landing your dream career. In such circumstances, your brain naturally produces serotonin, a feel-good chemical. ⁷

If you propel yourself into a positive feedback loop, you can use this serotonin for more good. For example, after you clean your room, you can use the serotonin you’re left with to go workout. And with the serotonin you receive from that, you can accomplish more things to make yourself feel good. ⁸

This is the beauty of the feedback loop; it holds the potential for good. However, it namely relies on habit. By practicing good habits, you can theoretically get yourself out of a negative feedback loop and relieve anxiety.

References

¹ Grupe DW, Nitschke JB. Uncertainty and anticipation in anxiety: an integrated neurobiological and psychological perspective. Nat Rev Neurosci. 2013 Jul;14(7):488-501. doi: 10.1038/nrn3524. PMID: 23783199; PMCID: PMC4276319.

² Miller PM, Surtees PG, Kreitman NB, Ingham JG, Sashidharan SP. Maladaptive coping reactions to stress. A study of illness inception. J Nerv Ment Dis. 1985 Dec;173(12):707-16. doi: 10.1097/00005053-198512000-00001. PMID: 4067593.

³ Hoehn-Saric R, McLeod DR. Anxiety and arousal: physiological changes and their perception. J Affect Disord. 2000 Dec;61(3):217-24. doi: 10.1016/s0165-0327(00)00339-6. PMID: 11163423.

⁴ Woo YK, Song J, Jiang Y, Cho C, Bong M, Kim SI. Effects of informative and confirmatory feedback on brain activation during negative feedback processing. Front Hum Neurosci. 2015 Jun 29;9:378. doi: 10.3389/fnhum.2015.00378. PMID: 26175679; PMCID: PMC4483520.

⁵ Mendelsohn AI. Creatures of Habit: The Neuroscience of Habit and Purposeful Behavior. Biol Psychiatry. 2019 Jun 1;85(11):e49-e51. doi: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2019.03.978. PMID: 31122343; PMCID: PMC6701929.

⁶ Peden AR, Rayens MK, Hall LA, Grant E. Testing an intervention to reduce negative thinking, depressive symptoms, and chronic stressors in low-income single mothers. J Nurs Scholarsh. 2005;37(3):268-74. doi: 10.1111/j.1547-5069.2005.00046.x. PMID: 16235869.

⁷ Wielpuetz C, Kuepper Y, Grant P, Munk AJ, Hennig J. Variations in central serotonergic activity – relevance of the 5-HTTLPR, life events and their interaction. Behav Brain Res. 2015 Jan 15;277:245-53. doi: 10.1016/j.bbr.2013.12.023. Epub 2013 Dec 27. PMID: 24374553.

⁸ Sanchez CL, Biskup CS, Herpertz S, Gaber TJ, Kuhn CM, Hood SH, Zepf FD. The Role of Serotonin (5-HT) in Behavioral Control: Findings from Animal Research and Clinical Implications. Int J Neuropsychopharmacol. 2015 May 19;18(10):pyv050. doi: 10.1093/ijnp/pyv050. PMID: 25991656; PMCID: PMC4648158.