Ever felt extremely nervous before an important event, like an exam, work project, or presentation? This is called performance anxiety. It’s a cycle: you feel nervous, the anxiety affects your performance, and then you become even more anxious. Want to know how to break the cycle of performance anxiety?
If yes, let’s dive in together. To break the cycle, we first need to understand what triggers performance anxiety. Common source of performance anxiety include self-doubt, negative past experiences, and perfectionism.
In this blog, we will explore “How to break the cycle of performance anxiety” in detail. We’ll discuss useful books, treatments, and effective strategies to stay calm and focused, helping you perform your best in any situation. So, stay with us till the end for some valuable information.
What is Performance Anxiety?
Performance anxiety means that the individual is really scared or nervous about performing any task in front of others. It can be giving a work presentation, a stage performance, playing a musical instrument, public speaking and many more. It’s a specific type of anxiety that is more focused on the fear of being judged by others during the performance or just generally being anxious about not meeting everybody’s expectations.
Symptoms Of Performance Anxiety:
The following are some of the common symptoms of performance anxiety:
- A very fast heartbeat during or before the performance
- An upset stomach
- Having a very hard time concentrating on your task or remembering things
- Trembling hands and shaking body
- Strong urge to avoid the people and the situation
- Difficulty in speech and having a dry mouth
- A continuous feeling of overwhelm
- Persistently worrying about failing or making mistakes in your given task
- Feeling lightheaded or dizzy
- Feelings of suffocation or breathing problems
- A sense of mental detachment from your surroundings
- Extreme fear and a risk of panic attack before the event
- Tensed or stretched muscles
- Excessive sweating
- Difficulty in swallowing because of dry throat
- An overwhelming sense of pressure to perform perfectly
- Continuous self doubts and negative thoughts
- Physical symptoms such as constant headaches, stomachaches, nausea, etc
- Trouble making important decisions due to undue pressure of accuracy
Performance Anxiety Diagnosis According to DSM-5:
Performance anxiety is not a standalone diagnosis in the DSM-5 (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th edition). Instead, it falls under the broader category of Social Anxiety Disorder.
If someone experiences fear and anxiety specifically limited to performance situations like public speaking, musical performances, or athletic competitions, then they will be diagnosed with Social Anxiety Disorder with a performance-only specifier
To meet the criteria for a performance-only specifier, the individual must experience marked fear or anxiety in one or more performance situations and this fear must significantly interfere with their daily life.
Differences Between Social Anxiety Disorder And Performance Anxiety
Types Of Performance Anxiety
The following are some of the common types of performance Anxiety:
- Public Speaking Anxiety
You experience public speaking anxiety whenever you need to present or perform something in front of the public. It can be speaking in a family gathering, a work presentation, school performance or any major public event. You might have trouble concentrating on your thoughts and struggle to remember your lines, along with physical symptoms.
- Test Anxiety
Test anxiety occurs when someone is about to take an important exam, making it hard to focus and perform well. Symptoms include going blank during the test, stomach issues, and trouble sleeping the night before. A 2021 study also suggests that test anxiety can impact performance, sleep, and overall well-being.
- Stage Anxiety
Stage fright affects performers like actors, singers, and public speakers before or during their performance. According to a 2020 study, musicians’ performance is significantly influenced by their level of performance anxiety.
They often fear making mistakes, being judged, or forgetting their lines. Physical symptoms may include shaking hands, a dry mouth, dizziness, and absent-mindedness. A 2019 study highlighted the Performance Anxiety Inventory as a tool for measuring anxiety in actors and musicians, noting they may experience different types.
- Sports Performance Anxiety
Gamers or athletes experience this before going to the ground. A 2017 study found that performance anxiety associated with sports can badly impact an athlete’s performance and increase the risk of injuries. This can be because of their lack of focus, coordination, and confidence. The undue pressure to win the game causes physical symptoms like tensed muscles, headaches, and the feeling of butterflies in the stomach.
- Parenting Performance Anxiety
The pressure to become a good and responsible parent to your child usually results in parenting performance anxiety. You overthink about others’ expectations of you to provide enough support and guidance to your children. You may also feel immense pressure to manage your career and parenthood together and fear making any mistakes that may affect your child’s health and development. This list of undue pressure can cause anxiety symptoms like a feeling of worthlessness, seeking continuous reassurance from others, and persistent worry.
This type of anxiety is experienced by people who worry about their ability to perform during moments of intimacy. It can affect both men and women and can damage marital relationships. Porn addiction can also be a reason for sexual performance anxiety. The physical anxiety symptoms experienced by such individuals are always feeling self-conscious, avoiding any intimate situations, and other physical symptoms like a raced heart and sweating.
- Work Performance Anxiety
This type of anxiety is common in office settings, causing stress and worry about tasks, meeting project deadlines, and taking on any new work responsibilities. Symptoms include feeling overwhelmed, difficulty making decisions, and fear of criticism. A 2022 study found that being anxious about performing better can affect an employee’s mental health and job performance.
What are the Causes Of Performance Anxiety?
Back in 2014, a study discovered that when musicians focus on physical symptoms such as increased heart rate or stress, it can cause performance anxiety.
Another study from 2019 shows that when people feel anxious about their cognitive performance, it can make them focus more on negative thoughts and increase performance anxiety.
The following are some of the common causes of performance anxiety:
- Extreme Fear of Failure: There are many people who fear making mistakes, are scared of embarrassing themselves in front of others, or disappoint those who have high expectations of them. This fear of failure can make a person extremely anxious before performing any important task.
- Lack of Confidence: In some cases, people don’t feel very confident in their skills or abilities. Due to this, they feel very anxious as they constantly doubt themselves and consider themselves not good enough. This lack of confidence badly impacts their performance and makes them further anxious about themselves.
- Society Pressure: As we all know, everybody faces undue societal pressure at some point in their lives. This pressure makes them nervous and insecure about themselves. They always feel the need to prove themselves to others. Whenever they don’t meet these societal standards, they feel severely stressed and anxious about their performance in general.
- Perfectionism: Some people have a tendency or urge to perform every task with perfection. They have created very high standards for themselves and they feel extremely anxious and disappointed when they don’t meet their own high expectations. This urge to perform every task perfectly can badly impact their performances. Such individuals usually experience signs of high- functioning anxiety as well. A recent 2024 study reported that dancers, who had extreme passion and wanted to dance more perfectly, suffered from performance anxiety.
- Past Traumas: Some people live with traumatic past experiences in their lives. They may have faced public humiliation, messed up an important exam, ruined their public presentation, or forgotten their script in public speaking, which leaves a continuous fear in them. This can lead to severe performance anxiety, as they can fear making similar mistakes in the future.
- Incomplete Preparation: Whenever a person has not prepared well for their tasks, they always feel underconfident and very anxious. This can always lead to severe performance anxiety.
- Unhealthy Comparisons: Some people may constantly compare themselves to their agemates, classmates, or colleagues, which makes them feel bad about themselves and their qualities. They feel they are not doing enough and are incompetent. Due to these insecurities, they are not able to perform well.
Now you know the causes of PA, so let’s discuss how one gets caught in the cycle of performance anxiety.
What is The Cycle Of Performance Anxiety?
The cycle of performance anxiety means a never ending loop that keeps repeating. This cycle is formed in steps.
- First, you are very worried and nervous about any task that you are about to perform. It can be playing a game, giving an exam, your own wedding, a public speech, presentation, stage performance, or anything else that requires you to perform well but you are afraid of failure.
- Then, you have physical symptoms associated with anxiety, like a racing heart, sweating, and trembling, which can be distracting and distressing.
- Following that, you may doubt your abilities and fear poor performance, thinking, “I’m going to mess up.”
- This self doubt and negative self-talk impair focus and concentration, leading to poor performance.
- When you don’t perform well, you feel even more sad and anxious about attempting the same task another time. This reinforces initial fears and self-doubt, confirming your anxieties.
- After the event, you may ruminate over perceived failures and have negative self-criticism, which reinforces the anxiety cycle.
- Over time, you may avoid performance situations to escape anxiety, limiting personal and professional growth.
This forms a vicious, never ending cycle that keeps repeating and affecting your life until you make conscious efforts to break the cycle. Now, let’s talk about how to break the cycle of performance anxiety.
How to Break the Cycle of Performance Anxiety?
Breaking the cycle of performance anxiety requires you to have confidence in yourself and your abilities. You need to challenge all your anxious and negative thoughts and replace them with positive and more hopeful thoughts.
A 2012 study suggests that finding the right balance between feeling challenged and having confidence in your skills can help regulate performance anxiety. This means setting achievable goals and gradually increasing the difficulty as your abilities grow. By doing this, you can increase your confidence and reduce the overwhelming feeling of anxiety.
So, if you want to know that how to break the cycle of performance anxiety and reduce your fears, then you need to follow the following steps:
1. Relax Your Mind
Whenever you are feeling stressed or anxious, all you have to do is take deep breaths. This slow inhale and exhale process will calm your body and ease your tensed muscles. You can also practice guided imagery by imaging yourself in a calm place like a lakeside, a beautiful island or a beach. This can further ease your stress and relax your mind.
2. Prepare Well
Make every effort to ensure that you are as prepared as possible. If it’s an exam, then practice every day to prepare yourself really well. If you are preparing for a speech or presentation, then go through your lines again and again to make sure that you’ve memorised them well and won’t forget anything on stage.
You can also practice in a setting similar to the actual performance environment to build confidence and reduce anxiety during the real event. The key to high confidence is being well prepared for your task.
3. Focus On The Present
If you want to perform well in your task, just be present in the moment. Concentrate on the task at hand without worrying about future outcomes. Instead of thinking about ifs and buts, just try to focus on tests, presentations, speech, or whatever requires your attention at that time. This will help you perform well on your tasks and break the cycle of performance anxiety.
Train yourself to gently bring your attention back to the present moment whenever you notice your mind wandering. This helps prevent exhaustion from hypothetical worries and maintains your focus on what requires your attention
4. Create A Positive Mindset
Thinking positively is a major part of reducing your performance anxiety. You can think positively by reminding yourself that you’ve already practiced a lot and that you know what to do and whatever you’re capable of. This mindset will ease your mind and body.
5. Take Healthy Breaks
Don’t be too hard on yourself and allow yourself to take regular breaks whenever you start feeling anxious or frustrated. You can listen to your favourite music, have your favourite meal or just lay down for a while and do whatever you like. These healthy breaks will help you to focus even better on your task after you are done with a refreshing gap.
6. Imagine Your Success
Just close your eyes for a while and imagine being successful in the task that is making you anxious right now. The visualisation of success is the key to your motivation. By mentally rehearsing a positive outcome, you can build confidence and reduce fear. This mental imagery helps rewire your brain to focus on achievement rather than failure. Remember, consistent practice is key to making visualization effective.
7. Take Help
Never hesitate to ask for help. If you are feeling anxious, directly ask for help from your family and friends. You can talk to your teacher, a friend or your loved ones to ease your anxiety. You can also seek help from a therapist or counsellor if required.
When To Take Help
You need to seek professional help to break the cycle of performance anxiety when:
- Your anxiety to perform better starts disrupting your work or study routine
- Your anxiety is taking over your excitement to engage in your favourite hobbies
- If you’ve tried to help yourself by trying various basic coping strategies like positive self talk or self motivation
- If your anxiety is impacting your physical health, such as causing headaches, stomachaches, panic attacks and many more
- If your anxiety to perform is impacting your relationship with your spouse, family, and friends.
- If your anxiety to perform better is overpowering your achievements or your capabilities and is becoming a great obstacle in your career or life in general.
Professional Treatment Options for Performance Anxiety
Back in 2010, a study found that minor performance anxiety is considered normal but continuous performance anxiety should be treated immediately. So the following are some of the useful treatments of performance anxiety:
1. Therapy
Seeking professional help in the form of therapy should always be among your first options if you are facing any kind of anxiety. Therapy has a lot of types but two categories can really help you which are cognitive behavioural therapy and exposure therapy.
- Cognitive behavioural therapy will help you identify and challenge your negative thoughts into more positive ones.
- Exposure therapy can really fix your avoidance behaviour because it will gradually expose you to situations that make you anxious just to make you comfortable in those situations with the passage of time.
- Additionally, in 2009, a study recommended combining coherence therapy and personal construct therapy to reduce stage fright in college students.
2. Medication
If you are not able to see any major differences after your therapy, then your therapist may refer you to a psychiatrist who can prescribe you medications such as beta blockers and antidepressants to help manage the symptoms of performance anxiety.
3. Relaxation Techniques
Other than therapy and medication, one should really focus on learning relaxation techniques and remedies like essential oil blends for anxiety and panic attacks, and different exercises like muscle relaxation, deep breathing, mindfulness, yoga, and meditation to calm your anxious thoughts.
4. Performance Coaching
You should also opt for performance coaching. A performance coach can help you overcome performance anxiety by improving your skills, achieving goals, and maximizing your potential. He can help you identify your strengths and address your weaknesses to enhance overall performance. A performance coach can also help you develop effective coping strategies and will make you engage in specific exercises for anxiety and panic attacks which will lower your performance anxiety and help you manage it in a better manner in the future as well.
5. Biofeedback
This is a very effective technique that teaches you to control your physical symptoms, such as heart rate, muscle tension, and breathing in response to stress and anxiety. By providing real-time feedback on these bodily functions, people can gradually gain control over them. This can be particularly effective in managing performance anxiety, as it helps to break the cycle of anxiety and physical symptoms.
Essentially, biofeedback empowers individuals to calm their bodies and minds, leading to improved performance and reduced anxiety.
Conclusion
In conclusion, having basic knowledge about performance anxiety and knowing how to break the cycle of performance anxiety is very crucial. By practicing basic relaxation techniques, setting realistic goals, and challenging self defeating thoughts, you can easily break your cycle of performance anxiety. By seeking professional help at the right time and having belief in yourself, breaking the cycle of performance anxiety can be much easier and achievable.
Therapy-Providing Organisations
Here are some of the online platforms that provide therapy and support and can help you understand how to break the cycle of performance anxiety.
- Samaritans: This is a remote organization that provides therapy services to depressed individuals suffering from various mental health problems.
- Bring Change to Mind: This is a modern therapy-providing organization which focuses more on breaking the stigma around mental health illness and making a difference in the lives of teens and adults going through mental health issues.
- MentalHealth.gov: SAMHSA is an organisation focused on improving mental health services and promoting recovery from mental illnesses and substance use disorders in the United States.
- National Alliance on Mental Illness( NAMI): NAMI is an organization dedicated to providing support, education, and advocacy for individuals and families affected by mental health conditions.
Self-Help Books
The following are self-help books that will help you understand PA and how to break the cycle of performance anxiety.
- Performance Anxiety By Mitchell W.Robin
This book delves into the psychological roots of performance anxiety and offers practical strategies to conquer it. This book is incredibly useful for anyone looking to understand the underlying causes of their anxiety and implement effective techniques to overcome it. Robin’s approach is both insightful and actionable, making it a must-read for performers seeking to enhance their confidence and reduce anxiety.
- Overcoming Performance Anxiety by Rob Farnbach
This book provides valuable insights and practical techniques to break free from the cycle of performance anxiety. Farnbach’s book is a powerful resource for anyone aiming to achieve their full potential in high-pressure situations. With easy-to-follow methods and real-life examples, this book equips readers with the tools they need to manage anxiety and perform at their best.
- Performance Anxiety by Eric Maisel
This book offers a comprehensive analysis of the causes and effects of performance anxiety, along with practical strategies for dealing with it. Maisel’s book is an essential guide for anyone struggling with anxiety in performance settings. His detailed approach helps readers understand their anxiety and provides effective solutions to manage and reduce it, making it an invaluable resource for improving performance and reducing stress.
Frequently Asked Questions ( FAQs)
The following are some of the most frequently asked questions about this topic.
1. Does performance anxiety go away on its own?
Performance anxiety can possibly decrease over time if a person keeps facing similar situations that trigger their anxiety. In such situations, the person learns new ways and strategies to cope with their performance anxiety.
2. What are the Effects Of Performance Anxiety
The following are some of the common effects of performance anxiety:
- Always feeling nervous and scared before your performance
- Shaking and trembling hands
- Tensed muscles and racing heartbeat
- Constant avoidance behaviour because you always feel like running away from the situation
- You severely struggle in making any decisions
- You constantly are experiencing physical symptoms like headaches, stomach aches and nausea
- You struggle in relating to the people around you
- You are suffering from relationship anxiety symptoms due to the adverse effects of performance anxiety
3. What are the long-term effects of performance anxiety?
The long-term effects of performance anxiety majorly include chronic stress and severe mental health issues that require psychiatric help. When performance anxiety overpowers your mind, it can also affect your personal relationships, career, and your entire day-to-day life in various ways.
4. What is the science behind performance anxiety?
Performance anxiety is usually connected to your body’s “ Flight or fight” response, in which your body releases stress hormones like adrenaline to a perceived or potential threat. This response usually results in making you very nervous or panicked before or during a performance.
5. Where does performance anxiety come from?
Performance anxiety usually comes from;
- Perfectionism
- Lack of trust or confidence in yourself
- A constant fear of failure
- Societal Expectations
- Past Traumas
- Past failures
6. How do I identify the source of my performance anxiety?
To identify the source of your performance anxiety, you need to carefully reflect on your past experiences regarding your performance anxiety. Deeply reflecting on your thought process and feelings during that time can help you pinpoint the root cause. If it is difficult for you to find out, you can also consult your friends, family or counsellor for further support.