“Your brain would rather overestimate danger than underestimate it.” Stress expert Elke Van Hoof on the recovery paradox, residual anxiety after stress, and physical safety.
Why that lingering anxiety after stress doesn’t have to worry you. What is residual anxiety, and how do you deal with it? And what misconceptions exist about recovery from stress and anxiety?
Stress expert Elke Van Hoof hears this remarkably often from people who have recovered from stress or anxiety. They’re functioning normally again, getting their lives back on track, and yet something continues to gnaw at them—a sense of vigilance, a slight tension. And then the thought creeps in: See, it’s not over yet.
In this episode of “Stress as a BFF,” Elke explains what residual anxiety is and why about nine out of ten people who feel recovered still experience mild tension. She explains how, during stress, the brain learns to detect danger at lightning speed through the Salience Network—a sort of smoke detector that remains extra sensitive for a while even after the fire has been put out. Anxiety isn’t an alarm signal—it’s actually a sign of recovery. And dealing with this anxiety requires patience, time, and calm.
