When Anxiety Pretends to Be Helpful — and How Winter Can Teach Us Peace

You or a loved one might be struggling with anxiety and not even realize it. Why? Because unhelpful anxiety often disguises itself as helpful anxiety. Helpful anxiety shows up, alerts you to something real in the present or near future, and then quiets once you respond.

Imagine it’s a winter morning and you’re getting ready to leave for work when a brief wave of unease passes through you. You pause and realize the forecast called for freezing rain overnight. You step outside, notice a thin layer of ice on your windshield, turn the car on a few minutes early to defrost, and scrape it clean. As you pull away, the tension fades. The problem was addressed, and the anxiety did its job.

Unhelpful anxiety doesn’t work that way. Relief never comes, no matter how much you respond to the thoughts or sensations. Instead, it often insists that avoidance is the only solution—avoiding people, places, or situations that trigger discomfort.

For example: It’s a dark, icy evening and you’re getting into your car to meet friends for a small winter gathering. As you start the engine, nausea and tension rise in your chest. What’s wrong? you think. Then your mind locks onto a detail: someone new will be there—a successful professional you met once before. Didn’t they seem dismissive when I mentioned I was job-hunting?

A wave of embarrassment, anger, and self-doubt washes over you. Don’t give them the chance to judge you again, your anxiety warns. Just stay home. So you do. You send a quick text blaming the weather or fatigue and retreat inside. There’s a brief rush of relief—followed by guilt, loneliness, and regret.

Unhelpful anxiety never leads to lasting peace, confidence, or resilience. It only tightens the cycle.

So what’s the remedy?

The honest answer is that there isn’t just one. The patterns we develop around anxious thoughts and sensations are complex and often require multiple tools to untangle. The good news, though, is that the created world—trees stripped bare in winter, frozen ground, crisp air, and even quiet parking lots—can help re-teach us what peace and neutrality feel like.

Learning to notice what you are thinking, feeling, and doing—without judgment—is at the core of lasting change.

One simple way to begin building this awareness is with a five-sense outdoor meditation. Meditation simply means “to focus.” In this practice, you’ll focus on the winter world around you.

A Winter Five-Sense Meditation

Your goal is to notice—without analyzing or judging. Just report what you sense.

1. Find a bit of outdoor space. Don’t overthink it. A sidewalk, a snowy yard, or even a parking lot will do.

2. Start with touch. Notice the cold air on your face. The weight of your coat. The feeling of your breath warming the air as you exhale.

3. Shift to sound. Cars crunching over ice. Wind moving through bare branches. The muffled quiet that comes after snowfall.

4. Notice smell. Crisp winter air. Damp earth beneath melting snow. A faint scent of exhaust or wood smoke.

5. Bring awareness to taste. The neutral or slightly dry taste in your mouth. Coolness lingering in your breath.

6. Open your eyes if they were closed. Take in what you see. Shades of gray, white, and evergreen. Long shadows. Rough bark, smooth ice, layered clouds, or falling snow.

   
   

You’ll know you’ve done this practice “right” if you feel even a small sense of peace.

Peace only exists in the present moment. It isn’t found in replaying the past or bracing for the future. It emerges when you gently tune in to what is actually happening right now.

Present-moment peace is the quiet counterweight to unhelpful, future-oriented anxiety. And one of the simplest ways to access it—especially in winter—is through your senses, right where you are.

About the Author: Jasmine Lehman, LGPC, Certified Nature Informed Therapist

Jasmine is a licensed therapist in the Baltimore area who specializes in evidence-based treatment for anxiety, including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy with Exposure & Response Prevention (CBT-ERP). She works with adolescents and adults and offers nature-informed and faith-integrated therapy when aligned with client values. Jasmine is in network with CareFirst and provides in-person, telehealth, and outdoor therapy options through Chesapeake Mental Health Collaborative. Learn more or request a consultation to get started by emailing intakes@cmhcweb.com.