Anxiety

We hear and use the term anxiety all the time. But what does it mean exactly? In fact, it’s a catch-all term that refers to a group of feelings that span a wide range from everyday nervousness, uneasiness, and worry to intense feelings of foreboding, dread, and panic. It’s a bit different than the healthy fear we have that propels us to act fast when we’re in immediate danger. In fact, most anxiety is not about what’s happening right now. It’s about what might happen in the future. We live in a world that is, at times, very stressful and difficult. It’s common to be anxious about a relationship or career, and to worry about the possibility of failure, rejection, or humiliation. We can get worried about many different issues like health, finances, what people think of us, or the possibility of disasters like earthquakes or plane crashes. And then, there are the big picture items like global warming and the economy! No wonder, almost everyone has experienced anxiety.

Both fear and anxiety trigger the brain to release stress hormones, e.g., adrenaline, that help us to act fast when we’re in danger. This is known as the “fight or flight” response. If your house were on fire, you’d want your body to gear up to either fight the fire or run away quickly. In fact, the fight/flight response is necessary to survive danger.

When the “fight or flight” response is being triggered too often, it can impair your health and get in the way of your enjoyment of life. The problem is, our bodies aren’t meant to be on high alert too much of the time. When stress, anxiety, and worry become chronic, it begins to take a toll. If anxiety interferes with your enjoyment of life, or if you experience symptoms like obsessive thoughts, light-headedness, chest pain, headaches, unpleasant tingling in the limbs, chronic muscle aches and pains, or frequent feelings of worry, panic, or dread, it’s time to seek professional help. Don’t ignore physical symptoms. For chest pain or severe, unusual headache, contact your physician or go immediately to the emergency room. These could be symptoms of a psychological problem, but you must rule out other serious medical problems.

Types of Anxiety

Anxiety can take many different forms. I work with the following disorders:

1. Generalized Anxiety – characterized by chronic worry that gets in the way of living life fully.
2. Post-Traumatic stress Disorder – symptoms that develop after trauma or serious stress.
3. Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder – characterized by repetitive thoughts (obsessions) and/or repetitive behaviors (compulsions) that are experienced as irrational (to some degree), excessive, and an interference in everyday functioning.
4. Social Phobia – anxiety and avoidance of social situations that get in the way of developing or enjoying relationships. Intense shyness and discomfort with social situations. Often, those with social phobia are hypersensitive to how they will be perceived by others.
5. Panic Disorder – characterized by a sense of dread or being out of control that seems to arise out of the blue. Those with intense symptoms can fear they might be having a heart attack or other medical emergency. Symptoms can include sweating, dizziness, light-headedness, racing heart, chest pain, tingling of limbs, hot or cold sensations, hyperventilation, and difficulty catching breath.

• Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) will help you to reevaluate irrational beliefs and change unproductive behaviors that have contributed to the anxiety problem. CBT techniques are easy to learn and can facilitate rapid improvement. They’ve been proven successful in many research studies.
• Stress management and relaxation techniques are also very useful in helping to interrupt the “fight or flight” response, helping you to live in a calmer, more peaceful way. Meditation, progressive relaxation, and breathing techniques can be learned quickly and easily.
• Sometimes medications can help break the cycle of anxiety. While I do not prescribe medication, I can help you to understand and evaluate this option. I will make a referral to a medical doctor when needed.