Karen’s Free Health and Fitness Tips

Before you start panicking, let’s look at the different levels of anxiety.

Simple Anxiety

This is the one that hits when we are nervous about an upcoming event, facing a dilemma, or are fearful about something. Once the situation has passed, the anxiety stops. Any subsequent attacks are usually mild and quickly forgotten because they don’t last long and they happen so infrequently.

These types of attacks occur simply because our bodies are preparing to take action once the event arrives. The choices are fight or flight and for that, the body needs to be in a certain state. This is a normal response that ensures our existence.

When the fight or flight response doesn’t stop, even after the event, then you can safely say that you have an anxiety disorder. Something has gone askew and it’s time to start looking for anxiety relief tips to help you recover.

Anxiety Disorder

There are many variations to anxiety disorder. They encompass social anxiety disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder and others. These attacks are much more severe than simple anxiety. They usually begin with a simple attack. With each situation, the anxiety worsens. At this state, you have programmed yourself to react this way whenever you feel under stress.

With social anxiety disorder, we become afraid of social situations that can include everything from having visitors to attending classes, going to work or going into public places. Obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) leaves us wanting to repeat certain actions or constantly think about a specific thing. One person on an anxiety-related forum expressed his obsessive thinking about his breathing. Some people repeatedly wash their hands or scrub their homes or check the locks on the house. There are other obsessive actions, too, that indicate an anxiety disorder. Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) is quite common as it doesn’t usually relate to one specific thing. We become anxious for no apparent reason which makes this form of anxiety a little more difficult to pinpoint. If you know that you have obsessive compulsive disorder, you know where to look for anxiety relief.

Panic Disorder

That’s when your anxiety has gotten completely out of control. It is so severe that you fear the absolute worst is about to happen. That puts you in a state where your mind spins, you cannot think of anything but the worst, and all the usual anxiety symptoms are magnified: heart palpitations, racing heart, rapid breathing, dizziness and others including a desire to run away and hide.

Before you start looking for answers, it helps to know in which category of anxiety you fit. For simple anxiety, you really just want to be aware when they worsen or become more frequent. That is an indication that you are slipping into anxiety disorder. If left untreated, anxiety disorder can take over your life and turn into panic disorder.

Once you’ve identified your level of anxiety, you can decide on the appropriate treatment. If it’s anything beyond simple anxiety, however, you probably will want to start with your doctor who can determine an appropriate mode of treatment.

The sooner you tackle your anxiety disorder, the better as you can prevent it from worsening and recovery will be swifter. 

By: Sylvia Dickens

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