Karen’s Free Health and Fitness Tips

Everyone knows what it is like to feel anxious - your heart pounds, you feel flush and tense. For some, this emotion is triggered by a traumatic event such as a car accident. For others, small things like being late for a meeting trigger this emotion. But at what point does a general anxious emotion become an anxiety disorder?

Anxiety disorders aren’t just a case of “nerves”. They are illnesses often related to the biological makeup and life experiences of an individual.

There are several types of anxiety disorders, each with its own distinct features. Generalized anxiety disorder is more than the normal day-to-day anxiety people experience. It is chronic, constant and exaggerated worry and tension over minor things that occur in daily life.

According to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), “having this disorder means always anticipating disaster, often worrying excessively about health, money, family or work”.

A person with generalized anxiety disorder usually demonstrates symptoms of poor sleeping patterns and the inability to relax.

Panic disorder is another type of anxiety disorder. People with panic disorder have feelings of terror that can occur suddenly. Because these attacks occur without warning, the individual spends time consumed with worry that another attack could happen at any minute.

If you think that you, or someone you know, is suffering from anxiety attacks or anxiety disorder, then you want to know something about anxiety attack treatment. It is not an imaginary disease, nor does it mean you are ‘crazy’ and need to be locked up.

The first thing you should do is talk to your family doctor and he or she will decide whether you have a medical problem that is causing these symptoms or whether it is anxiety attacks. There are some medical and psychological conditions that cause anxiety attacks as side-effects. What happens next depends on the severity of the attacks, but generally you would be referred to a specialist - a therapist or counsellor.

If the condition is severe, you could be prescribed antidepressants. This is because depression is often thought to be the underlying cause of the anxiety attacks. None of these drugs can be used long term, they are prescribed to act as a kind of crutch to help the sufferer gain enough control to start with the therapy.

There are several types of therapy that are used in treating anxiety. They all try to find the root of the problem and then address it. They range from simple coping techniques to complete reprogramming.

It is well known that each year, millions of ordinary people are prescription anxiety therapy medications to curb feelings of anxiety. These medications have a huge list of negative side effects. So is there an anxiety therapy that controls anxiety without these antianxiety drugs?

ST.JOHN’S WORT…

St.John’s Wort is prescribed in Europe preferably over prozac or any other SSRI depression medication. Because depression and anxiety go hand in hand, doctors often prescribe regular SSRI antidepressants also to moderate and treat anxiety. St.John’s wort has a proven track record. Regardless of any negative reviews you may have read anywhere, this herb has been proven as an effective means to treat depression and anxiety. In general, results for European patients using St.John’s wort has been 80% favorable whereas standard SSRI’s only 60% for treatment of anxiety and depression.

What’s even worse, standard SSRI’s and benzodiazepine tranquilizers usually cause side effects such as foggy thinking, fatigue, memory loss, hair loss, sleep disturbances, loss of sex drive and so much more! Benzodiazepine tranquilizers are also notorious for being highly addictive and widely abused. Daily exercise and a low-fat, healthy diet rich with fruits, vegetables and organic foods help fortify the body against the effects of stress.

Number 1: Face your fears. The most common mistake that people make in coping with their anxiety is to avoid whatever situation triggers their anxiety. Although you may feel immediate, intense relief whenever you avoid an anxiety-provoking situation, the long-term effect is actually to worsen your anxiety. Avoidance makes it extremely unlikely that your anxiety will ever decrease as long as you continue to avoid the situation.

Number 2: Be in tune with your level of anxiety. Try to catch your anxiety as soon as it starts. You will have a much easier path to feeling better when you intervene at the earliest possible point. For example, at the moment that you find yourself feeling a little bit tense or anxious, see Numbers 3 through 5 below.

Number 3: Know what helps you to relax.Make a list of enjoyable and relaxing activities. The list should be what YOU enjoy and find relaxing. There are endless options - take a walk, listen to music, take a warm shower, sit with your pet, imagine yourself on a warm beach…

There are nearly three million people in the United States who suffer from anxiety panic attacks. When a person is stressed, the normal reaction that follows is that of a feeling of anxiety, which can actually be helpful in some situations. However, if a person’s anxiety becomes excessively frequent and uncontrollable, it has become a disorder. Panic attacks are the next step up from anxiety. An anxiety panic attack takes place when a person experiences sudden and overwhelming feelings of fear for no apparent reason. Symptoms include breathing difficulties, heart palpitations, trembling, chills, dizziness, and nausea.

An anxiety panic attack is more intense and the feelings experienced are seemingly more uncontrollable. For those who suffer from this disorder, there are several treatments available for you to use. Here are some ideas on what to do when it strikes.

Cognitive behavioral therapy is often recommended by physicians as a means of controlling anxiety panic attacks. Basically, the patient is taught to perceive their anxiety attacks in a different manner, which then enables the person to effectively control the way he or she reacts to the surroundings. This therapy has worked for many people, but as with any medical treatment, no one thing works the same for every person. However, when it is in effect, the chances of anxiety panic attacks returning is very low.

There are people who suffer from anxiety while driving. You could be driving normally but suddenly, your palm start sweating, your heart start racing and you start breathing heavily. Driving anxiety can also be defined by situational fear such as the fear of driving on highways, bridges, hills, etc. Scary, irrational thoughts flood your mind when you are forced to drive on them.

The most important step in dealing with driving anxiety is to confront them and not give in to your fear. Giving in to your anxiety will only serve to reinforce your fear, making it more difficult to break out of your driving anxiety. This is a vicious cycle, an anxiety “loop”, where you fears keeping feeding off itself - creating more fear and anxiety. Thus, it is important to keep driving, not because you have to, but because you WANT to.

Naturally, the above is easier said than done. If you are driving alone, it might be a good idea to get someone to accompany and assist you. Having someone around can be a very reassuring thing; make full use of it until you feel confident enough to drive on your own.

We all experience it at some time or another. We all have fears and worries. Even if it is just a job interview or giving a speech in front of many people, we can get the ‘jitters’ but we just accept this as a normal feeling.

However, there are many of us which this feeling is heightened and it has a devastating effect on their life. They can not shake the feeling of anxiety and it continues to grow and grow to develop into full blown anxiety attack. These people have difficulty knowing how to deal with anxiety attacks.

These feelings can dictate how a person behaves and can control all the physical feelings. There are many types of anxiety, and one of the most common types is social anxiety. This is having a fear of being in a group or just being around a number of people. The knock on effect of this is that social gatherings are avoided, such as supermarkets, busy streets and social gatherings.

Most of the sufferers know that their feelings of anxiety are not normal but is like they feel as if they can not control their own thoughts. It is people such as this who seek help on how to deal with panic attacks.

Probably the most common symptom of them all with anxiety & panic is shortness of breath; some also describe it as a smothering sensation, or feeling like they are suffocating, like there is no air around them.

This is often the first symptom that will trigger off a panic attack. As soon as the sufferer feels they cannot breathe then the heart begins to race 50 to the dozen, then you begin to feel dizzy like your going to pass out and that’s when the fear of death hits you dead in your tracks.

Or of course, you could feel short of breath, then dizzy (or light-headed), then racing heart beat then scared to your wits end that your going to die or pass-out.

If you’ve ever felt this sensation before, then you should be aware that this is classic symptoms of a panic attack.

It can hit anytime, anywhere. Heck, I used to get this one a lot while driving in my car. And anyone who can relate to that knows that is dam frightening! Because now you’re afraid you’re going to have a car accident with it!

Individuals who suffer from anxiety know how important it is to try to achieve anxiety self help. At its worst, anxiety can lead to very serious problems, such as complete avoidance of many everyday activities.

While we all worry and feel anxious from time to time it is important to distinguish that anxiety disorder is not the same as simply experiencing occasional worry. Anxiety disorder is a type of extreme worry and anxiety that goes on for prolonged periods of time. Individuals who suffer from anxiety disorder experience debilitating symptoms which can flare into a full fledged anxiety attack.

Common symptoms of an anxiety attack include:

• An unrealistic view of problems

• Excessive worry and tension

• Irritability

• Sweating

• Muscle tension

• Restlessness

• Feeling edgy

• Nausea

• Difficulty concentrating

• Headaches

• Tiredness, lethargy and fatigue

• Urinating frequently

• Sleep disturbances

• Trembling

• Easily startled

The effects of anxiety disorder can be quite serious, leading to other problems such as avoidance behavior, low self-esteem, depression, alcohol or drug abuse and interpersonal difficulties.

Do you have anxiety or panic attacks? Do you find that although you have anxiety, medication is not for you? Or maybe you are taking medication but want to supplement with some home exercises for anxiety to get even better results?

There are many things you can do at home to relieve your anxiety symptoms, reduce your anxiety or even prevent it. The number one key to treating or eliminating anxiety is relaxation, and the University of Michigan Health Center has released as guide explaining both why you need to learn to relax and how to do it.

The guide talks about the relaxation response; defined as “your personal ability to make your body release chemicals and brain signals that make your muscles and organs slow down and increases blood flow to the brain.” Drugs can to a certain extent help you achieve this, but did you know you have the ability to do it yourself without the help of drugs?

There are several different ways to achieve the relaxation response, but it’s important to understand what it is before we go into the how. When I talk about relaxation as a home exercise for anxiety, I’m not talking about taking a nap or relaxing on the couch. The relaxation we’re aiming for is a state where your body is relaxed while your mind is still alert.