Suffering with Anxiety Disorders?

August 25, 2009 by admin · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Anxiety Stories, Anxiety Symptoms, Panic Causes 

If you have been having trouble sleeping lately, or haven’t been eating regularly, you may have one or more anxiety disorders due to extreme stress. Here is some information about the different types of conditions and disorders that are associated with stress, as well as ways that you can treat them.

There are five main types of anxiety disorders–generalized anxiety, OCD, panic disorder, post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and social phobia. If you are generally anxious, this could be due to high-stress situations you may be experiencing at home or on the job, and chemical imbalances in the brain caused by food or lack of amino acids could play a role in your condition as well. Individuals with OCD, or obsessive compulsive disorder, have to have things in their home or office a certain way, or will develop compulsive habits such as opening and closing doors a set number of times each day, or washing their hands several times consecutively. PTSD is the body’s reaction to a dangerous or painful event that may have taken place in a patient’s life. Children can experience this disorder as well, and the condition may be characterized by not talking for months at a time, as well as symptoms like bed wetting and acting out in school.

If you want to try natural treatments for anxiety disorders, you may want to try supplements like 5-HTP, which is a very effective treatment for getting rid of depression. You can also try SAM-e, which helps to increase the levels of serotonin in the body and improve your mood. Taking more B vitamins has also been proven to help with anxiety disorders, so taking a multivitamin that is high in B12 and B6, as well as purchasing separate dosages of the supplements may help. Your diet may also be contributing to the level of stress or nervousness that you feel. If you’re eating foods that are high in sugar and artificial dyes, your body may be reacting negatively to these substances; this is quite common in children, so a change in diet may definitely help.

There are a number of new treatments on the market for disorders associated with nervousness and social disorders, so if you or your child is experiencing symptoms, be sure to talk to your family physicians to get referrals to licensed therapists that can help you to work out your feelings and uncover the reasons for your nervousness or sadness. More traditional medications such as Praxil and Prozac are also available at most doctor’s offices, so medication in addition to therapy may be what you need to start–and complete–the healing process. For more information on anxiety disorders and how you can get the help you need, visit www.nimh.org or www.webmd.com.

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Struggling with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) ?

August 23, 2009 by admin · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Anxiety Symptoms, Panic Causes, Panic Hypnosis 

If you or a loved one are struggling with OCD, or you need to know more about the condition in order to provide the right type of therapeutic treatments to a patient, there are a number of medical articles that are now available on the subject, which is a welcome change from previous years. Here are some of the best resources for finding out more about obsessive compulsive disorder, as well as possible treatments you may want to try.

OCD actually is an anxiety disorder that includes unwelcomed thoughts and repetitive behavior. Having to count the amount of steps that it takes to get from the front door to the car, or closing doors a certain amount of time before leaving the house or the office are characteristics of this condition, and people with obsessive compulsive disorder also have a tendency to be obsessed with getting rid of germs and dirt, which means that they may have to sanitize or wash their hands over and over several times during the day.

People with OCD feel as though something tragic will happen to them if they do not complete all of their rituals in the course of a day. For instance, some patients feel that if they lose count of their steps when they are walking, a family member may be injured if they do not start counting their steps from the beginning. Some people also think that something tragic will happen to them, or that they will not be attractive or smart enough to handle social situations properly until they have fulfilled all of their rituals.

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder can be brought on by a particularly traumatic experience in the past, and can last for years, especially if it is not detected and treated properly. In many cases, the negative thoughts can be associated with the dangerous or depressing event that has taken place in the life of the patient, so psychotherapy treatment may be effective in treating patients of all ages who are struggling with an anxiety disorder.

Therapy may include getting the patient to uncover the reasons why they are dealing with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) , and having them discuss how they feel each day when rituals are not performed. Performing the various ‘habits’ will provide temporary relief from the anxiety or nervousness, but these methods have to be performed several times a day in order for patients to feel some sort of normalcy, which is why the disorder is so debilitating. Pictures, music therapy, and simply talking out their problems can prove to be rather effective, and a number of medications, such as Anafranil, will also help to reduce anxiety symptoms. For natural treatments, SAM-e and 5-HTP will help to increase serotonin levels and keep the condition under control and live free from panic disorder
If you want to recover from the negative effects of your anxiety, take a positive step with the most effective panic attack cure available on the market today.

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The Easy Calm Review

August 17, 2009 by admin · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Anxiety Stories, Anxiety Symptoms 

EasyCalm is a 10 part downloadable video series… no waiting for DVD’s in the mail. This allows you to get started right away. The entire series is well over 3 hours in length so you are definitely getting a full bang for your buck with the amount of content delivered.

The quality of the videos are very good, they are properly lit and the audio is recorded well, making it easy to watch and listen.

The videos follow a logical progression as you go from #1 through to #10. Jon Mercer does a good job of not jumping around or going off on rabbit trails.

In my opinion there is a good balance of instruction, practical “life application” steps, helpful exercises and simple assignments.

The videos are filmed to give you the feel of being in a one on one coaching session. Jon Mercer comes across as very personable, non-threatening, reassuring, accepting and easy to understand. He doesn’t use complicated words or psychological terminology. He is very realistic and doesn’t make wild unbelievable claims.

Jon mercer personally suffered from anxiety disorders for 25 years. After discovering his “secret” he traveled around the world personally coaching others before putting his system into this current video treatment program.

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Agoraphobia and Panic Attacks

August 14, 2009 by admin · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Anxiety Symptoms, Panic Causes, Panic Therapy, Panic Tips 

There is phobia that is linked to the experience of panic attacks, and that is agoraphobia. Agoraphobia is the fear of open spaces or of being in crowded, public places such as shopping markets. It is a fear associated with leaving a safe zone, such as the home.

Because of a feeling of being vulnerable, people who experience this fear often suffer from panic attacks in these “open” situations. It is true to say many people who have regular panic attacks experience different degrees of agoraphobia. Some have a lingering background anxiety about being away from home should they experience a panic attack. Other people are so immobilized by this fear that they find it very difficult to leave their home for even a short period.

The thinking behind agoraphobia usually follows the line that were a panic attack to occur, who would look after the person, how would he or she get the assistance and reassurance they needed? The vulnerability grows from the feeling that once victims of agoraphobia are caught in the anxiety, they are suddenly unable to look after themselves and are therefore at the mercy of the place they find themselves in and the strangers around them. In its extreme form, agoraphobia and panic attacks can lead to a situation where people become housebound for numerous years. Please note, this is by no means a hopeless situation, and I always need to reinforce the fact that something only becomes hopeless once the person really believes that to be the case.

To begin with, the primary issue that needs to be addressed is the belief in the safe zone. To clarify, when I talk about safe zone, I am referring to the zone where the person believes panic attacks do not occur, or at least occur infrequently. As comfort is found there, it is where the person tends to spend more and more time. The safe zone of anxiety is a myth sustained by the mind. The mind has developed a habit of thinking that dictates that being inside the safe zone is the only place to feel secure and avoid agoraphobia and panic attacks. If agoraphobia is an issue for you, watch as your mind comes up with reasons why it believes only a certain area is safe and another is not. Those reasons range from being near the phone or people you trust to having familiar physical surroundings to reassure you.

The reality of anxiety is that there is no such thing as a safe zone. There is nothing life threatening about a panic attack, and therefore sitting at home is the same as sitting under the stars on a desert island. Of course, your mind will immediately rush to tell you that a desert island is a ridiculous place to be as there are no hospitals, no tranquillisers, no doctors, NO SAFETY.

You need to review your previous experiences of panic attacks. Aren’t you still here, alive and well, after all those attacks during which you were convinced you were going to die?

It may be that on occasions you have been driven to the hospital where they did medicate you to calm you down, but do you really believe that you would not have survived were it not for the drugs? You would have. If the same bout of anxiety had occurred on this desert island, it too would have passed, even if you were all alone. Yes, when it comes to conditions that need medical attention such as asthma, diabetes, and a whole litany or other conditions, then having medical aid nearby is a big asset, but no doctor in the world would tell someone with anxiety that there are only specific safe zones in which she or he can move.

As I know more than anyone how terrifying it can feel to move out of your safe zone as the feeling of fear is welling up inside, I do not wish to sound harsh. This course is not about chastising people for their behaviours. It is a way of looking together at solutions and seeing through the myths that form prison walls. The goal is to enable you to return to a richer and more meaningful life and ultimately defeat your agoraphobia and panic attacks. I also realize that people around you cannot understand why a trip to shops would cause you such discomfort. You will have to forgive them and try not to be upset by their lack of understanding of your problem.

If an individual such as a partner or family member has not had a similar anxiety issue, that person may often find it hard to understand and empathize with what you are going through. I am sure you have been dragged out of the house numerous times against your will, kicking and screaming. This can then lead to tensions and arguments and is upsetting as it can make you feel less understood by those around you. People around agoraphobics are often simply trying what they feel is best. If you can see that their intentions are well meaning (although often misguided), then you will be able to relate to them better and help sooth any potential conflicts.

There is one thing I am sure you will agree with, and that is that the only person who will get you out of agoraphobic thinking is yourself. These are your thoughts, and only you can begin to change that pattern. Dealing with long term agoraphobia and panic attacks is a slow process to begin with, but once the results start happening, it moves faster and faster until you reach a point where you will find it hard to believe that going out was such a difficult task.

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