Anxiety

Many clients and readers of my book have asked me what to do in the event of a panic attack ever arising. The general reason for this is they have concluded that, with an adequate knowledge of hypothetical strategies and techniques, they can face the outside world with the safety of knowing what to do if the 'fear' suddenly starts and leads to an overwhelming, panicky state.

This article looks at the period of my struggle with anxiety disorder where I took the choice to face my fears. I feel this can be helpful for others as the story can often be related to by fellow sufferers of anxiety.

A heart palpitation is the feeling of an irregular beating pattern of the heart. Usually, an episode can last between a second and up to a minute. A palpitation can be categorised into four different types: A rapid heartbeat - This is called Tachycardia and accounts for most heart palpitations associated with anxiety.

Although diet is almost always not the direct cause of anxiety, there are certain substances that the anxiety sufferer should avoid whilst trying to tame their anxiety condition. People with an anxiety disorder are often very susceptible to panic triggers due to being hypersensitive and hyper aware of changes in the body and the environment.

The Panic Room always welcomes feedback from clients. In this latest article, Sarah (whose real name is bound by confidentiality) has kindly written a short article about how she overcame anxiety and stopped her panic attacks. Sarah hadn't been officially diagnosed with an anxiety or panic disorder, however her symptoms presented very similar to a lot of cases.

Hyperventilation is the process or feeling where breathing becomes an added effort and all of our attention is suddenly focused on the mechanisms of our breathing. This can be misconceived as feeling like we're not getting enough oxygen, or it can create a panic reaction because we question why we're breathing so abnormally.

Almost everyone at some point in their lives experiences a panic attack. A panic attack is when an intense feeling of fear, dread, loss of control and entrapment overwhelms a person. There is usually no identifiable trigger and they seem to strike from seemingly nowhere.

Derealisation - also known as 'feeling detached from self and surroundings' - occurs in almost everyone who experiences excessive anxiety and panic. Derealisation occurs when our reality and surroundings feel and appear distorted and we become highly aware that we feel 'different' from our usual selves.

Almost every anxiety sufferer at some point experiences sensations and differences in the rhythm of the heart. Heart palpitations are a sudden fast beating of the heart that seems to occur either unexpectedly, after some form of physical exertion, or triggered by a negative thought.

Fear is an emotion that becomes embedded within us as we grow up and is also part of our make up as human beings. However, when worry and fear become irrational to the point where it is debilitating to our lives, then it becomes an obvious symptom related to an anxiety problem.

Fearing a panic attack itself is perhaps a clearer symptom of anxiety than any other. Many who have experienced the horrendous turmoil of a panic attack are in fact so terrified of one happening again that they spend the majority of their time anticipating another one.

It is very common for a lot of people with an anxiety problem to fear going outside. Agoraphobia is, more often than not, found to be directly linked with an anxiety problem due to the irrational nature of the fear itself.

Obviously most of us will know of and experienced many headaches in our lifetime. However, it is important to be aware that headaches come in many forms and for a variety of different reasons - this is particularly important when relating headaches to anxiety.

Anxiety can often cause the victim to feel various pains that can occur in and across the chest area. It's important to note that these pains can alter in the way they present. The types of pains include sensations of stabbing, cramping, aches (dull to severe), shooting pains and pain that's dependant on position of the body or the current state of breathing.

During periods of anxiety we may become prone to scanning our bodies for signs of an anomaly or trying to find something that's 'wrong'. When we become confused about the way we feel - particularly when anxiety and panic strikes unexpectedly - we can immediately turn attention to ourselves to find the cause or a reasoning to why we feel so different.

This is the feeling of being overly tired or lethargic in comparison to a 'usual' state or degree of expectation for the time of day. Furthermore, you could be experiencing frequent states of exhaustion that have taken up a commonplace role in day to day life.

Irritable Bowel Syndrome (also known as spastic colon) is surprisingly common in people who have experienced a prolonged anxiety problem. Symptoms of I.B.S include stomach bloating, acid reflux, trapped wind, constipation, diarrheoa, stomach pains, sore rectum and gastrointestinal discomfort. It can also cause notable variations in the types of bowel movements that we have and the frequency in which they occur.

Hyperventilation is the process or feeling where breathing becomes an added effort and all of our attention is suddenly focused on the mechanisms of our breathing. This can be misconceived as feeling like we're not getting enough oxygen, or it can create a panic reaction because we question why we're breathing so abnormally.

Anxiety is almost always the cause for spontaneous or continuous twitching of the muscles; this is also known in medical terms as Benign Fasciculation Syndrome. Twitching muscles can occur almost anywhere in the body. The most common places being: Eyelids Legs and Feet - calves, thighs and bridge of the foot.

Continual unexplained abdominal pains could be a sign of anxiety

A collection of positive accounts from people going through a panic disorder A panic disorder can be defined as a condition where a person's life is severely afflicted by the symptoms of anxiety - namely panic attacks. The diagnosis of a panic disorder is usually given when panic attacks and worrying about overall panic becomes ...

A very common symptom of a panic disorder and excessive anxiety is the irrational belief that the survivor can 'think their way out' of feeling the way that they do. People who go through anxiety and a panic disorder often feel scared for no reason (that's identifiable) and, more often than not, this leads to the person questioning the state of their own sanity.

A panic disorder is life-halting condition that branches from generalized anxiety, or as a result of a traumatic event. According to the Mental Health Foundation, around 1.7% of the population will, at some point, experience a panic disorder at any given stage of their adult lives.

Social anxiety, also known as social phobia or a facet of anxiety disorder, is mainly characterised by an overwhelming fear of social situations. Many people can be affected by social anxiety, with it being very common for confident, out-going people to be affected by the symptoms at some point in their lives.

Job anxiety is characterised by feelings of unease, apprehension, worry and insecurity about life associated with work. It is normal for people, at some period in their lives, to worry about certain aspects of their job, regardless of their occupation or role. Such worries may include: Worrying about money - income, expenses, bills, childcare, luxuries, debt.