Anxiety
Who Suffers from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
Anxiety disorders encompass a number of medical conditions deal with anxiety, and one of these conditions in particular is post-traumatic stress disorder. Unlike other mental illnesses, post-traumatic stress disorder has nothing to do with genetics. It is purely derived from your experiences in the past. Millions of people deal with post-traumatic stress disorder every year, and if you know someone who has had one of the following experiences, you should keep a watchful eye in order to be sure that post-traumatic stress disorder does not develop.
The largest group of people dealing with post-traumatic stress disorder is veterans. While at war, veterans are exposed to a number of horrible things, including death, destruction, injury too horrible to imagine, famine, abandonment of children, and rage. Often war is a time of terror, and this takes a toll on mental health. When these military personnel return home, there is often an inability to mesh back into normal society, which is why you’ll se a number of homeless veterans still today. Post-traumatic stress disorder is common, and many veterans experience dreams of their times in the service. The United States government allocates money to help these victims, so if you are a veteran and worried that the things you’ve experienced while at war could be disrupting your life, see a doctor, even if you do not have health insurance to cover treatment costs.
Victims of horrible crimes, especially rape, may also experience post-traumatic stress disorder. This medical condition often shows itself when a person is experiencing something reminiscent of the time when the crime happened. For example, a woman who was raped in the past may not be able to be intimate with another person for a long time. This extends to other crime victims as well. Dreams may occur, or a person may start avoiding certain activities or areas because of fear, even if these places and situations are very safe in rational thought.
Accidents can also cause post-traumatic stress disorder. You may find that you cannot remember a car accident if you suddenly wake up in the hospital. This may not be due to brain injuries, but rather to your brain blocking these memories because they are too difficult to bear to remember. You may also experience other symptoms typical of post-traumatic stress disorder and may form phobias of the things that caused your accident.
Post-traumatic stress disorder can affect anyone, regardless of how strong of a person you may be. When you go through a horrifying event, it is hard to remove yourself from the scare of that situation. Everyone surviving something terrible will have a period of time where they feel fear or nausea when remember the event, but if you find that these thoughts are disrupting your daily life, you should see a doctor for treatment right away.
Tips to Finding the Perfect Therapist
When you have an anxiety disorder, it is important to seek help in order to overcome your anxiety. Anxiety disorders include obsessive-compulsive disorder, phobias, post-traumatic stress disorder, panic disorder, and generalized anxiety disorder, among other things. Millions of people suffer from anxiety disorders, and the only way to overcome these things is to find help from a professional. While your medical doctor may be able to treat you, another important person in your life should be your therapist. Make sure you find the best therapist possible to treat your condition by using the following tips.
First, look for a therapist that is recommended by others. The best form of advertising is word of mouth, because you can be sure that the therapist is skilled and has helped others in the past. You can ask your doctor for recommendations, but others suffering from anxiety disorders will probably be able to tell you even more about therapists in the area. You can contact other patients with anxiety disorder by going to support groups, which are often offered at your local community center or hospital.
Another great tip for finding the perfect therapist is to look for someone specifically advocating the kind of treatment that interests you. For example, if you want to talk about your problems and try to understand your thought process and reasoning behind your anxiety, a therapist specializing in cognitive therapy will probably work best for you. If you want to overcome a specific phobia, a therapist interested in desensitization may work best instead. There are a number of different kinds of treatments, and if you have a specific kind in mind, be sure to find a therapist advocating that kind of treatment.
Lastly, when looking for a therapist consider more than personality—consider convenience. Although you of course want a therapist who is easy to talk to and friendly, you should also take into consideration how many patients he or she sees, because this will indicate the amount to time available to be spent on you. Also look at the distance from his or her office to your home and consider a therapist who is willing to meet your specific needs.
Every therapist is different, so someone who works well for another patient may not be the best choice for you. If you are unhappy with your therapist for any reason, remember that you can leave to look for a new therapist at any time. For the most stable treatment, find a therapist you like and stay with that therapist until you feel as though you have overcome your disorder.
Dealing with Phobias
One of the most common kinds of anxiety disorders are phobias, which are irrational fears surrounding a specific object or situation. With this type of disorder, the fear is persistent and reoccurring, even though the feared object or situation entering a person’s life is often out of control of that person. This anxiety disorder is affecting up to 18% of Americans and is the second most common mental illness among men and the most common mental illness among woman. For many, phobias interfere with daily life.
Luckily, there is help. There are many ways to treat phobias, no matter how they have developed. If you think that you suffer from a phobia, no matter what it may be, see your doctor immediately. He or she can recommend a treatment plan for you so that you can begin to overcome your fears and take back the control of your daily life. Phobias do not have to say with you forever.
Clinical phobias are separated into three main categories: social phobias (in which a person fears involvement with people and social situations), specific phobias (in which a certain trigger like heights, spiders, water, or flying can cause fear), and agoraphobia (in which a person fears leaving the comfort and familiarity of home or a safe area). There are many different treatments you can try in order to cope with any of these phobias.
Virtual reality is a relatively new kind of treatment used specifically to desensitize a patient. With virtual reality, a person is immersed in fear until becoming immune to it, essentially. You can also actually put the patient in a fearful situation, but this can sometimes be dangerous or expensive, so virtual reality is a great alternative. It also gives patients the chance to pull the plug, so to speak, if needed, so more patients agree to this treatment.
Cognitive-behavioral therapy may also work to help overcome a phobia. With this method, you examine your specific thoughts and behaviors and work to overcome them. You can do this one-on-one with a therapist or in a group setting. By understanding your fears, it may be easier to realize that your fears are irrational.
Anti-anxiety drugs may also help you make strides towards overcoming your phobias. These medications are prescription strength and are available for both long-term and short-term use. One example of a drug that has help people with phobias is benzodiazepine. Often, medication works best in conjunction with other types of therapy treatments.
Coping Methods for Friends and Family Members of Those with Anxiety Disorders
Patients who have anxiety disorders will often find that dealing with their medical condition, but people who love those with anxiety disorders many find coping even more difficult. If you yourself do not have an anxiety disorder, it may be difficult to understand another person, and yet you must still offer full support. Here are some methods you can deal with a friend or family member that has an anxiety disorder.
First, learn all you can about anxiety disorders and your loved one’s specific condition. Anxiety disorders range from slight to very severe and can be caused by a number of things. When you understand what causes a certain condition and how it is treated, you can better help your loved one. You can look up information on the Internet, talk to your love one’s doctor or other medical professionals, read up on the latest news in professional journals and magazines, and purchase or borrow from the library books on the anxiety disorder affecting your. Knowledge about the subject will help you to understand the condition, even if you are not personally suffering from it.
Another way to deal with a loved one’s anxiety disorder is to join support groups. You may not benefit from a support group full of people who are suffering from the disorder, but you can absolutely look for support groups for family members of those suffering from anxiety disorders. If these sorts of support groups are not available, you can look for some devoted to friends and family members of people suffering from mental illnesses in general. Don’t be afraid to start you own as well! There are millions of people suffering from anxiety disorders, each with loved ones who would benefit from a support group. Contact your local community center or hospital in order to check if support group meetings are being offered.
When dealing with a loved one’s anxiety disorder, it is also important to remember to take care of you own health as well. Helping someone who is dealing with any kind of medical condition, including a mental illness, can be emotionally draining and physically difficult. Don’t be afraid to ask for your own medical help by talking to a doctor or therapist. The most important thing in your life should be your own physical, emotional, and mental health, because if you aren’t at your best, you can’t help anyone else with his or her medical problems either.
OCD in the Home
Obsessive-compulsive disorder, also known as OCD, is just one of the many kinds of anxiety disorders affecting millions of people around the world. People with OCD often find that they do specific rituals and these obsessions can make it very difficult to interact with people in public. However, if you stay home all the time, you are actually hurting yourself even more. There are many ways to OCD-proof your home in order to move forward with your treatment and with overcoming OCD in your life completely.
First, you need to identify your obsessions. People obsess with everything from fear of dying to germs. Your obsessions will be the things you think about all the time, even when you wish you weren’t thinking about them. Next, identify your compulsions. Compulsions will be things that you feel like you must do because of you obsessions. For example, you may feel like you need to clean you bathroom a certain number of times a day or say a phrase a certain number of times repeatedly. Knowing your specific obsessions and compulsions is not difficult, but it is nevertheless the first step to helping to improve your condition while at home.
OCD might become a regular part of your life while you are at home where as you might be able to control yourself more readily when you are in public. Why? You may simply find it embarrassing to give in to your obsessions when you are around other people. That proves that you can actually have control, you just don’t want to, for whatever reason, when you are at home. To combat this, invite friends into your home often. When your home becomes, essentially, a public place, you’ll be less tempted to give in to your obsessions and compulsions, and over time your brain will be automatically programmed to perceive your home as somewhere where these activities are not ok.
Another great way to combat OCD in the home is to purchase a stopwatch. Whenever you begin to obsess about something stop the watch, and when you’re back in control, stop the watch. Do this throughout the day and then every night check out your total time for the day. You may be surprised about the time you’ve been wasting! Chart your progress and keep in mind this waste whenever you begin to obsess—you could be doing more enjoyable things with your time. OCD affects everyone, not just you, so by stopping your OCD behavior in the home you can work on a positive step towards recovery for yourself and those around you.
Treating Anxiety
Anxiety disorders affect millions of people across the country and include disorders like social phobia, specific phobias, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and generalized anxiety disorder. However, these disorders do not need to rule your life. If you think that you are suffering from an anxiety disorder, it is important to see you doctor right away. Treatment can truly change your life.
The first step to treatment is getting diagnosed with an anxiety disorder. There are a number of symptoms associated with anxiety disorders that can also be caused by other medical conditions, and if you want to be get the best treatment possible it is first crucial to diagnose you exact condition. Your health care professional is the person who can do this. Make sure that you tell him or her specifically what symptoms you are experiences, and then you will go through a complete physical examination and testing to see if there are any other medical conditions that could be causing your problems. A correct diagnosis will help you get the best care.
There are then a number of treatment options you can use to help you overcome your anxiety disorders. First, you can try talk therapy, also known as psychotherapy. This allows you to tell your problems to a psychiatrist who actually cares about you and wants to help you. There are a number of different talk therapies you can use. For example, some people like cognitive behavior therapy, which replaces old behavior with new behavior slowly with steps. This is often great for phobias. You can also try psychodynamic therapy, in which case your professional will help you to look at the underlying causes of your condition so that you can understand how to better control your life. There are other kinds of talk therapy treatments as well. Choose the one that works best for you in order to get the right help for your condition. Remember, every person is different; what works well for someone else may not work well for your.
Medications are also a great step in the right direction for treating anxiety disorders. Meditation can help to block certain overactive inhibitors in the brain that may be causing your anxiety disorder. They can also treat the symptoms that you find unbearable. In general, you should make sure that a medication works for you and your body before taking it on a regular basis. There are side effects to some medications that may hurt your body more than the medication is actually helping you.
You can also try non-traditional forms of treatment for you anxiety disorders. Some people can control their bodies simply by learning meditation and doing yoga, for example if you are experiencing panic attacks. You can also try acupuncture and acupressure to deal with your physical problems. Another great type of treatment, especially for phobias, is hypnosis. Your doctor can recommend to you these treatments and give you more information on what will work best for you.
Finding Help for Anxiety Disorders
Anxiety disorder can be very difficult to understand and treat. However, with a bit of help, you can truly overcome any type of anxiety disorder you may have. While it might be impossible for you to fully “cure” anxiety disorders like post-traumatic stress disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, or phobias, you can learn how to deal with these medical conditions in order to live a fully normal and productive life. The key to living with anxiety disorders is finding help. There are three main types of help you should get, and luckily this help is readily available to everyone!
First, find help from medical professionals. A doctor will be able to diagnose your problem, suggest treatment options, and help you learn to be safe and happy. You may also work with a therapist to talk about your problems and learn behaviors that can help you through the day. Overall, this is the most important type of help you can get because an anxiety disorder can physically be dangerous. Only a medical professional can make sure you get the best care possible.
Another crucial kind of support can be found in the form of support groups. Hospitals, religious organizations, and community centers often sponsor support groups, which can be led by professionals are self-led. In both cases, this type of support system allows you to be in contact with others dealing with the same disorders, so you can see that you are not alone. Together, you can also help one another learn tips and tricks to dealing with anxiety. A good support group can really become a second family.
However, the third group is your actually family, as well as close friends. When you develop an anxiety disorder, it may be difficult for some people to help you through this rough period of your life. Your true friends will be there, though, to help you through the recovery process and to support your decisions. If you do not find this type of support within your group of friends, they are probably not the friends you should have. When you know someone with an anxiety disorder, your life may be more complicated, but sticking by his or her side can make all the difference when it comes to recovery.
Asking for help is a key step in dealing with anxiety disorder. If a disorder is ruining your life, you truly need to find people who can help you overcome the disease and live a happy and healthy life instead.
Anxiety and Suicide
Anxiety disorders affect millions of people across the country, and one of the most dangerous things about these disorders is that they can lead to thoughts of suicide if left untreated. If you are currently having thoughts of suicide, even on an occasional basis, ask for help. You can do this by calling a doctor or just talking to friends and family members who may be able to help you. Anxiety disorders are not the end of your life—you can overcome them.
If you’re having thoughts of suicide, there is nothing other people can do to make you feel better about yourself. However, they can give you the tools needed to do that. Lots of people kill themselves every year using suicidal methods like hanging, shooting, cutting, and overdosing, but these deaths are a real shame, since every single person has value in the community. You may feel hopeless right now, but there are people who can show you how to feel better. Although it is very difficult to deal with anxiety, others have gone through the same thing and can teach you methods for overcoming.
Call 9-1-1 or your local suicide hotline immediately if you are having thoughts of injuring yourself, for whatever reason. You are not alone in this ordeal, or else these phone lines would not exist. You can call anonymously in order to simply talk to someone about your problems. There is no pressure to do or not do anything—it is simply a tool to talk to someone and hear new ideas.
Pain and sadness is normal in every single person’s life, although many people hide it very well. However, if you find that your anxiety disorder is causing too much pain for you to bear, you can do one of two things: work to reduce the pain or work to increase your skills and resources for dealing with the pain. Although you may feel alone right now, millions of people are getting the help they need and living happy lives.
If nothing else, take some time to think about things. Even if you’ve had a horrible day, give yourself a few hours or days or even weeks to make a decision on ending your life. In that time, consider all of the options available to you and think about the other people your suicide will hurt. Suicide is not the answer to relief from pain in most cases, so by truly examining your feelings, you can work towards happier days.
Alternative Anxiety Therapies
If you’ve been diagnosed with an anxiety disorder, it is crucial for you to seek medical treatment. This is the first step to recovery. Anxiety disorders include medical conditions like post-traumatic stress disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, agoraphobia, and panic disorder. When you talk to your doctor about your conditions, he or she will probably recommend certain talk therapies, in which you work with a therapist and cognitive-behavioral therapy to overcome your disorder. You may also be recommended to take specific medications. However, there are also a number of other therapies that you can consider to help you overcome your anxiety disorder.
If you are interested in oral medications, there are a number of supplements that may be able to help with your anxiety. Supplements are generally more naturally than the chemicals found in medications, so you body may be less likely to react to them in an adverse way. However, it is important to remember that supplements can still be dangerous if abuse. Common supplements that can be used to treat anxiety disorders include passion fruit, passionflower, kava, valerian root, St. John’s wort, hops, chamomile, magnesium, and glycine. Your doctor can instruct you taking these supplements in a safe way.
If you have very low anxiety symptoms, you can also work by yourself to combat the development of full-blown anxiety disorders. First, get a proper diet. This will include all the nutrients you body needs to stay active and healthy. Reduce the amounts of caffeine and sugar you ingest to help with anxiety. Also make sure that you are getting both sleep and exercise. This can help you manage stress more readily. If you believe you may be developing an anxiety disorder, trying to use stress management skills is very important.
Many people also advocate that alcohol is a great tool for combating anxiety. Typically, patients with anxiety disorders feel stimulated, so alcohol, which is a depressant, can really help you to calm down. However, the disadvantage to this is that alcohol also can make you become intoxicated and anxiety is sometimes found in conjunction with depression, which alcohol will only cause to get worse. Therefore, this is usually not a good option, unless your doctor recommends it.
Techniques like hypnosis, virtual reality use, acupuncture, and meditation can also help patients deal with anxiety. While these alternative treatment options do not help everyone, they may be able to help you. Be sure to ask your doctor about all treatment options available so that you can make the best choices for your body.
All About Agoraphobia
There are many different anxiety disorders a person could develop. These disorders are usually characterized by intense anxiety leading to panic attacks. Under the umbrella of anxiety disorders fall the category of phobias, which as intense and irrational fears that lead to panic. Agoraphobia is one such fear a person could have, and it is the most commonly treated phobia in the mental health world. It may not be the most common, but its symptoms are severe enough that treatment is almost always necessary.
Agoraphobia is the fear of leaving one’s home or safe area and venturing into the outside world. It is also found in combination with other phobias or obsessive-compulsive disorder. People suffering from agoraphobia usually have panic attacks when they feel unsafe, and these unsafe feelings include when the person is trapped, out of control, or too far from a personal comfort zone. Many people suffering from agoraphobia are confined to their homes or even to a specific room in their home.
There are many misconceptions surrounding people with agoraphobia. First of all, agoraphobia is not a fear of open spaces, nor is it a fear of crowded spaces. While these conditions may exist within a person as well, agoraphobia is specifically a fear of being too far from a normal area, regardless of the crowd. Many people welcome visitors into their home, even if they themselves do not leave. Agoraphobics usually simply need to be in complete control of a situation.
Agoraphobia can affect any person, regardless of gender, age, religion, race, ethnicity, or economic status. The disorder is about twice as common among women than among men, however. The conditions usually begins with generalized panic attacks or slight phobias, and develops into a more and more serious condition. Thankfully, treatment is available. A gradual process of exposure is usually recommended, along with anti-anxiety medication including benzodiazepines like alprazolam. Anti-depressants can also be used. Some therapists will make house calls to help patients with agoraphobia, and alternative treatments like hypnosis are becoming more and more popular in the medical world as a treatment for agoraphobia and other anxiety conditions.
A number of famous people have suffered from agoraphobia in the past, including celebrity chef Paula Dean, actress Kim Basinger, director Woody Allen, and Nobel laureate for literature Elfriede Jelinek. The key here, however, is to realize that there is hope. If you suffer from agoraphobia, ask for help and you can begin the healing process.
Anxiety Disorders and Depression
Anxiety disorders is an umbrella category that covers a number of disorders, such as panic disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, social phobia, specific phobias, and obsessive-compulsive disorder. However, all of these medical conditions can lead to even more health problems and emotional problems, so you may need treatment in a number of areas. One medical condition that may develop is depression. While many people carelessly use the term depression to describe an intense sadness, depression is more than just a day or being upset about something. Depression can truly stop your from living your life. If you are worried that you may be developing depression in addition to other medical conditions surrounding anxiety disorders, see your doctor immediately.
There are a number of symptoms associated with depression that you may experience. Some clues to you that depression may e a problem include loss of appetite, increase in appetites, having no sexual energy, muscle aches and pains, inability to concentrate, feeling afraid or confused, being easily angered, not caring about things you used to love, not being about to pinpoint why you feel sad, hating yourself, and thinking about death often. If you are experiencing three or more of these symptoms on a daily basis, you should see your doctor and talk to him or her about depression right away.
Depression can also lead to thoughts of suicide in the worst-case scenario. If you have thought about killing yourself, even one, you should get help right away. Tell someone you love or call 9-1-1 or a local hotline for support. If you cannot do these things, drive to the local emergency room of a hospital near you, go to your doctor or therapist’s office, or, at the very least, go to a public place. Give yourself some time to think about things before making any decisions.
Remember, depression is a real medical illness. Over 20 million Americas suffer from depression at some point another, and it can affect any age, gender, race, religion, or ethnicity. You can find great treatments to help you with your depression, from medication that inhibits certain receptors in the brain to therapy to help you talk about the things that are making your depressed.
In the end, it is simply important to realize that you can feel better and there is help. Having depression is nothing to be ashamed about, and modern medicine makes it possible for you to overcome your depression and your anxiety disorders in order to live a healthy life.
More than a Worrywart
Everybody worries from time to time, but if your worrying extends to interrupt your daily life and cause debilitating anxiety, you may have Generalized Anxiety Disorder, or GAD. While people with GAD may start out by worrying about simple things, this disorder can easily take over a person’s life and cause other medical problems. If you think that you have GAD, you should see your doctor immediately and talk about your various treatment options.
People with GAD worry about normal things like money, healthy, relationships, and jobs. It is normal to worry about these things, even on a daily basis. However, if you have GAD, you will find that this worry is constant and excessive—and in many cases, irrational. People who are diagnosed with GAD are often so distracted and consumed with worry that it is impossible to think about or do anything else. From the moment a patient awakes to the moment he or she falls asleep, worry is a part of life. Often times, the worry has no foundation.
Medical professionals do not yet know what causes GAD, so treatment and diagnosis can sometimes be difficult. There are a number of symptoms stemming from GAD which include nausea, difficulty breathing, muscle tension, headache, restlessness, fatigue, sleeping problems, a change in appetite, and sweating or hot flashes. If you are experiencing some of these symptoms and find yourself worrying often, you should see your doctor for help with what could be GAD.
Treatment for GAD begins with ruling out other anxiety disorders. Therefore, it is crucial for you to be very specific about your symptoms. Treatment that works well can than include both therapy and medication. Every person worries in a different way, so every person needs different treatment as well. You should work together with your doctor to find the best form of medical treatment for your specific GAD situations. Work with your own body’s wants and needs.
No matter why you’ve developed GAD, there is help. Most people suffering from GAD do not know that there can be help. If you are constantly consumed with worry, talk to your doctor immediately to find out how medical treatment can help you. From having enough money to pay for bills to getting that job promotion, you may feel as though there is always something to worry about. In a normal life, you may think about these things once or twice a day, and a doctor can help you achieve this, even if you have GAD.
Anxiety Disorders: What are They and do I have One?
There are a number of stressful medical conditions affecting Americans, but one of the broadest topics is anxiety disorders. Millions suffer from anxiety disorders to some degree or another, and the specific disorders vary greatly from person to person. Anxiety orders grow progressively worse without treatment, so if you think you may be suffering from one of these illnesses, see your doctor immediately.
One of the most common kinds of anxiety disorders is panic disorder. This disorder is one in which the person have unexpected panic attacks repeatedly. These have a range of intensities and can be controlled with medical care and behavioral control. Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder is also very common. With this anxiety disorder, the sufferer had uncontrollable and unwanted urges to perform a certain task, such as brushing their hair a certain number of times.
There are also types of anxiety disorders that do not have to do with genetic conditions. The most readily available examples of this are from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) victims. These anxiety disorder patients have persistent frightening thoughts and memories of an event that was extremely stressful, such as a car wreck or a military battle.
Phobia also fall under the category of anxiety disorders. People can fear a number of things, including small spaces (claustrophobia), spiders (arachnophobia), or any number of other things. Phobias are usually irrational and very intense and proximately to the feared item or being placed in the feared situation will usually cause a panic attack.
Many people suffering from an anxiety disorder are simply diagnosed with GAD, or Generalize Anxiety Disorder. GAD is a condition in which the person is experiencing anxiety and worry in levels higher than typical, but they are not having panic attacks or experiencing other medical conditions.
Anxiety disorders can affect all people, regardless of age, economic status, race, religion, or gender. The good news is that the medical treatment for these disorders is getting more and more influential every day. The key is to catch the anxiety disorder problem before it begins to ruin your life. A doctor can than help you treat your condition in order to help you regain or maintain in control of your life. It is absolutely crucial to see a doctor. Each anxiety disorder is different, and each specific disorder is different within each person experiencing it. If you truly want to do what is best for your body, see a doctor about anxiety disorders at the slightest inclination that something is wrong.
Understanding OCD
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder is one of the more widely known types of anxiety disorders, but in actuality, few people understand how it works. People with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, or OCD, aren’t crazy. They simply have persistent behaviors that upset their daily lives. OCD ranges from very mild to severe, and some have even suggested that everyone has OCD, but it is simply a matter of controlling your thoughts and actions so that you can live a normal life.
OCD, as its name implies, has two main components—the obsession and the compulsion. The obsession is usually a fear or desire, such as the fear to contamination or the desire to be perfect. The compulsion is the repetitive behavior that is a result of the obsession. For example, someone with the fear that a loved one will die may feel a compulsion to always count everything to a certain number. They irresistibly feel as though their loved one will somehow die if they do not count to this number. Obsessions and compulsions can sometimes be relieved with rituals, which may help to temporarily relieve the stress.
Although many people will joke that they “have OCD” when they are nit-picky about cleaning or do something odd, sever OCD is truly no laughing matter. A person who suffers severely from this conditions will probably not be able to work, go to school, live alone, drive, or even go out in public.
OCD is chronic, although many people try to hide their symptoms from others and stop the compulsions at the very least. Most people with OCD understand that they are being irrational, but they just can’t help it. What causes OCD to develop in the first place? While many originally thought it was due to childhood environmental conditions, it is now reported that a specific neurological problem may be the cause. More than one factor is probably at work here and although there are treatments, there are no known cures to OCD.
Getting help, however, is very important. With medication, behavioral therapy, and counseling, patients with OCD can truly start to lead somewhat normal lives one again. Talking to your doctor about your OCD concerns is the first step to controlling your life and health. At the very least, talk to a friend. He or she may be able to help you take the right steps toward treating your OCD. This disorder can be devestating, but with a little hard work, one can overcome OCD.
Panic Attacks: How to Prepare
If you suffer from an anxiety disorder, panic attacks may be a part of your life. Even with proper medication, many patients suffer from panic attacks. Although predicting when a panic attack will happen may be a bit tricky, you can take steps to prepare for these panic attacks in order to take back control of your life.
The first step to taking back that control is to learn to breathe. When a person has a panic attack, often they feel so overwhelmed that they forget to simply breathe properly. Many doctors, therefore, advocating safe breathing practices in order to help calm anyone having a panic attack. In fact, if you’ve ever had a panic attack in public, someone may have tried to get you to breath into a paper bag. This may or may be a good method for you, but the fact is that you should know and practice your breathing exercise before you are panicking. Have a plan—learn calming breathing techniques and practice at least twice a day.
Other relaxing practices may also be able to help your panic attack. Of course, you might find it difficult to even consider meditation when you’re having a panic attack, but by learning this relaxing procedure, you can use some of the same calming techniques that help you to meditate to help you calm down.
Another great way to prepare for a panic attack is to simply know your triggers. Do you have a specific phobia? Is excess stress your downfall? Do certain situations seem impossible for you? When you know what triggers panic reactions, you can do your best to avoid or minimize these situations.
You should also be medically prepared for a panic attack. When you go outside of the home, take with you a list of emergency contacts, which should include your doctor’s number, your local crisis hotline, and members of your personal support systems. You can use these phone numbers yourself if you feel a panic attack starting, or another person will easily find this information in your purse or wallet if you are not capable of helping yourself.
Also take with you a bag to help you feel comfortable and calm down during a panic attack. A crucial part of the bag is any medications you may be taking, along with instructions on taking it. You can also include any items from home that will help you feel more comfortable. This can include herbal tea, a stuffed animal, religious items, photos, rubber bands to snap on your wrist, mints, hand cream, money, a puzzle book, and anything else that may help you relax, stimulated your brain, or distract yourself. Remember, comfort is key.
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