All About Anxiety and Anxiety Attacks

November 29, 2009 by admin  
Filed under Panic Attacks




Where does anxiety come from, and how can you control it? If you suffer from anxiety, you will find several tips below to help you live a more productive and happy life.

Anxiety attacks can happen to anyone. If you are under a great deal of stress for any reason, you may easily suffer from an attack. Oftentimes, people who are experiencing difficulty with family or friend relationships — such as problems with marriage or parents — suffer from anxiety. Some people suffer from anxiety that is caused by problems or unhappiness with a job, a boss, or a co-worker. Some people stress about health or money issues. No matter what the problem stems from, one thing is for certain: anxiety can be extremely difficult to deal with.

What happens when you have an anxiety attack?

When you have an anxiety attack, you may experience a shortness of breath. You may begin to sweat. You may feel numb, or you may have a sense of extreme panic. You may develop a rapid heart rate and find that you can’t breathe well. If you have an anxiety attack, it is important to get it under control. You can do so by practicing breathing exercises or taking medications. Let’s look at some other steps that you can take to get your anxiety under wraps.

How do you live a normal life and get your anxiety attacks under control?

You should be aware of a several things if you want to live a normal life and deal properly with your anxiety. In the first place, if your anxiety is severe enough, you can take a prescription anti-anxiety medication to help you. Anti-anxiety medication is prescribed by a qualified mental health professional such as a psychologist or even a family doctor who knows your medical history very well. Some anti-anxiety medications that may be prescribed include Valium, Xanax, and Ativan. It is of utmost importance that your doctor or mental health professional monitor your usage of these drugs. This is due to the fact that they can be very addicting or cause a large variety of side effects, based on your body’s chemistry. Your doctor or mental health professional will make sure that you are administering your medication correctly and are getting benefits from it.

Oftentimes, just having a person to talk to can help you deal with your anxiety. Talking to others can help to take your mind off of your anxiousness. It can also help you to bond with others and make connections that will help you through any panic attacks you may have in the future. Laughing, joking, and just talking to family and friends can make a world of difference when it comes to controlling panic attacks. Being around positive people promotes a sense of well-being and happiness.

Exercise is one other thing that you can do to improve your mental state. Exercise helps to increase the seratonin levels in your brain’s chemistry. These seratonin levels enhance a sense of well-being. Finding an exercise routine and sticking to it will enable you to better your day-to-day anxiety levels. It will also help you to feel better about yourself and your body in general.

So, if you suffer from any for of anxiety, follow some of these tips and life will seem mush easier and happier!



Symptoms, Signs, and Triggers of Anxiety Attacks

June 17, 2009 by admin  
Filed under Health




An anxiety attack is a short period of overwhelming fear that comes on with no warning and for no rational reason. An anxiety attack can be a one-time event, but most often is an ongoing problem. Those who experience regular anxiety attacks (two or more anxiety attacks a month) should go to a doctor. It’s very likely that those who experience that many anxiety attacks have an anxiety or panic disorder. An anxiety attack is also often called a panic attack.

Regular anxiety attacks can prevent the person who experiences them from living a normal, happy life. Anyone of any adult age, from both genders, and of all races and economic backgrounds can have an anxiety attack.

Doctors and caregivers don’t know for sure what brings on an anxiety attack. But studies have shown that there are some health conditions and medications that might cause an anxiety attack. Anxiety attack triggers include withdrawing from alcohol or illegal drugs, a fear of having another anxiety attack, or heredity reasons.

An anxiety attack can bring on feelings of loneliness and a feeling of being out-of-touch with other people. There are other physical and emotional symptoms associated with an anxiety attack, but the main symptom is extreme fear. Some of the physical symptoms that can show up with an anxiety attack can feel like the symptoms of a serious health problem, like a heart attack.

The physical and emotional signs and symptoms of an anxiety attack rarely last longer than 30 minutes. The most intense symptoms of an anxiety attack usually peak within ten minutes. There have been a few rare cases where symptoms of an anxiety attack have lasted for hours.

Even though the physical and emotional signs and symptoms of an anxiety attack might last only minutes, the psychological symptoms can last much longer.

Those who experience anxiety attacks never know when an anxiety attack will hit them. A person might have an anxiety attack once a week. Or a person might have a series of anxiety attacks followed by months and months of no anxiety attacks.

This uncertainty coupled with the actual physical and emotional symptoms of an anxiety attack makes life very challenging for those who have anxiety attacks. Some people become so fearful of an anxiety attack coming at an inappropriate moment that they are afraid to leave their homes. This fear is often called agoraphobia.

The literal definition of agoraphobia is a fear of open spaces. This definition is often misleading and confusing, especially when used in reference to anxiety attacks. People experience anxiety attacks in all situations and statistically very few experience anxiety attacks in open spaces.

Agoraphobia often begins when a person experiences an anxiety attack in a specific situation. Even after a diagnosis is made and treatment begins, the person often convinces him or herself that the situation that caused an out-of-the-blue anxiety attack will cause numerous future anxiety attacks. So, naturally, the person avoids that situation.

Anxiety attack causing agoraphobia is two times more common in women than men. Well-known American celebrities who have admitted to experiencing agoraphobia related panic attacks include Kim Basinger and Barbara Streisand.