Immediate Anxiety Relief

Managing The Anxiety Of Making New Friends

2009-05-08T01:32:00.000-07:00

Some people get very anxious when they try to make new friends. Meeting new people for the first time and trying to develop new friendships can be very stressful if you are shy or not outgoing. Here are some suggestions on how you can make new friends without getting anxious and fearful.

The most important thing is to be yourself. Do not pretend to be someone you are not because it will eventually catch up to you. Even if you are not the most popular person, being yourself will go a long way. You want your potential friends to be your friend for who you are and not for what you have or do not have.

Find people of similar interests to help increase your chances of making friends. Go join the local golf club if you like to golf or go to the gym if you like to exercise. Meeting people with similar interests will make it easier to make friends because you will both have something in common. It will also make it easy to start a conversation with someone.

To help reduce your fear or anxiety of making new friends, use good judgement in who you associate with. Try to use commonsense in who your companions are. If you are a person who is looking for someone who is involved in the church, you will most likely not find that person if you go to the bars.

In order to have a friend, you got to be a friend. Be outgoing and considerate when you are around people. Do not rush or force a friendship. Just be friendly to everyone and eventually you will find someone who will want to be your friend.

Consider what the other person wants. Try to show some interest in the people you meet. Talk to them in terms of their needs and wants. Do not just talk about yourself.

Take advantage of the help that is available around you. If possible, talk to a professional who can help you manage your fears and anxieties. They will be able to provide you with additional advice and insights on how to deal with your current problem.

Making friends can be stressful if you are shy or not outgoing. Just be yourself and go out and do something you like to do. Eventually you will find someone who has similar interests. If you still have trouble then talk to a professional who can give you more tips.

Stan Popovich is the author of, A Layman's Guide to Managing Fear, an easy to read book that presents a overview of techniques that are effective in managing persistent fears and anxieties. For additional information go to: http://www.managingfear.com

Do Not Let Fear And Anxiety Stop You From Dating

2009-04-30T02:50:00.000-07:00

Dating can make some people anxious. Some people get really nervous when they go out on a first or second date. As a result, here are some techniques a person can use to help overcome the anxiety of dating.

Remember that dating someone does not mean you have to marry the person. Dating should be enjoyable and a good way to meet different people. When going out on a date, remind yourself that you do not have to commit to a long-term relationship. This should help reduce your anxiety.

Dating is a way to meet new people. When going out on a first date, just be yourself. Talk to your date as if you were talking to your other friends. If you start to feel nervous, take a deep breath remind yourself that there is nothing to be nervous about.

What is the worse that can happen? Learn from your mistakes if the date does not go well. Try to learn what you did wrong and try to improve on your next date. Also ask your friends for advice or read some books on how to date. There are many helpful books on the right ways of dating.

Take it one date at a time. Do not look too far ahead into the future. Focus on the present. If you start to focus on what will happen next week or next month, you will start to become anxious. Concentrate on your current date.

If dating makes you nervous, then try to get to know the person better through different group activities. Get some friends together and invite your person of interest to come along in a group setting. This will help you to get to know the person better without getting stress and anxious.

Take advantage of the help that is available around you. If possible, talk to a professional who can help you manage your anxieties of dating. They will be able to provide you with additional advice and insights on how to deal with your current problem. By talking to a professional, a person will be helping themselves in the long run because they will become better able to deal with their problems in the future.

Once you get into the habit of dating, then your anxiety and fears will go away. Dating is just a way to meet someone. You asked this person for a date because you had an interest in that person. Use that motivation to decrease your fears and anxieties.

Is Alprazolam Effective For Treating Anxiety Disorders?

2009-04-21T03:45:00.000-07:00

Do you have sudden bouts of anger or nightmares? Are you a worrier? Do you feel out of control? Do you get so nervous that it causes dizziness? If you have any such symptoms then chances are you are suffering from anxiety disorders. Anxiety is, in one way, very normal: everyone experiences it. It is also a very unpleasant experience, which results from psychological problems.

Anxiety attacks happen when stress levels go out of control. Pressure from situations affects different people differently. When your own limit is crossed, you start feeling anxiety.

Alprazolam is one drug that can help you to deal with this problem. It was invented by Pfizer and is available under the brand name Xanax. It belongs to the class benzodiazepine.

While Alprazolam is very effective with anxiety, certain doctors are hesitant to use it due to the possibility of dependency and interdose anxiety. Alprazolam is very short acting. Alprazolam can be taken as needed although normal dosage should not exceed 4-6 times a day due to danger of dependency.

It can be used for long-term treatment of anxiety, but only if other therapies do not work. In this case, Alprazolam can be taken for 4 months or so. A qualified psychiatrist must make this decision, after taking into consideration every factor of a patient?s life and current medical status.

SSRIs like sertraline or fluoxetine are normally taken along with Alprazolam at the beginning of long-term SSRI anxiety treatment. This is done to avoid the anxiogenic effects of any SSRI course. Tricyclic antidepressants and busprione can also be used along with Alprazolam in some cases.

Sometimes, it can also be used in order to cure extreme cases of Borderline Personality Disorder.

While the actual working of the drug is not fully known, it is rapidly absorbed in the gastrointestinal tract. Peak concentration is normally achieved in 1-2 hours. The drug is mostly bound to the plasma protein albumin. In the liver, it gets hydroxylated. The side products are excreted through urination.

There are many reasons as to why people experience anxiety or panic attacks. It can be mental response to intolerable stress resulting from severe emotional concerns that might be related to the individual or the surroundings. The individual's lifestyle plays a big role in this. Anxiety orders usually take some time to develop so early diagnoses can really help much more than drugs. Unfortunately, there are very few symptoms to monitor until the problem has fully grown.

The good news is that managing anxiety disorders is now possible. Anxiety or stress related issues, with normal everyday life no longer requires drugs to be treated.

Alprazolam really helps you to manage anxiety and insomnia and is usually preferred over other benzodiazepine drugs. Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) can also be treated with Alprazolam.

Disclaimer - The information presented here should not be interpreted as or substituted for medical advice. Please talk to your doctor for more information about Alprazolam.
Copyright ? 2006, Heather Colman. Find more Alprazolam resources at alprazolam-hub.info.

Overcome Anxiety

2009-04-13T22:34:00.000-07:00

If you suffer from severe anxiety you are not alone. Over 19 million Americans today, are overwhelmed by anxiety and fear that significantly interferes with their daily lives. When this occurs, it is known as an anxiety disorder.

Anxiety disorders are very real and not something that you can just "snap out of." Anxiety can manifest itself in the form of emotions like fear, panic and depression as well as physically in the form of headaches, nausea, and dizziness. The cause is sometimes physiological for others psychological but often a combination of the two. In any case, although anxiety disorders are serious and can be terrifying, the good news is simple mental exercises offer relief.

Findings by Harvard, Columbia, and other medical researchers show that by using a skill like letting go or releasing, anxiety symptoms can be lessened and in many cases eliminated altogether. Releasing is a mental exercise similar to prayer or meditation but independent of religious and spiritual teachings. The skill is easily learned. It has been taught to children as well as adults and once learned can be used during a stressful event or in quiet reflection.

Releasing is different from repression where feelings such as anxiety are pushed down inside, stored in the psyche and often expressed at a later time. Instead the anxiety or other feelings are let go, or released from the mind, and when done properly, the result is permanent. As with any skill the results get better with practice as has been shown by the many users of this skill.

Releasing was popularized by a 42 year old scientist named Lester Levinson after a near death experience. Lester had a massive heart attack and was given very little hope for survival. He was sent home to be on bed rest indefinitely. What he discovered following his heart attack and subsequent death sentence allowed him to cheat death and open the doors to effortless success, happiness, and life for many, many people.

You probably know some famous people who have learned this exercise. Joan Collins of the television show Dynasty, Tom Hopkins a nationally known sales trainer, Shaun Cassidy the music and television star, and John Wooden the winningest college basketball coach of all time, and many others have benefited from learning to let go and release.

For more information about releasing and learning the skill visit ZeroLimitLife.com. You can view a copy of the releasing white paper and you'll get an opportunity to take a Free 5 part mini-course on releasing.

Fun and Easy Ways to Anxiety Attack

2009-04-09T05:28:00.000-07:00

If you have always wanted to know more about this topic, then get ready because we have all the information you can handle.

Have you ever wondered what exactly is up with anxiety attack? This informative register can give you an insight into everything you've ever wanted to know about anxiety attack.

Your breathing abruptly accelerates, yet you're scarcely able to mend your breath. sickness and giddiness combine with a manic inflated sympathy rate. The surroundings appear to be collapsing around you. You're shaking and trembling. A hooligan headache and throbbing begins. You're destabilized, and concern and uncertainty crunch heavily across your mind.

The anxiety panic attack has just begun.

From what you have read so far, determine if this article has answered any of the questions that you had on this complicated subject.

Women have almost twice the charge of anxiety panic disorder than men, with an estimated 2 to 3 million Americans exploring techniques for overcoming anxiety. Anxiety panic attacks typically commence in early adult living and, except identified and treated with also psychiatric counseling or medicinal or herbal intervention, can enlarge and intensify into profoundly life-altering phobias and ritualized and self-limiting behavior.

What Are "Typical" Anxiety Panic Attack Physical Symptoms? What others see, and what sufferers experience, is the gnawing crush of concern and uncertainty...immediately unwilling social and immediate actions as the anxiety panic attack drives the sufferer to request refuge.

Anxiety attack "triggers" could be anything. Spiders, crag edges and heights, elevators, water immersion, divorce, known speaking, operation into somebody you abhor or who has provoked you. First response? Avoidance. trice and third responses? Instant-on anxiety attack, with full-on physiological play of stress signaling as mind tempo rises, breathing becomes difficult, dream goes awry, faintness kicks in. By now, simply "thinking" of the stress provoking position triggers a full-on force of stress hormones counting cortisol and corticotropin.

Isolation and defiant social manners is not so greatly externally directed as self-directed in order to coin a "safety margin" where stress factors can be detained at bay.

Now that we've roofed those aspects of anxiety attack, let's transform to some of the other factors that need to be considered.

Sources Of Stress Lead To Anxiety Panic Disorder. By the time obsessive compulsive deeds sets in, the anxiety disorder sufferer is well on the way to a sustained chronic condition. Obviously, deduction of key "triggers" is dangerous to overcoming anxiety.

What about "underlying causes"? Depression, alcohol and drug addiction and abuse, sustained stress, indigent sleep and digestion generate the optimal conditions that make a qualities vulnerable to an anxiety panic attack.

Natural Anxiety Remedy Options. For many panic attack victims, the aggressive substance overlaps of prescription drugs, their gross interference with so many bodily functions and hormonal balance, move people to take alternative solutions with acupuncture, meditation, problem and even alleged anxiety herbs.

Natural serotonin and norepinephrine supplements have been exposed to be productive in creating long call inhibition to anxiety panic attacks and depression. receiving serotonin levels balanced induces restfulness and enhanced sleeping.

Anxiety Meds. There's Big Money in anxiety disorder medication, especially when the intense need of sufferers intersects with speculative psychiatric concept and high-margin pharmacological drugs. although a litany of plane effects with drug dependency, mental sluggishness, impacted speech, confusion, disrupted bodily functioning, sexual dysfunction and even the "rebound" contact of intensified anxiety panic attacks if unwilling anxiety medicine is beyond or discontinued, prescription drugs are aggressively handed out to "help people get through the day".

The best programs for sufferers are professionally managed, united psychiatric intervention along with tenderly balanced dosages of FDA official anxiety meds with recognized cast names like Prozac, Indoral, Xanax, Valium, Librium, Serax and others.

Explore additional data regarding depression, anxiety panic attacks and inborn options for running your intellect health and moods while promoting inborn relax and life cycles.

It never hurts to be well-informed with the newest on anxiety attack. balance what you've educated here to coming articles so that you can adjourn alert to changes in the sphere of anxiety attack.

This article is meant to both inform and entertain those who read it. Hopefully, we have (will) accomplished both goals for you.

Ohyounew M. is the owner of Anxiety Attack Info How to find the best Anxiety Attack , to protect family and yourself, even if you know nothing about Anxiety Attack http://www.acne-proactive-treatment.com/anxiety-attack/.

Four Excellent Tips To Avoid Panic And Anxiety

2009-04-05T04:11:00.000-07:00

There are moments in a person?s life that just leads him to feel overpowered by an uncontrollable fear of something that hinders him to do what he is supposed to do. He is then led to worry too much, lose focus and concentration, and leave him immobile for a certain instance.

These moments are things that cause panic (uncontrolled fear) and anxiety (over-worrying).

These moments cannot be totally removed from the human way of living, but there sure are ways on how to avoid experiencing panic and anxiety in these situations by following some lifestyle changes.

Here are some tips to follow to avoid panic and anxiety attacks.

1. See a doctor for anti-depressants or anti-anxiety Prescription drugs.

Medicines are proven effective in preventing anxiety and panic attacks by calming the nervous system. Unnecessary worrying or fear is minimized this way.

However, some medicines have side effects too, so it is best to consult with a doctor first to find out what is best for you.

2. Know more about panic and anxiety.

The best way to fight anxiety and panic is to know more about it. There are a lot of references available online. Here are some of the things that you need to know.

- What is anxiety and panic? What are the symptoms?

Most people try to deny what they are going through because of wrong notions about panic and anxiety. But the more you know about the attacks, the easier it is for you to get past the denial stage. And the more you accept things as they are, the easier it will be to address them properly.

- What are the remedies?

With these facts, you will be more informed when you consult with a doctor. You will also understand more about what the doctor will be telling you. In that way, it will be easier for you to know the pros and cons of the remedies.

3. Seek help.

Some people prefer to keep these problems to themselves, thus making the situation more complicated.

You may be able to push yourself through the anxiety and panic attacks a day at a time. But if you are seeking for a long-term solution, you need to ask for help.

Here are some of the persons that can help you overcome panic and stress attack.

- A Doctor
- Support Groups
- A close friend
- A guidance councilor

4. You must cope with stress by changing your lifestyle.

Some lifestyle modifications must be made to avoid panic and anxiety attacks:

- Find ways to relax

You must adopt physical and mental activities to release tension. You can try doing yoga, pilates, regular exercises, muscle contractions, and simple deep breathing.

- Get ample sleep

Sleeping is the best and easiest way to prevent build-up of tension.

- Avoid alcohol and caffeine

These things will just make things worse. Instead of relaxing, or giving focus, they will just add up to the tension build-up.

- Control and confront

You cannot live your whole life running away from things that give you fear or worry. In the process of learning how to control your worry and confronting the issues, you must equip yourself with a stronger personality that will overcome panic and anxiety attacks.

These things will help you cope up with anxiety and panic attacks. Follow the tips and start looking at things positively; and surely, panic and anxiety threats will be part of history.

Jeff Miles shows you on his free website how to stop panic and anxiety attacks: little-Known, safe and powerful techniques to totally eliminate panic and anxiety out of your life, even if the doctors have given up. To find out more just visit the website: http://www.panic-anxiety-attack-guide.com

Pets Home Alone - Separation Anxiety

2009-04-01T23:17:00.000-07:00

Once again, a new school year has begun. Consequently, some parents are dealing with separation anxiety issues with their children. And, with busier school and activity schedules, it's also the time when pet parents may begin to notice separation anxiety symptoms in their companion animals, too.

The most common definition of separation anxiety is that when left alone, your pet exhibits destructive behaviors. There are differences of opinion among pet professionals regarding the diagnosis and treatment of this complex behavioral issue, but all are trying to achieve the same result - the reduction and/or elimination of these destructive and harmful behaviors. The information presented here is intended to help you identify whether your companion animal might be suffering from your absence, and to provide some idea of available treatment options.

Although more common in canines, separation anxiety can be exhibited in both dogs and cats. In dogs, the destructive behaviors can include: constant barking; destroying furniture; chewing doors or the walls; ripping apart books; urinating and/or defecating in the house; and self-abuse (like chewing their paws raw). In cats, separation anxiety manifests itself in any of the following ways: indoor spraying; urinating or defecating in closets or on clothes; refusing to eat or drink; and hiding from you when you are at home.

Professionals attribute separation anxiety to a wide array of internal or external causes, or a combination of both. External causes range from changes in the environment, a lack of exercise or stimulation, and changes in behavior of the pet parents. Internal causes can include illness, persistent pain, nervousness, being in season and negative physiological changes due to poor diet.

To determine whether your companion animal might be suffering from separation anxiety, ask yourself these questions:

* Does your pet exhibit unusual behavior when you are getting ready to leave the home?

* Does the destructive behavior occur only when you are not at home?

* Does your pet greet you frantically, following closely wherever you go when you are home?

If all of these are true for your pet, you could be dealing with separation anxiety. Once you have established that your companion might be experiencing separation anxiety, it's critical that you are aware of the following:

* Do not punish your pet when you arrive home and discover the damage - this will only aggravate the problem.

* Do not bring another pet into your home. Introducing another being at this time will only add additional stress. Although it seems logical (i.e., your anxious pet will now have a companion), the separation anxiety is due to your absence.

* Do not make a big production out of leaving or entering your home. There is strong support for a relationship between your displays of heightened emotion at these times and the destructive behavior of your companion animal.

There are numerous training techniques that can help you deal with this pressing issue. These usually incorporate desensitization strategies as well as changes in your own behavior. We advise consulting a professional trainer or animal behaviorist for the best way to deal with your unique situation.

As with all training, affecting behavioral changes takes time. Here are some short-term solutions that can help to alleviate these symptoms while you are away from home.

* Have a friend or relative care for your pet.

* Place your pet in a day care facility.

* Bring your pet to work.

If none of these options are available to you, there are other stress reducers you can try on your own. When leaving your home, give your dog a toy (be sure it's one that's safe for him or her to have without supervision) like a treat ball - this will keep your dog occupied and provide a source of pleasure and gratification that your dog will learn to associate with your absence. For cats, make sure they have unobstructed views through windows, use a water fountain, play soft music or a DVD with birds and butterflies to engage their attention. For both dogs and cats, try leaving a pillowcase or a recently-worn article of clothing in an area where they commonly stay - just the smell of you may bring them some comfort.

The time you spend now addressing this issue could save you and your companion animal grief and distress in the future. If you suspect that your companion animal is experiencing separation anxiety, we strongly recommend you speak with your vet and a trainer with whom you feel comfortable. With patience, persistence and a lot of love, you can help your pet overcome this syndrome.

Lori Matthews studies health, nutrition and wellness. Enjoys writing articles on health for both people and pets. Please visit Premium Dog Food for more information.

The Four Fake Anxiety Attack Symptoms - Avoid The Trap

2009-03-25T00:52:00.000-07:00

If you have experienced any anxiety attacks, you have for sure seen that they come with a variety of symptoms affecting your body; they range from difficult breathing to a strong chest pain, to a "like you are dying" feeling. The most popular anxiety attack symptoms are also the fake ones, i.e. they're not the real expression of the problem you are experiencing. Let's see why this is true.

Shortness of breath is the most frequent anxiety attack symptom. Its popularity is due to the fact that many people feel other anxiety symptoms and this make them panic. This panic then expresses itself as shortness of breath. The simple advice here is that if you are experiencing shortness of breath, realize that this is just part of an anxiety attack and your world is not caving in. Shortness of breath is just expression of everything else you are already experiencing with your panic attack. This should help you to regain control more easily.

If you are in a crowded area you could experience another anxiety attack symptom: becoming lightheaded. This comes often from an underlying phobia about being in crowds. Even if you could think you are having a major problem, this is usually just one of the symptoms arising from anxiety attacks. So gain awareness and recover a little bit of more control, as with the previous symptom.

When you have an anxiety attack you'll find yourself with a pounding heart. Sometimes you could think you are going to have an heart attack, however this won't happen as you will be experiencing just anxiety.

Finally, fear of losing control is for sure another anxiety symptom winner. This is typically result of a mind game: you experience other symptoms, you start to feel nervous, then you realize that symptoms are not relieving, and finally you start to think you have a problem. Than you see that this problem is not solving, as your symptoms are not lighting, and finally you feel that you are loosing control. Now the game is done and you start to feel fear. And guess what? This fear will increase all the other symptoms. This is because usually the fear symptoms are really the same than the anxiety ones.

The short version of this story is that the major anxiety symptoms will often be the result of lighter anxiety symptoms and your mind games. And this will build into an anxiety snowball that increases in time with the upsetting condition if this is not resolved. So the previous four symptoms are at the end "fake" symptoms. This doesn't mean they don't exist. They're totally real. However the more you'll try to solve them, the more you'll feel anxiety as they are expression of an underlying lack of control and you won't able to control them directly. You have to recover control on what is behind these symptoms instead.

This is for sure a feasible task. Remember that anxiety can be treated and once you learn to control your attack, you'll have your life back.

You have four main action items to start with: 1) Remember that your big symptoms are just a snowball result of small starting problems. Remembering what happened when you started to feel anxious could help you much more than anything else. 2) Do small actions that help you to regain control. 3) In the meanwhile, visit your physician and with his help define if your anxiety attacks require serious treatment or just a behavioural approach, just like the two above tips. 4) Know more about your anxiety and use this knowledge to regain control.

Discover more about the importance of correctly evaluating your anxiety attack symptoms at http://anxiety-panic-attack.thesolution2.com/Main/Anxiety-and-Panic-Attack-anxiety-symptom.php

Do a step further to solve your anxiety and panic attacks getting more at Mark Tern's Anxiety and Panic Attack Website (link: http://anxiety-panic-attack.thesolution2.com/), where you can find more resources and tips on dealing with panic and anxiety attacks.

Using Hypnosis for Job Interview Anxiety

2009-03-18T23:38:00.000-07:00

For many people, the very thought of a job interview can cause an attack of the nerves: butterflies in the stomach, dry mouth, and weak knees. Sometimes, the thought of a job interview can even trigger a panic attack. If this happens to you, you might be interested in some tips on using hypnosis for job interview anxiety.

If the thought of a job interview makes you nervous, you have what is called anticipatory anxiety, and it is very common. Many people have it over all sorts of situations. You need to try to relax and calm down, and there are several ways to do this.

First, make sure you are completely prepared for the interview, down to the fine detail of knowing exactly how to travel to the interview and contingencies in case of being delayed. Have your clothes picked out, any materials you are bringing ready, and make sure you get a good night?s sleep beforehand. Also remember that life goes on after the interview, so try to keep it all in perspective. Even if you don't get the job, you will have learned something worthwhile from the experience which you can improve upon in your next interview.

You should also practice some deep breathing exercises, breathing from the diaphragm and not your chest. This will trigger a relaxation response that will soon become second nature to you - it's called 7-11 breathing. You breath in for a count of 7, and out for a count of 11 and repeat this slow, deep breathing for a few minutes until your body quietens down. This forces your body to move out of the 'fight or flight' state, into a more useful, calmer state.

Now, if you do all of these things and you still feel nervous, you might want to consider using hypnosis for your job interview anxiety. Hypnosis is really no more than a way to get into a deeply relaxed state, during which you are able to access your unconscious mind, where your fears and anxiety are stored. You will be able to replace any negative thoughts you are having about your job interview with positive thoughts. For example, you can practice hearing you talk confidently, and answer tricky questions without being flustered. As a result, you will find that your anxiety over the interview is greatly relieved, and you'll go into your interview with an abundance of energy and confidence you canl give it your best.

Article by Lyndsay Swinton of 'How Hypnosis Works' http://www.hypnotics.co.uk This site explains how hypnosis works for all sorts of everyday problems and more unusual human troubles and challenges.

Curing Anxiety Without Medication: What the Professionals Don't Want You To Know

2009-03-18T06:00:00.000-07:00

As a psychotherapist in private practice for over a decade, I certainly have seen it all: watching my clients suffer through anxiety and stress, watching them go from medication to medication looking for "the right pill", and rarely finding it, spending inordinate amounts of money desparately trying to find the correct method to make their stress go away.

Can Anxiety Be Cured By A Pill or through Mental Health Counseling?

Anxiety is a complex issue...not just something that can be cured through popping a pill, or through one or two visits to a mental health counseling professional. And while a combination of both medication and counseling can be effective, unfortunately it can take years to see results...and often a lot of money.

If I Do Decide To Take Medication And See A Therapist, What Is The Best Type Of Therapy And Medication I Should Take To Help My Anxiety?

I can't answer that for you specifically, because every one is different (for example, you may have an allergy that precludes you from using a certain type of medication; Or you may not take well to a specific model of psychotherapy). That said, I can say that I have seen many of my clients do pretty well with what is known as "Cognitive Behavioral Therapy", in combination with a medication that their psychiatrist prescribed.

Isn't There Any Way To Get Rid Of My Anxiety Right Away, Instead Of Waiting The Years It Can Take For Medication and Counseling to Kick In?

Yes. For every year it takes to go through therapy and anti-anxiety medication, people can actually learn to make their anxiety disappear in 10 to 15 minutes. That doesn't mean that counseling and medication aren't viable options...but they are not the end-all cure-all for anxiety...they are merely supplements to help you get better. The majority of the work is done by "you". Not to mention...you save a great amount of your money and time.

Why Don't Psychiatrists Ever Tell You That You Can Learn to Make Your Anxiety Disappear On Your Own?

Bottom line: Because they need to make a living. Yes, they want to help you...and there are some darn good professionals out there in the field. But, the fact is, if the docs and shrinks let you know that you can learn to cure anxiety on your own in 10-15 minutes, they would lose a great deal of income.

Alexandra Mannock, MA, CAGS is a former psychotherapist who offers an amazing FREE "cure anxiety" 5-Day Mini-Course. If you want to know more "anxiety" or "stress"... and if you want to find out the secrets to curing your anxiety, you can access Alex's free mini-course at this site: http://www.anxietyzapper.com You can tell Alex what you think of this article and any other anxiety-related topic, by checking out http://www.power-over-anxiety.com and sending her an email! She would absolutely love to hear from you! You can also participate in her "blog!"

Separation Anxiety in dogs: the Signs

2009-03-16T04:39:00.000-07:00

If your dog shadows your every movement around the house when you're there, and sleeps on or near your bed, and IF it has trouble doing any different, it may have separation anxiety. Any destructive behavior will occur about 20 minutes to a half hour after you leave, so another way to figure it out is to plan on returning after that time on a few occasions. A dog with separation anxiety will not likely tolerate even being left in a separate room from you with a door closed between you.

Also the things they chew or destroy are most often "escape routes," such as doors or windows (they believe may lead them directly to you). Also, they may munch items that they associate with you by smell. Although it can seem like a vindictive reaction, I assure you it's usually more a nervous one.

If you return home to find that your dog pees or poops in a number of different locations in the house, AND they do not appear guilty about it when you return home, they may be manifesting their separation anxiety. The dog in question may be beyond the house training stage, and the fact of the different accident locations is a sign that they are not continually returning to a scent "marked" location and confusing it with an appropriate place to go.

A dog that barks or whines continually when you are away is also admitting - to your neighbors if not to you - that they have a bad case of separation anxiety.

Separation anxiety is one of the most common problems dogs develop, and is an unsurprising result of our practice of domesticating them. They are social animals, and they crave a pack environment. The good news is there are simple and proven solutions.

Martin Olliver has over 12 years experience in dog training and is a proud member of the Kingdom of Pets team (http://www.kingdomofpets.com). For more great articles on dog training, including "Separation Anxiety: some Solutions," visit: http://kingdomofpets.com/dogobediencetraining/articles/separation_anxiety_in_dogs.php.

Separation Anxiety in dogs: First Things First

2009-03-08T23:06:00.000-07:00

There is a fine line between a dog having an acute case of separation anxiety and an acute case of boredom, especially for puppies. You need to make sure that your dog is getting an adequate amount of exercise before you leave it for a period of time. Consider a 15 to 20 minute walk, fetch session, or playtime as an absolute minimum. Beyond the puppy stage, most dogs will function - and behave - best with about and hour and a half of physical activity each day.

When you are away, also ensure your puppy has something to do - chew toys, rawhide treats, or even their favorite slimy ball. If it's at all possible, and your dog does not habitually bark or growl at passing people or dogs, give your dog a view so they can watch the world pass by when they can't be romping around in it.

You also need to rule out any sort of medical condition first; for example, a physical condition may be the main cause of the toilet accidents, and a neurological condition could be the real source of the anxiety, especially if it occurs at times outside of your absences.

Finally, you MUST puppy-proof your home. This means making sure all garbage containers are sealed off and inaccessible. Any food on your kitchen counter is cleared away (you'd be surprised at how agile dogs can be when no one is watching). Any household items that are at risk should be put away.

There are items that you can't protect easily, such as doors and carpets. If you do return home to find these damaged, remember that they are repairable and replaceable. You should never punish your dog after the fact. They will not associate the punishment with the crime. And the fact that they may now also fear the one person they're longing for, it will make their separation anxiety much much worse.

Separation Anxiety in dogs: What exactly is it?

2009-03-04T21:51:00.000-08:00

There was the usually mild-mannered Pit-bull puppy named Savannah who chewed through the bottom of a door and part of the hardwood floor just underneath it. There was Jasper the Corgi who was kept in a pen on a deck and managed to push it to the edge, chew through a pair of wooden bars, and leap to freedom. And there was my own first pup, an adopted Labrador-Rottweiler cross named Lea, who chewed 40 pages right from the book I was reading after I had left for work one morning.

These are of course a few of the most extreme and most memorable cases of separation anxiety that I've addressed over the years. Separation anxiety is not simply a dog making trouble in the house when you are not in it. It is a condition that puts the dog in a heavy state of panic when you depart, and can manifest itself in various ways: destructive behavior, toilet accidents inside, or excessive barking, howling and whining.

It can also manifest itself in severe depression (inactivity), and incessant panting, shaking, and drooling when the owner is away. Upon return, hyperactivity, and an excessive and uncontrollable greeting are also strong indications. While medications are sometimes an option, it is almost always remedied through training, and some quality time.

The source of this condition is no real puzzle. If you consider that puppies are typically taken from their mother when they are several weeks old, and brought into a home in which their master may go off to work for much of the day, anxiety should come as no surprise. For adopted or pet store dogs, the situation can be much worse. These dogs have been through a succession of care-takers in a very short time, and don't trust anyone to stick around. Who can blame them?

Anxiety Symptons Are Common

2009-02-27T23:12:00.000-08:00

Anxiety is a type of mental state that is the result of combination of negative emotions such as fear, apprehension and worry. The people suffering from it have physical reactions like palpitations, chest pain, breathlessness, nausea etc. However contrary to popular thinking a normal amount of anxiety is very important for the survival of any organism.

When anxiety crosses the normal limit and hinders normal functioning of a person it results in a mental state termed as anxiety disorder. There are a variety of anxiety disorders. The common ones are social anxiety disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, phobias, panic disorder, separation anxiety and obsessive-compulsive disorder. These disorders have different symptoms and characteristics, however generally anxiety has the symptoms mentioned below.

Cognitive Symptoms: Increase in blood pressure, increased heart beating, palpitations (irregular heart beat), sweating, increase in blood flow in the body, immune and digestive functioning is inhibited, irritated bowel movement, head aches, tingling, chest pain, rubbery legs, etc.

Somatic Symptoms: Paling of skin, sweating, trembling, dilation of eye pupils, dizziness, twitching of facial muscles, stuttering etc.

Emotional Symptoms: An expectation of threat, dread, panic, nausea and chills, irritation, insomnia, isolation, feeling overly self conscious, strong desire to escape, jumpiness, feeling that you will die etc.

Behavioral: These are voluntary and involuntary reactions such as screaming, running, jumping etc to escape or avoid the source or perceived source of anxiety. Symptoms differ according to the disorder.

Social Anxiety: It is a type of extreme shyness where the person avoids social situations causing disruption in social and professional relationships.

Generalized Anxiety Disorder: A person suffering from this feels continuous apprehension to vague and diffused threats. The physical symptoms like fatigue, sleepiness, stomach upsets etc are usual.

Phobia: It involves extreme and unrealistic fear of an object, activity, situations (example, spider, swimming or confined spaces). The person tries to avert the fear by any measure.

Panic Disorder: It has the symptoms of repeated and sudden panic attacks.

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder: Its symptoms include unwanted thoughts and behavior like frequently washing hands, thinking of accidents to near ones etc. Separation Anxiety: The fear of separation from parents, siblings, spouse and children etc.

If you are suffering from any of the symptoms above, you should consult a doctor. Also a variety of treatment/therapies/techniques are available to cure anxiety like medicines, cognitive behavioral therapy, proper diet, exercise, laughter therapy, yoga, breathing techniques, relaxation methods etc. Many experts believe the fundamental cause behind anxiety is boredom and the search for a meaningful purpose in life.
Keith George always writes about valuable news & reviews. A related resource is Anxiety Symptons Further information can be found at About Health

Getting To Know Anxiety

2009-02-20T04:11:00.000-08:00

Have you ever been in a situation, where you felt uneasy because of something you think you may have forgotten to do, such as switching off an appliance at home, or perhaps a feeling that you annoyed someone whom you wanted to get along with really well. If you have experienced such feelings and worse on a regular basis, then you most probably are a victim of anxiety attacks.

All of us, to some extent, have experienced anxiety and at different levels. There are some things you may know about anxiety, and some things that you may not be familiar with. So in order to be prepared for your next encounter with a feeling of anxiety, you need to get to know what anxiety is before it escalates into a panic attack.

Anxiety is simply the feeling of discomfort, uneasiness and or fear of what may eventually happen resulting from a perceived, imagined, or a real threatening condition. On the extreme end panic attacks can occur due to heightened feelings of anxiety.

There are two main categories of symptoms during an anxiety/panic attack and these are physical and emotional symptoms. Physical symptoms include difficulty in breathing, shaking , sensations of heat, rapid heartbeat and fatigue. Whereas emotional symptoms deal with excessive worrying, depression, fear, irritability and lack of focus.

Now you may be thinking, that anxiety is only caused in situations where you are faced with an impeding threat and have no other option but to face it. In reality, this is not true as anxiety can occur in unthreatening conditions too . For example, imagine that you have been chosen to speak in front of a large audience and the reason you were picked amongst your other hundred colleagues is because you are regarded as the best. In such an encounter, you will feel proud that you were picked from a hundred other people but at the same time the thought of having to speak in front of a large crowd can trigger anxiety. In such cases you get a mixed feeling of both positive and negative anxiety.

In spite of the negative impression we have for anxiety, it is not dangerous in any way what so ever. If you thought that anxiety is dangerous and will threaten your health then you need to think again, because all this is merely a false perception of anxiety. Feeling a little shaky and or having a feeling of ?butterflies in the stomach? is pretty normal.

Panic attacks however, are far more dangerous and should be a concern to your health. Panic can sometimes result in dizziness, blurred vision, difficulty in breathing due to a tight chest and in extreme scenarios a victim can feel faintish where they may or may not, end up unconscious. The major problem with panic attacks is that most victims think they are going through a stroke and this further aggravates the current condition. So the best way to differentiate anxiety from any serious illness is to consult a medical expert on a regular basis.

So all in all you must understand that the feeling of anxiety is not bad in any way, in fact it?s more of a defensive inherent feeling which protects us from possible danger by engaging a response within us in fight or flight situations. So it?s not the ?bad guy,? you just have to learn how to control it.

Jason Rickard is the owner of Your Favourite Shop - Offering White Noise and Relaxation CDs - Visit Hapa Health for more articles.

Anger and Stress: Can Confronting A Mean-Spirited Person Reduce Your Anxiety?

2009-02-16T03:22:00.000-08:00

One of the major points I make in an "anxiety self-help" ebook I just released is that if you are nice to others, it will come back to you in incredibly positive ways! And conversely, if you are mean to someone, remember...as they say..."Be careful of what you think or say to others. It will come back to you three fold."

I must elaborate on this...

Listen, when someone is not very nice to you, it doesn't feel particularly good. Doesn't it just make ya want to say all sorts of horrible things to that person??!! Getting angry and wanting to spout off to that particular individual is a natural response...so, don't worry.

Here's the thing...remember how outrageously awful it feels to have someone criticize, belittle, devalue, or undermine you. Now, hold that thought for a moment...

This is the difficult part:

...I ask that you walk in that "mean" person's shoes for a moment...think about how low their self-esteem must be, for them to have to say such nasty things to you...try to feel their depressive state. Think about how injured their ego must be...how sad and insecure they must feel inside. The key is to to make a sincere effort to empathize (i.e. walk in their shoes) with that person. Try...as difficult as it may be...to feel what they may be feeling.

Next...Let go of these thoughts...release any thinking of this person's experience.

Now...Whether you are alone in the room or seeing a counselor, bring thoughts into your mind of how horrible YOU felt when they said these distasteful and uncalled-for things to you. Feel your own pain...let yourself experience feeling angry...cry...emote...or punch a pillow if you must! Write your feelings down if ya have to! Personally, I'm a big fan of writing down one's feelings in a journal. (Note: Sometimes anger can really overwhelm someone. If you feel more comfortable thinking about and expressing feelings of anger with a counselor present, then by all means, do so!)

Next...think...take a huge breath, come into your rational state of mind...get out of your "reactionary" mode and into a more "proactive" mode. Consider the appropriate words you might like to say to that person without being totally cruel, relentless, and stooping to his or her level.

Then, wait until the next day (usually it helps to wait a day or two) in order to be refreshed, think logically, and feel calmer. Remember...you were A LOT more anxious at the moment that person verbally tore you apart, than you are when you are relaxed and refreshed the next day. That's why it's important that you take the time to sleep it off, get relaxed, and feel calmer.

Next, take a pen to paper and write down what you'd like to say to that person...how you'd like to express yourself. Perhaps you'd like to tell that that person how much he or she hurt you. It may take awhile to come up with the words. But you must determine a way to say what you need to say to that person, in a firm but non-abusive manner.

Now...here's the weird part...

Did you know that expressing your feelings in a cruel, unbridled, uncensored, reactionary way actually GIVES you MORE anxiety!???

Yep! It does! And so that is why I emphasize "thinking things out" before you speak or write to that person..."rationalizing" and using logic while in a calm state of mind, when expressing your retort to that not-so-nice individual!

You see...even though you are saying something distasteful to that individual, you are stating it in a way that won't make you MORE anxious/stressed...you are being the responsible, character-filled, "bigger" adult in this scenario...and that means a lot!

Conclusion...

So...bottom line...when you find yourself in a confrontative situation where someone is mistreating you or is even downright verbally or mentally abusive toward you, take a step back, breath in, become logical, say what you have to say, but take the high road!

You'll find that your conscience will be clear...and that you are the better person! And most importantly, that your anxiety-level is significantly decreased.

Alexandra Mannock, MA, CAGS is a former psychotherapist who offers an amazing FREE "cure anxiety" 5-Day Mini-Course. Anxiety and "Anger" often accompany one another, so if you want to know more "anxiety" or "stress"... and if you want to find out the secrets to curing your anxiety, you can access Alex's free mini-course at this site: http://www.anxietyzapper.com

How to Get Rid of Panic and Anxiety through Self-help

2009-02-13T22:20:00.000-08:00

In our lives, we all want peace and happiness. We hope for a happy and pleasant environment around us all the time. However, to have all this we must be living in an ultimate world. However, we all know that our world is not ideal and tensions, panicky situations and anxieties arise every now and then.

However, we should not be afraid of them and whenever these situations arise we must be armed to deal with them in the most efficient manner possible. For this, we must first be able to examine our emotions and accept them as they are. Understanding the emotions can help you to learn to control the emotions without allowing the devastating feelings and emotions take control. As the last step, we must try to transform all such negative emotions like anxiety and panic into encouraging ones. Anxiety has often been connected with worry and both are understood as the same emotion. Nevertheless, this is not true because although both are forms of fear but anxiety is related more to time and resources constraints whereas worry is a result of an anxiety that something we plan will not work out well.

Anxiety occurs because sometimes we need to complete a tight-string project and we fall in a rush. The project is of greatest importance and because of shortage of time or any other contributing factor you will not be able to terminate it to perfection or on time.

Often worry also results from the same reasons. Nevertheless, the major difference here that we must recognize is that it may not just be a result of lack of resources but may be also due to some problem with your child or spouse or any other personal issue. Worries are a result of our personal attachments with certain beings or things.

Since childhood, all these feelings are absorbed by our mind. We see the way people react to certain situations and emulate them. While some people behave in appositive manner to situations other don't. Whichever affects us more determines how we behave to those situations.

To throw away all these anxieties and worries one must follow a proper system and diet. In helping you to reduce anxiety and panic situations, the below mentioned points will go a long way.

1. Regular exercises like an early morning walk, jog, or aerobics. 2. Try yoga. It helps in getting better your blood flow and reduces hyperventilation. 3. Whenever a panic situation arises, try to concentrate with deep breathing. 4. Try meditation as a solution searching method. 5. Follow a healthy low fat and high vitamin diet.

Following the aforementioned routine and steps will help you in freeing yourself from negative thoughts and emotions and creating a positive atmosphere around you. Try these positive countermeasures to anxiety whenever it strikes.

1. We must accept that whatever is happening to us has no purpose to harm us. We must give whatever we do, our best shot but it is useless to worry about the results. Once you have given it, your best shot there is no reason why you should fail, so why panic. 2. We must have self-belief in ourselves. We must tell ourselves that nothing is impossible unto us and that we can face all the problems of life without giving up on them. 3. We should never think low about ourselves. Like everyone else, we are all humans and have equal rights to life. We should never worry about what others think about us because at the end of the day you are your best judge. 4. You must be reminiscent yourself at all times that life is meant for being lived every moment and not for worrying every moment what the next will bring about.

Summary:

Understanding the emotions can help you to learn to control the emotions without allowing the devastating feelings and emotions take control. To throw away all these anxieties and worries one must follow a proper system and diet. Here are some points that will help you reduce anxiety and panic situations.

Nishanth Reddy is an author and publisher of popular Self Help Blog. For more information on anxiety, panic and how to get rid of anxiety & panic situations visit:http://www.selfhelpzone.com/category/anxiety-panic/

When A Relative Struggles With Fear And Anxiety

2009-02-04T22:50:00.000-08:00

You have a relative that struggles with fear and anxiety. What can you do? The first thing you need to do is to get the person to seek the services of a professional who can lead them in the right direction and give them the help they need. In addition, here are some other techniques you can use to help your relative cope.

Learn as much as you can in managing anxiety and depression. There are many books and information that will educate you on how to deal with fear and anxiety. Share this information with the person who is struggling. Education is the key in finding the answers your looking for in managing your fears.

In every anxiety-related situation you experience, begin to learn what works, what does not work, and what you need to improve on in managing your fears and anxieties. For instance, you have a lot of anxiety and you decide to take a walk to help you feel better. The next time you feel anxious you can remind yourself that you got through it the last time by taking a walk. This will give you the confidence to manage your anxiety the next time around.

Be understanding and patient with the person struggling with their fears. Dealing with depression and anxiety can be difficult for the person so do not add more problems than what is already there.

Another thing to remember is that things change and events do not stay the same. For instance, you may feel overwhelmed today with your anxiety and feel that this is how you will feel the rest of the week or month. This is not correct. No one can predict the future with one hundred percent accuracy. Even if the thing that you feared does happen there are circumstances and factors that you cannot predict which can be used to your advantage. You never know when the help and answers you are looking for will come to you.

Challenge your negative thinking with positive statements and realistic thinking. When encountering thoughts that make your fearful or anxious, challenge those thoughts by asking yourself questions that will maintain objectivity and common sense. For example, you are afraid that if you do not get that job promotion then you will be stuck at your job forever. This depresses you, however your thinking in this situation is unrealistic. The fact of the matter is that there all are kinds of jobs available and just because you do not get this job promotion does not mean that you will never get one. In addition, people change jobs all the time, and you always have that option of going elsewhere if you are unhappy at your present location. Changing your thinking can help you manage your fears.

When your fears and anxieties have the best of you, seek help from a professional. The key is to be patient, take it slow, and not to give up. In time, you will be able to find those resources that will help you with your problems.

Four Immediately Applicable Tips to Avoid Panic and Anxiety

2009-02-01T22:12:00.000-08:00

There are moments in a person's life that just leads him to feel overpowered by an uncontrollable fear of something that hinders him to do what he is supposed to do. He is then led to worry too much, lose focus and concentration, and leave him immobile for a certain instance.

These moments are things that cause panic (uncontrolled fear) and anxiety (over-worrying).

These moments cannot be totally removed from the human way of living, but there sure are ways on how to avoid experiencing panic and anxiety in these situations by following some lifestyle changes.

Here are some tips to follow to avoid panic and anxiety attacks.

1. See a doctor for anti-depressants or anti-anxiety Prescription drugs.

Medicines are proven effective in preventing anxiety and panic attacks by calming the nervous system. Unnecessary worrying or fear is minimized this way.

However, some medicines have side effects too, so it is best to consult with a doctor first to find out what is best for you.

2. Know more about panic and anxiety.

The best way to fight anxiety and panic is to know more about it. There are a lot of references available online. Here are some of the things that you need to know.

- What is anxiety and panic? What are the symptoms?

Most people try to deny what they are going through because of wrong notions about panic and anxiety. But the more you know about the attacks, the easier it is for you to get past the denial stage. And the more you accept things as they are, the easier it will be to address them properly.

- What are the remedies?

With these facts, you will be more informed when you consult with a doctor. You will also understand more about what the doctor will be telling you. In that way, it will be easier for you to know the pros and cons of the remedies.

3. Seek help.

Some people prefer to keep these problems to themselves, thus making the situation more complicated.

You may be able to push yourself through the anxiety and panic attacks a day at a time. But if you are seeking for a long-term solution, you need to ask for help.

Here are some of the persons that can help you overcome panic and stress attack.

- A Doctor - Support Groups - A close friend - A guidance councilor

4. You must cope with stress by changing your lifestyle.

Some lifestyle modifications must be made to avoid panic and anxiety attacks:

- Find ways to relax

You must adopt physical and mental activities to release tension. You can try doing yoga, pilates, regular exercises, muscle contractions, and simple deep breathing.

- Get ample sleep

Sleeping is the best and easiest way to prevent build-up of tension.

- Avoid alcohol and caffeine

These things will just make things worse. Instead of relaxing, or giving focus, they will just add up to the tension build-up.

- Control and confront

You cannot live your whole life running away from things that give you fear or worry. In the process of learning how to control your worry and confronting the issues, you must equip yourself with a stronger personality that will overcome panic and anxiety attacks.

These things will help you cope up with anxiety and panic attacks. Follow the tips and start looking at things positively; and surely, panic and anxiety threats will be part of history.

Abbas Abedi--Attain immediate stress relief and permanent stress management skills. Visit:Stress Relief

Anxiety And How To Overcome It

2009-01-29T22:15:00.000-08:00

Feeling anxious every now and then is normal for everyone. What is not normal, is if it controls your whole life and it affects your choices in a negative way. If this happens, then you should seek professional advice as Anxiety is a condition that needs medical attention.

Anxiety can be healed non-medically but for some advanced cases, either a physician or a psychiatrist may need to be summoned. To free yourself from anxiety, you can try the good old method of easy and correct breathing. If you feel that you are close to succumbing to anxiety, breath as calmly as you possibly can. Do it until you can sense that your breathing and heartbeat becomes normal again.

Making decisions during the early phases of your anxiety can be dangerous. Your decision at that point may not be correct and certainly may not be the wisest. Try clearing your mind. If you are gripped with anxiety, you may act overly impulsive. Try to calm down and free your mind. Whisk away all your worries and try to focus more on the problem at hand.

You have to slow things down as an anxious person will have a tendency is to hurry things up. Anxiety triggers adrenaline that can make a person have the necessary power to think and work in a single snap. This may affect a person in a positive or negative way but it its best to think before you act.

Do not heed the anxious voice you hear at the back of your head. Most of the time, anxiety arises in the way you perceive things. Anxiety is both felt and thought. Try not to think of things that will make matters worst and exaggerate things all the more.

Solicit the help of your family and friends. When anxiety strikes, that?s the time you needed somebody the most. They should be able to lead you towards the right path. During this time, your own judgment is not that accurate, so you cannot really trust it. Shift your trust to somebody you deeply know.

Anxiety has to be taken out of your senses because it could just lead you to a situation far more dangerous situation than you could have ever imagined. Be mentally sound at all times and there is never a need to be anxious.

Jason Rickard is the owner of Your Favourite Shop - Offering White Noise and Relaxation CDs - Visit Hapa Health for more articles.

21 Things to Expect When Being Treated for Anxiety

2009-01-24T02:35:00.000-08:00

As a psychologist and counselor practicing in the Cary-Algonquin-Crystal Lake area of Illinois, I find that there are 21 essentials you can expect in your treatment for anxiety here.

But first, what are the symptoms of anxiety? 1. Excessive worry that is disproportionate to the situation 2. Muscle tension, restlessness or shakiness 3. Palpitations, butterflies, or nervousness 4. Being on edge, concentration problems or insomnia

If you have these symptoms you should seek counseling or psychotherapy. But if you begin treatment, what will your counselor do- how does therapy work?

1. Your therapist will ask you to explore your thought processes-the way you think. In many cases the type of thoughts you have cause your anxiety. Fearful, dreadful, pessimistic thoughts are, what I call, anxiogenic. That is they lead to anxiety.

2. You will be asked to identify major life conflicts, past and present, to determine how they may be affecting your anxiety. Often history still lingers in your present.

3. Your therapist may train you in various relaxation techniques to subdue the butterflies or worries. One such technique is the therapist guiding your imagination to condition more pleasant relaxed feelings to the anxiety-provoking stimuli.

4. The therapist may train you on how to sculpt your anxiety-provoking thinking patterns so your thoughts are not so pessimistic, scary or catastrophic.

5. You may be asked to identify a list of negative consequences resulting from your your anxious thinking processes which interfere in your life.

6. The possible benefits of herbs or medications might be explored to assess whether or not one or more might be helpful in making your life more comfortable.

7. You might be asked to consider that your anxiety has its own subconscious sales pitch which tricks you into believing that it is necessary and helpful. Some of these sales pitches convince the patient that without the active worrying, his life will be ambushed by a terrible event or catastrophe that will be unmanageable.

8. Once the sales pitch has been figured out your therapist will teach you how to dispute it so that your mind believes your disputation rather than the deceptive pitch of your anxiety.

9. Your therapist may hypnotize you so that your subconscious mind learns that you do not have to worry to protect yourself. When your subconscious believes it, so will your everyday conscious mind and the anxiety will disappear

10. The therapist may prescribe that you read and study some pamphlets or articles about anxiety and ask that you select relevant concepts to discuss with him in the session.

11. Your therapist will likely help you to develop an awareness of your relapse triggers and constructive ways to manage them.

12. You may be required to verbalize how your current living situation contributes to your anxieties and may act as a hindrance to your recovery.

13. If your living situation is seen as aggravating your anxiety, other interventions, such as marriage or family counseling, may be introduced to deal with it.

14. Your therapist will assist you in developing insight into the personal or career changes that may be needed in order to prevent a relapse of serious anxiety.

15. You may be encouraged to increase your awareness of how your upbringing may have affected you psychologically. Remember that often a traumatic past may linger or even lurk in your present.

16. Your therapist will likely support and encourage you when you begin to express relevant fear, rage and rejection relating to any abuse or neglect that you may have experienced.

17. In helping you to manage a traumatic past, your therapist may help you identify the role you played in your family,the feelings associated with it and its impact on the present.

18. The therapist may help you to identify self-defeating patterns relevant to your anxiety that exist in your present family or career situation and suggest ways of modifying them.

19. The therapist may prescribe psychological testing to expose any factors that may be neglected in isolating the causes of your anxiety.

20. You will be helped to identify sources of ongoing support and reassurance to effectively curtail and manage your anxiety.

21. If you are taking any related medications, their clinical and side effects will be monitored to be sure that they are contributing efficiently to a therapeutic outcome and not hampering it in any way.

Dr Shery is in Cary, IL, near Algonquin, Crystal Lake, Marengo and Lake-in-the-Hills. He's an expert marriage counselor and psychologist. Call 1 847 516 0899 and make an appt or learn more about counseling at: http://www.nextdayappointment.com

How Parents Can Beat School Anxiety In Teens

2009-01-12T21:48:00.000-08:00

Anxiety is such a gripping reality not only to people who are stressed out in the workplace, but it is something that teenagers also experience a great deal. School anxiety can even cause slight depression among teens. One major cause of anxiety in teens is comes from school. The different environment and the diverse people can cause a lot of pressure on a student. Add these up with tedious schoolwork and hectic curriculum activities; one can really say that school can cause a lot of severe anxiety.

Social exclusion is a serious issue among teens. This is also one cause of school anxiety. Having someone to talk to is very crucial during this stage. This is where parents should play an important role. Anxious teenagers need a lot of cheering up and someone to boost their morale; no other person can do this but their parents.

It is important that parents acknowledge the presence of anxiety in their children. They need to talk to them and try to understand the cause of their anxiety. Never underestimate their problem, even if it means just getting something done for a science project.

Always encourage your kids to make friends at school. This way, if parents are unable to be there in case they need them then their friends can lend a listening ear. Trust kids judgment in choosing their own set of friends.

Parents have the tendency to take matters in their own hands. If you feel that your kid is in an anxiety causing situation, allow them to work things out themselves. If things go over the line, for instance a teacher overloading students with impossible work loads, then that is the time to take needed action.

Don?t add to the pressure your kids have about school, this can cause them added anxiety. Never judge them outright because of their worries and let them know that you always have your shoulders for them to cry on. Having enough patience and understanding would definitely help you cope up with your kid?s anxiety. Teaching them the values of will power and confidence would eventually help beat anxiety themselves
Jason Rickard is the owner of Your Favourite Shop - Offering White Noise and Relaxation CDs - Visit Hapa Health for more articles.

Anxiety Attack Answers -Pills And Potions?

2009-01-09T01:39:00.000-08:00

We all get anxious sometimes. It is perfectly normal to feel anxiety on some occasions-giving a talk, dealing with a phobia such as flying, going for a job interview. It is when we feel anxious for no apparent reason and this anxiety attack persists and interferes with our normal life, that it becomes a disorder. That is when we need to seek the help of a doctor.

Doctors have found that different types of anxiety attacks respond to different types of medication. The clinician has a major responsibility in two areas: before prescribing, to carry out a thorough assessment of the patient's condition; and after prescribing, to monitor the response and whether side effects occur.

So which drugs might the doctor suggest? Broadly, they fall into two categories: anti-depressant drugs and anti-anxiety drugs.

There are three main types of anti-depressants. The first is SSRIs (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors). These are often the drug of choice for anxiety disorders because they correct the chemical imbalance in the brain that is the cause of anxiety attacks. They can include Calexa, Paxil, Prozac and Zoloft. They can have side effects-mainly nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, nervousness and sexual dysfunction. Most of these do not persist, but if they do, the dose needs to be adjusted.

The second type of anti-depressant is Tricyclics. These work by helping neurotransmitters such as serotonin work more effectively in the brain, and are especially effective for panic attacks. They are more likely to have side effects than SSRIs-the most noticeable being weight gain. Others can be drowsiness, dry mouth and dizziness.

The third main type of anti-depressant is MAOIs (monoamine oxidose inhibitors). These involve dietary restrictions so doctors prefer to try the others first. Anyone taking an MAOI must avoid wine and beer and any food containing tyramine such as cheese. They must also be very careful before taking any other medications, as these can interact with the drug to cause a sudden dangerous rise in blood pressure.

The other category is anti-anxiety drugs.

For an acute anxiety attack, the first choice is often short-term treatment with benzodiazepines. These relieve this condition by acting on the limbic system- the part of the brain from which our deepest emotional responses come. Common benzodiazepines include Ativan, Valium and Librium. Possible side effects can include agitation, confusion, drowsiness and impaired memory, though many patients escape these. However, the main problem is that some patients can become dependent or addicted. If a patient is known to have had a problem with addiction, such as drugs or alcohol, doctors sometimes prefer to prescribe a different medication such as BuSpar (not a benzodiazepine but an effective anti-anxiety agent that is not addictive).

It is essential that the patient understands that taking any sedative, particularly alcohol, in combination with benzodiazepines is potentially lethal. Of course, suffering from an anxiety attack makes it very tempting to drink alcohol and many do, resulting in serious and costly problems. Consequently the prescribing of benzodiazepines is restricted or monitored in many states.

For some patients, physicians may prefer to prescribe beta-blockers. These are drugs that are often used for heart and circulatory conditions like hypertension. However, because they work by preventing stress chemicals from increasing the heart rate, they are effective for patients with symptoms like palpitations, sweating and tremors. They are also helpful for social phobias and are useful when facing stressful social situations like public speaking.

If you think you are suffering from an anxiety attack disorder and feel the need to consult a physician for a prescription, remember that you have some responsibility, too. Do not just leave it all to the doctor. Do your own homework. Find out the drug's potential side effects and consider whether you could live with them. Be sure that your doctor is aware of other medications you are taking, including over-the-counter medicines. And take your doctor's advice on continuing or stopping the drug and what not to take in combination with it.

Finally, remember that solutions to anxiety attacks do not all reside in a bottle. There are other ways you can be helped-counseling, talk therapy, group therapy. Ask yourself if your lifestyle has contributed to the problem-for instance, diet, irregular sleep patterns or overwork.

And do not lose heart. Most anxiety attack disorders have a solution. Your doctor can help you find the one that is right for you.

Summary: We all get anxious sometimes due to some reason or the other. But if you get an anxiety attack without any apparent reason, it spells trouble. Then you know that you have to consult your doctor and start taking anti-anxiety prescription drugs to help you deal with the problem.

Author: Brooke Hayles
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Anxiety Attack Answers -Back To Nature

2008-11-27T21:36:00.000-08:00

Sleeplessness, tension, irritability, feelings of dread, constant worry. Who has not experienced these at one time or another?

Anxiety attacks and stress disorders are increasingly common in our society with so many pressures from every direction. Millions of Americans take prescription drugs to gain relief from many different types of anxiety attacks.

Though they are often effective, prescription medications have many drawbacks such as side effects and withdrawal symptoms. In addition, they do not address the underlying causes of the disorder. It is not surprising, therefore, that there is an increasing market for alternative solutions. In particular, natural or herbal remedies are becoming more and more popular with those who seek to avoid the problems associated with conventional medicines.

You may have decided that you do not want to risk experiencing the side effects associated with prescription drugs. If so, it could well be that an herbal remedy is the answer for you. But do not rush into it. Remember that natural remedies are not meant to treat long-term conditions. And some herbal remedies have side effects too. So talk to your doctor and find out as much you can. You need to find the solution that is right for you.

The one you are most likely to have heard of is St Johns Wort. It is the best known and most popular of the herbal anxiety remedies also known as 'Nature's Prozac'! This is because it works in a similar way to Prozac, by increasing the activity of brain neurotransmitters like serotonin. The effects can be seen in as little as two weeks. It is important to inform the person you are purchasing it from if you are taking any other medications, as there are some that cannot safely be combined with St Johns Wort.

Another popular remedy is Valerian Root, which has been used as a sleep aid for centuries. It is known for its ability to help relax the central nervous system, promote feelings of calm and reduce anxiety and stress levels, thus enhancing sleep - a great boon for many anxiety attack sufferers.

Vitamins, too, can help - notably the B-vitamins. B-vitamins are often called the 'stress vitamins', because they are the first nutrients to be depleted at times of stress. Like St Johns Wort, they can work on the neural pathways helping to synthesize neurotransmitters like serotonin and norepinephrine.

Other effective remedies include Passion Flower or Passiflora, a woody vine that has been used for centuries to improve mood and sleep difficulties by acting on the central nervous system; and Ashwaghanda Root, which provides a strengthening and calming effect.

One of the most effective of all is Kava Kava, a natural root extract known worldwide for helping to relieve anxiety attacks, depression and insomnia. Its effectiveness has been supported by a large number of clinical studies. It has also been shown to have fewer side effects than almost any other preparation.

There are two popular proprietary remedies that seem to have proven very beneficial for a large number of sufferers from anxiety attacks and other such related disorders. One of these is called PureCalm, which combines the soothing properties of Melissa Officinalis (balm), Passiflora (Passion Flower) and lavender. Many people have testified that it has brought relief from anxiety attacks, stress and irritability when nothing else worked. The other is Mindsoothe, which is suggested for more severe or acute anxiety attack disorders. Mindsoothe is a combination of two effective herbs, St Johns Wort and Passiflora or Passion Flower, and among other benefits has been found useful in improving memory and concentration.

Many have testified to the relief and benefits they have experienced through natural remedies. But of course, not all of these are right for everyone. If you feel this is the way you want to go, there is no substitute for investigating thoroughly and learning all you can about what is available. You need to know what is right for YOU. More and more people are finding relief this way - there is no reason why you should not find it too.

Summary:

Who has not experienced an anxiety attack at one time or another? Though there are quite a few prescription drugs that can eliminate anxiety attacks but they come with many side-effects. Trying out alternative or natural remedies is the answer to preventing these side-effects and at the same time getting relief.

Author: Brooke Hayles
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Visit {a rel="nofollow" href= http://www.anxiety-attack-free.com/resources/combating-an-anxiety-attack-will-pills-do-the-trick.html}Anxiety Attack Vault now!

Do I Have An Anxiety Problem?

2008-11-07T21:48:00.000-08:00

Everyone experiences anxiety from time to time. It is a normal part of our life and is probably experienced by 100% of the population at some time or another. Life is like that, there are always events which will produce anxiety or anxiousness in normal people.

The death of a loved one, a life stressor like divorce, family problems and so on. There are a myriad of situations where anxiety is a perfectly normal human reaction.

However there are also situations where we would not expect the average person to experience anxiety. Or there are situations where the average person would experience some anxiety, but not to a marked or continuing degree. However there are still people who do experience anxiety in these situations. They could experience anxiety that is far more extreme than would be expected in the average person, or for a much longer duration than would be expected, or both.

Where this is the case the existence of this anxiety, particularly on an ongoing basis, can produce effects for the individual, both psychological and physical.

Physical symptoms, for example, could include shortness of breath, headaches or even migraines, heart palpitations, hyperventilation and much more.

Psychological effects could include inability to concentrate, loss of sleep, irritability and the loss of a sense of personal security.

In these circumstances it is important to take a number of steps to relieve this. The obvious and first one is to consult a medical professional. However there are others that are also useful to try.

There are different ways that we can learn to use to cope with severe anxiety. These, if learned and practiced properly, can reduce some of the effects that anxiety can produce.

Many of them are simple ways to promote proper relaxation and reduce stress. There are many of these and a sufferer can choose amongst them to find one which fits in with their own situation, life views, time commitments and so on.

For example Yoga is a very good activity that has been shown to produce higher levels of relaxation and the ability to reduce stress in ones life, both of which are useful for the sufferer of anxiety or panic attacks.

Meditation, which is sometimes, but not always, a part of Yoga, is also useful. Meditation, if practiced regularly, can also produce a deep sense of relaxation and wellbeing. It allows the individual to focus their attention on tasks or events unrelated to the events which may be the focus of their anxiety, and this is useful.

Exercise is always useful, both in general and also for sufferers of anxiety disorders. Visualisation exercises are also useful.

Counselling can help, either on it?s own or in conjunction with some of these activities. And at the same time the counselor may well have their own suggestions for some other activities that may suit the individual well and be beneficial for alleviating the problem.

So if you think you are suffering from more anxiety in your life than you should there is much you can do. Don?t ignore the problem, anxiety can become more severe is left alone. Take some steps to confront the problem, there are usually solutions.

To find out more about Anxiety visit Peter's Website Anxiety Attack Relief at http://www.anxietyattackrelief.com/ and find some anxiety relief tips and more about anxiety relief

When A Parent Struggles With Fear And Anxiety

2008-10-30T05:45:00.000-07:00

What do you do when you struggle with fear and anxiety and you have to maintain the family and kids? It can be tough but there are ways to manage your fears and take care of your family at the same time. Here are some techniques a parent can use to manage his or her anxiety.

The first thing you should do is to get professional help. You owe it to your family and kids to get better. Getting the help you need to battle fear and anxiety is very important and will lead you to the road of recovery. Admitting that you have a problem and getting help is the first step in getting better.

Remember that you are not alone. There are many people who deal with fear and anxiety and they too live normal lives. There is no reason why you cannot get through this. If other parents can manage their fears, so can you. You can do it. There is hope for you. The key is not to give in and to keep trying.

When taking care of the family, do not try to manage everything all at once. Get your spouse or somebody else to help do some of the work. One person cannot do everything. Share your responsibilities with your spouse if you can. Also learn to communicate with your spouse about who does what on a certain day.

Do not let your anxieties get the best of you. A technique that is very helpful is to have a list of positive statements that make you happy. Whenever you feel anxious and your taking care of the kids, get your list and read those statements. This will help you to feel better and get you back on your feet.

Challenge your negative thinking with positive statements and realistic thinking. When encountering thoughts that make your lonely or depressed, challenge those thoughts by asking yourself questions that will maintain objectivity and common sense. For example, some people may think that if they are alone at the present time then they will always be alone. This is not true. Even if your alone today does not mean that you will be alone all the time. No one can predict the future with one hundred percent accuracy.

The next time you become overwhelmed with fear and anxiety, remember that there is hope in overcoming your anxieties and depression. With some help, you will be able to find the answers to your fears. You just have to be patient and determine to get better.

Managing The Anxiety Of Making New Friends

2008-10-24T02:38:00.001-07:00

Consider what the other person wants. Try to show some interest in the people you meet. Talk to them in terms of their needs and wants. Do not just talk about yourself.

Do Not Let Fear And Anxiety Stop You From Dating

2008-10-16T22:39:00.000-07:00

Is Alprazolam Effective For Treating Anxiety Disorders?

2008-10-12T23:39:00.000-07:00

Do you have sudden bouts of anger or nightmares? Are you a worrier? Do you feel out of control? Do you get so nervous that it causes dizziness? If you have any such symptoms then chances are you are suffering from anxiety disorders. Anxiety is, in one way, very normal: everyone experiences it. It is also a very unpleasant experience, which results from psychological problems.

Anxiety attacks happen when stress levels go out of control. Pressure from situations affects different people differently. When your own limit is crossed, you start feeling anxiety.

Alprazolam is one drug that can help you to deal with this problem. It was invented by Pfizer and is available under the brand name Xanax. It belongs to the class benzodiazepine.

While Alprazolam is very effective with anxiety, certain doctors are hesitant to use it due to the possibility of dependency and interdose anxiety. Alprazolam is very short acting. Alprazolam can be taken as needed although normal dosage should not exceed 4-6 times a day due to danger of dependency.

It can be used for long-term treatment of anxiety, but only if other therapies do not work. In this case, Alprazolam can be taken for 4 months or so. A qualified psychiatrist must make this decision, after taking into consideration every factor of a patient?s life and current medical status.

SSRIs like sertraline or fluoxetine are normally taken along with Alprazolam at the beginning of long-term SSRI anxiety treatment. This is done to avoid the anxiogenic effects of any SSRI course. Tricyclic antidepressants and busprione can also be used along with Alprazolam in some cases.

Sometimes, it can also be used in order to cure extreme cases of Borderline Personality Disorder.

While the actual working of the drug is not fully known, it is rapidly absorbed in the gastrointestinal tract. Peak concentration is normally achieved in 1-2 hours. The drug is mostly bound to the plasma protein albumin. In the liver, it gets hydroxylated. The side products are excreted through urination.

There are many reasons as to why people experience anxiety or panic attacks. It can be mental response to intolerable stress resulting from severe emotional concerns that might be related to the individual or the surroundings. The individual's lifestyle plays a big role in this. Anxiety orders usually take some time to develop so early diagnoses can really help much more than drugs. Unfortunately, there are very few symptoms to monitor until the problem has fully grown.

The good news is that managing anxiety disorders is now possible. Anxiety or stress related issues, with normal everyday life no longer requires drugs to be treated.

Alprazolam really helps you to manage anxiety and insomnia and is usually preferred over other benzodiazepine drugs. Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) can also be treated with Alprazolam.

Disclaimer - The information presented here should not be interpreted as or substituted for medical advice. Please talk to your doctor for more information about Alprazolam.

Copyright ? 2006, Heather Colman. Find more Alprazolam resources at alprazolam-hub.info.

Overcome Anxiety

2008-08-18T22:32:00.000-07:00

Fun and Easy Ways to Anxiety Attack

2008-07-21T22:38:00.000-07:00

If you have always wanted to know more about this topic, then get ready because we have all the information you can handle.

Have you ever wondered what exactly is up with anxiety attack? This informative register can give you an insight into everything you've ever wanted to know about anxiety attack.

The anxiety panic attack has just begun.

From what you have read so far, determine if this article has answered any of the questions that you had on this complicated subject.

Isolation and defiant social manners is not so greatly externally directed as self-directed in order to coin a "safety margin" where stress factors can be detained at bay.

Now that we've roofed those aspects of anxiety attack, let's transform to some of the other factors that need to be considered.

Explore additional data regarding depression, anxiety panic attacks and inborn options for running your intellect health and moods while promoting inborn relax and life cycles.

It never hurts to be well-informed with the newest on anxiety attack. balance what you've educated here to coming articles so that you can adjourn alert to changes in the sphere of anxiety attack.

This article is meant to both inform and entertain those who read it. Hopefully, we have (will) accomplished both goals for you.

Olympic Medal Achieved With Sports Hypnosis: Banish Fear, Anxiety and Doubt, and Achieve Your Dreams Too

2008-07-02T22:31:00.000-07:00

I first became involved with self hypnosis as a young sprinter around the age of 20. I dreamed of being an Olympic champion, but I was faced with a major challenge. A psychological barrier, my first real obstacle, stood in my way.

It was a work-out that only a few elite athletes in the world could do. This was my Mount Everest. I was told by my coach that if I wanted to move to the next level of my development that it had to be done.

Will power was unable to help me.

I did want to move to the next level, but for months, each time I stood at the start line to begin the workout, I felt this overwhelming feeling of nausea and dizziness. I just could not do it.

I think it is important to note that I never really had to go through this obstacle, if I had chosen to take, performance enhancing drugs. I simply could have swallowed some pills, felt no pain, and just moved forward. Many athletes were taking the fast and easy way to the top, but that is another story.

However, for me cheating by taking drugs was just not an option. I was strongly motivated by the belief that something bigger than myself gave me this gift, and it was not just so that I could win races at any cost, but rather to find out what I was truly capable of in life. Back to my story...

Every time I approached to begin the work-out, I 'willed' myself to do it by saying positive statements and seeing an Olympic medal around my neck, but those negative feelings stayed right with me. I knew the workout was going to hurt, and I would be in a lot of pain.

Imagination always wins over will power.

Finally I realized that I could not allow fear, in this case the fear of pain, to keep me from my dreams. I decided to go to the library, and search for some answers, and I found a book about hypnosis in sports or visualization (self hypnosis).

It was Thursday, and I was determined to do the work-out on Monday. I followed the instructions for sports hypnosis and imagined myself doing the entire work-out. Again and Again.

On Monday, I stood at the start line with the guys (no female athlete could run as fast as me), and I accomplished what had been impossible with 'will power', and instead I tapped the power of my subconscious mind, and overcame my obstacle.

Hypnosis in sports helped me move to the next level, and it can help YOU unlock YOUR potential.

I did feel pain, after the work-out, but I also experienced a feeling of awe as my body moved exactly as I had imagined it in my mind. I improved quickly, because my body was already prepared to do what my mind would not let me. Even though I was already a world class athlete, my goal was to become an Olympic medalist.

That year, because of the breakthrough with self hypnosis, I broke the existing Canadian Record for the 100 metres. The next year at age 22, I had my Olympic medal.

You too may be ready to move to the next level of your development, but you accept the fear, anxiety and doubt of the unknown or the known, and do nothing. Allow hypnosis to conquer your fear and anxiety, and unlock the potential inside you.

For additional resources on hypnosis visit: http://www.angelabaileyhypnosis.com

About the Author

Angela Bailey is a board certified professional hypnotherapist practicing in the City of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Her clientele is wide ranging and includes recreational, national, and world ranked athletes, celebrities, authors, dancers, business people, and many others.#BREAK#

Inositol supplements are often used to treat symptoms of depression and anxiety

2008-06-26T00:08:00.000-07:00

Inositol

Inositol is the common name of myoinositol, the only form of Inositol utilized by the body as a nutrient. Inositol is a simple carbohydrate involved in the glucuronic acid and pentose phosphate pathways that are responsible for products such as glucose, glucuronolactone and water.

A common biologically active form of Inositol is phosphatidylinositol, a phosphatide found in cell membranes. In the body, Inositol supplements is metabolized into phosphatidylinositol, which then acts as a second messenger system to stimulate the release of calcium from its intracellular storage site in the endoplasmic reticulum. The sugar has also been implicated in improving the transmission of neural signals in individuals afflicted with diabetic nerve damage and numbness.

Inositol supplements are often used to treat symptoms of depression and anxiety. Since neurotransmitters like serotonin? depend on inositol to function, it may play an important role in preventing and eliminating mood disorders. Clinical evidence suggests that large doses (12-18 grams) of inositol can decrease the frequency and severity of panic attacks, improve symptoms of depression and increase attention in patients with attention deficit disorder.

Food sources of Inositol

Inositol supplements is available from both plant and animal sources. The plant form in which Inositol is available is phytic acid, which can bind with minerals and so affect their absorption negatively.

The body is also able to manufacture Inositol. It is available from wheat germ, brewer's yeast, bananas, veal, pork, liver, brown rice, and wheat bran, cantaloupe, oat flakes, nuts, unrefined molasses, raisins and vegetables

Why the need for Inositol?

Taking of long term antibiotics may increase the need for Inositol, as well as a lot of coffee consumption. Coffee kills this nutrient.

Benefits of Inositol

Inositol supplements plays an important part in the health of cell membranes especially the specialized cells in the brain, bone marrow, eyes and intestines. The function of the cell membranes is to regulate the contents of the cells, which makes effective functioning possible.

Inositol Vitamin is said to promote healthy hair, hair growth, and helps in controlling estrogen levels and may assist in preventing breast lumps. Inositol is a vitamin that is utilized by the body for a variety of metabolic processes.

Depression And Inositol

Small studies have found inositol supplements helpful for depression. Neurotransmitters such as serotonin and acetylcholine in the brain depend on inositol to function properly. Low levels of this nutrient may result in depression. Boosting inositol levels appears to be a promising treatment for depressive conditions.

Diabetes And Inositol

Inositol supplements? is available from a variety of foods but is also produced by the bacteria that live in the intestines and absorbed by the body. Alterations in Inositol levels occur in nerves damaged by diabetic neuropathy and experiments are currently looking at altering the levels of Inositol and other chemicals to reduce nerve damage in diabetes.

Cancer Prevention And Inositol

Inositol compounds have demonstrated stunning qualities in the prevention and treatment of cancer. Inositol herbs can increase the differentiation and normalization of cancer cells, according to recent research. Inositol enhances the anticancer effect of conventional chemotherapy, controls cancer metastases, and improves the quality of life.

More Detail About Inositol

About the Author

Author By Rosa parks

Anxiety Affects Lots Of People. There Are ways To Tackle It.

2008-06-25T22:35:00.000-07:00

There are many sufferers of one or more of the forms of anxiety disorders that seem to afflict so many in our society. So many people are searching for some form of anxiety relief. Here are a few suggestions of some things you can do if you are looking for some simple methods of anxiety relief.

Anxiety can often be relieved by observing some good daily habits of relaxation. It sometimes isn?t easy and can take some commitment to do so, but learning some basic and important daily relaxation techniques can often provide some much needed anxiety relief for those of us with anxiety problems.

Remember acceptance. Whatever we resist will persist. Try not to see yourself as in a constant battle with your anxiety. Try instead to see yourself moving with it on a path toward it?s eventual demise. Learning relaxation will help for so many anxiety sufferers towards some form of anxiety relief.

Talk about it. So many people feel that there is stigma attached to having anxiety problems, and so bottle it up inside and don?t talk about it. The old saying a problem shared is a problem halved is a good one. Get someone you trust to listen without judging you and tell them about it. That?s a good start towards your own anxiety relief.

Learn about the condition of anxiety. Knowledge is power. Read, ask questions and learn about how it works. If you understand how anxiety works you can deal with it better.

Learn relaxation techniques. There are many and some will suit you, others won?t Try yoga, or breathing techniques like belly breathing.

Learn meditation. Take a meditation course or buy a book. Join an organisation and learn as much as you can about meditation. You may be surprised at how effective it is. Don?t dismiss it out of hand as a form of anxiety relief, you may be pleasantly surprised at how well it does work.

Keep a record of your progress. Write a journal or a notebook. When something happens record it and then reread it later and see what you can learn from it. Review what happened when you are more relaxed and think about other ways you could have reacted to the situation.

When it?s evening avoid the nightly (bad) news. Don?t stress yourself out just before bed. Read a book or take a bath or listen to your favourite music. You don?t need to know what happened today ? today. You can always find out tomorrow.

You can learn what contributes to your own anxiety relief. You may still need help, but it certainly can?t hurt to help yourself with some basic relaxation and calming. Practice your own anxiety relief.

And celebrate even the small victories, because they may be adding up to bigger ones!

To find out more about Anxiety visit Peter's Website Anxiety Attack Relief at http://www.anxietyattackrelief.com/ and find out about recognising anxiety signs and more about anxiety relief

Dealing With Anxiety and Panic Attacks

2008-06-19T22:20:00.000-07:00

Defined as a period of intense distress or fear, an anxiety or panic attack typically surfaces quickly and may last for 20 to 30 minutes. Most commonly, however, they only last for several minutes unless the occurrence was very traumatic for the sufferer. Common symptoms of an anxiety and/or panic attack include a shortness of breath, rapid heart palpitations, shaking, sweating, a feeling of nauseousness, dizziness and hyperventilation. The sufferer often feels as if they are choking or being smothered, which causes a gasping reflex.

Individuals who suffer from frequent or unprovoked anxiety and panic attacks may also be suffering from a panic disorder. Not only that, but individuals who suffer from these regularly are often victims of a phobia that ultimately cause the anxiety and panic attacks.

The first step to treating anxiety and panic attacks is to get the victim away from whatever it is that caused the onset. If the individual suffers from a phobia, remove them from the situation immediately. If it is an argument that caused the occurrence, the sufferer should leave the room or area in order to refrain from being further upset. Random anxiety and panic attacks that are caused by direct and obvious events are not usually worrisome. If they continue frequently or without cause, the patient may need medical intervention.

The medical treatments involved in aiding a patient who suffers from anxiety and panic attacks may include therapy sessions or behavioral studies. Medications can often be used, but it is recommended that individuals deal with their problems without becoming reliant on medication if at all possible. Natural treatments include keeping a daily journal or activities and emotions in order to allow the individual to release their feelings onto paper, breathing exercises and, in some cases, induced anxiety and panic attacks to help the sufferer learn to cope with their fear or emotion.

This article is to be used for informational purposes only. It should not be used in place of, in conjunction with or instead of professional medical advice regarding the diagnosis and/or treatment of anxiety and panic attacks. If you or someone you know suffers from these frequently or without cause, you should consult a physician in order to receive a proper diagnosis. At that time, the doctor will make a determination of which, if any, treatment method should be used in order to treat and prevent the occurrence. Individuals should not attempt to cure their anxiety and panic attacks without proper medical care.

The author is a regular contributor to 4 Less Anxiety where more information about anxiety and panic attacks is available.

Using Hypnosis for Job Interview Anxiety

2008-06-15T22:31:00.000-07:00

Copyright 2006 Lyndsay Swinton

For many people, the very thought of a job interview can cause an attack of the nerves: butterflies in the stomach, dry mouth, and weak knees. Sometimes, the thought of a job interview can even trigger a panic attack. If this happens to you, you might be interested in some tips on using hypnosis for job interview anxiety.

If the thought of a job interview makes you nervous, you have what is called anticipatory anxiety, and it is very common. Many people have it over all sorts of situations. You need to try to relax and calm down, and there are several ways to do this.

First, make sure you are completely prepared for the interview, down to the fine detail of knowing exactly how to travel to the interview and contingencies in case of being delayed. Have your clothes picked out, any materials you are bringing ready, and make sure you get a good night?s sleep beforehand. Also remember that life goes on after the interview, so try to keep it all in perspective. Even if you don't get the job, you will have learned something worthwhile from the experience which you can improve upon in your next interview.

You should also practice some deep breathing exercises, breathing from the diaphragm and not your chest. This will trigger a relaxation response that will soon become second nature to you - it's called 7-11 breathing. You breath in for a count of 7, and out for a count of 11 and repeat this slow, deep breathing for a few minutes until your body quietens down. This forces your body to move out of the 'fight or flight' state, into a more useful, calmer state.

Now, if you do all of these things and you still feel nervous, you might want to consider using hypnosis for your job interview anxiety. Hypnosis is really no more than a way to get into a deeply relaxed state, during which you are able to access your unconscious mind, where your fears and anxiety are stored. You will be able to replace any negative thoughts you are having about your job interview with positive thoughts. For example, you can practice hearing you talk confidently, and answer tricky questions without being flustered. As a result, you will find that your anxiety over the interview is greatly relieved, and you'll go into your interview with an abundance of energy and confidence you canl give it your best.

Article by Lyndsay Swinton of 'How Hypnosis Works' http://www.hypnotics.co.uk This site explains how hypnosis works for all sorts of everyday problems and more unusual human troubles and challenges.

Got An Anxiety Problem? Need Help?

2008-06-11T00:01:00.000-07:00

A general anxiety disorder can be defined as a ?state of uneasiness and apprehension, as about future uncertainties?. It can be extremely debilitating, and dealing with general anxiety disorders can vary enormously from person to person.

Heres a few suggestions of some things that many people find useful in dealing with general anxiety disorders.

1. Meditation. This is a form of relaxation for most people. One of the most effective methods of dealing with anxiety and depression can be relaxation. By focusing on ones inner self you can let go of the problems and the fears that seem to plague our lives and forget for a while, and this can foster a deeper form of relaxation. This can allow for a clearer view of a problem, and often after some time practicing meditation people can come up with their own solutions to their own problems. But it can certainly be relaxing and calming, both of which are useful for anyone suffering from general anxiety disorders.

2. Exercise can also be extremely useful. Vigorous exercise can pick you up and leave you feeling great. This is the opposite of how a debilitating anxiety attack can leave you. Often after anxiety attacks you are left feeling depressed and run down, and exercise can pick you up out of this rut and reinvigorate you. It makes those endorphins zing around you body leaving you feeling happier, more relaxed and less anxious.

3. Yoga is a form of exercise, but low impact exercise. It is a slower form of more fluid movements which tend to be more stretching than vigorous exercise. It is a discipline of fluidity and is extremely relaxing and calming, but still produces some of the benefits of the endorphins that more vigorous exercise produces.

4. Talking it out. Sometimes when afflicted by some form of general anxiety disorder it is useful to talk about the things that are making you feel anxious. By letting the feelings out it can help to lighten them. Find someone you really trust to let it all hang out to and unburden yourself. By vocalizing your feelings of anxiety you can help reduce them, with the right person.

5. Any other form of relaxation that works for you. Everyone has their own relaxation. Find out what yours is. Take a bath, or a long walk. Watch a movie or just read a book. General forms of anxiety disorders can leave us feeling on edge and strung out, and sometimes some good relaxation can help.

Many of these suggestions will help, and if you combine 2 or 3 you may be surprised. They may not be a complete answer but they will certainly give your life a boost that it may need.

To find out more about Anxiety visit Peter's Website Anxiety Attack Relief at http://www.anxietyattackrelief.com/ and find out about recognising anxiety signs and more about anxiety relief

Women And Anxiety Disorder

2008-06-10T23:41:00.000-07:00

Women today are busier than ever with so many aspects in their lives. However, anxiety is never to far away in the complicated society we live in and it can have an impact on our ability to function normally .This can lead to an anxiety disorder in a woman and progress to a mental disorder if not diagnosed.

Anxiety disorders only become a problem when a woman begins to panic over the slightest detail of a situation or event. Women are twice as likely as men to suffer from stress and anxiety.

Anxiety disorders and escalating symptoms of anxiety are the number one health issue in women in the USA. Anxiety symptoms are the most common form of depressive or mental illness in American citizens in general.

All women experience anxiety and stress at times. In fact, it is perfectly normal to experience some anxiety .

More women than men have anxiety at levels that are unhealthy. Men seem to deal with anxiety differently than women. Men act on their anxieties while women tend to hold them inside.

Many women with anxiety suffer from sleep problems. This is also known as insomnia. Your mind may be over active, wondering about events that may not come to pass.

There may be problems getting to sleep or waking in the night. When a woman fails to seek help for chronic anxiety, physical symptoms also become apparent.

A loss of sleep can cause suppressed immune system response. Frequent headaches, irritability, nausea, heart palpitations from panic, and other physical manifestations can make life unbearable.

Of course, women go through periods of anxiety in life that are perfectly normal. It is a matter of some concern if for example panic results from situations that are minor.

A complete over reaction is not normal and medical help may be required for your anxiety may be turning into a form of mental disorder.

There are many other examples of anxiety disorders that affect women. These include post-traumatic stress disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, social anxiety disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder and certain phobias.

It is not uncommon for a woman with one anxiety disorder to experience other anxiety disorders in conjunction with the primary problem.

There are effective treatment options for women with anxiety disorders and they are effective. In particular, Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (called CBT) has proven to be effective in many cases and involves learning to deal with problems to prevent anxiety.

Anxiety can be a symptom of depressive illness. Depression is often a result of experiencing chronic anxiety. Women often tend to place the rest of the family first so can put themselves at risk if they ignore their own needs.

Therapies not requiring drugs include guided visual imagery, meditation, exercise, stress-reduction techniques including massage therapy etc.

Only a qualified medical practitioner can determine is a woman who is feeling anxiety has an anxiety disorder. However, a woman may be the only one who knows that she is having problems with anxiety.

Managing anxiety can be challenging but it is important, however, to realize that anyone who has an anxiety disorder, whether it is general affective or social anxiety, is not crazy.

Through cognitive-behavioral therapies, women with anxiety can learn to view their world in a different manner and solve problems.

For more related information visit http://www.AnxietyAttacksCure.com - a site that offers advice for avoiding, coping with anxiety and panic attacks. Get professional knowledge on dealing with symptoms, drug side effects and improving your life!

Anxiety Questions - Types Of Anxiety Disorders?

2008-06-09T22:16:00.000-07:00

* What are the different types of anxiety disorders?

Anxiety disorders are categorized into five types. They have similarities but differ in signs and symptoms. These are the five types of anxiety disorders:

? Panic Disorder ? it is an intense fear that attacks more often characterized by alpitations, dyspnea, chest pain and dizziness

? Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder ? an uncontrollable behavior occurring frequently and brought on by impulses

? Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder ? constant symptoms and the effects from traumatic events in a person's life

? Phobias ? an unexplainable extreme fear to something

? Generalized Anxiety Disorder ? generally found over a long-term for at least six months. It is characterized by constant, extreme, worrisome thoughts that are never rational.

* How is an anxiety disorder different from severe stress?

Anxiety disorder is a psychological condition wherein there is a prolonged process responsible for the condition. Anxiety can also cause different types of phobias.

If these phobias are not treated, they will develop into more severe forms. Severe stress is different from anxiety disorder as severe stress is widely affected by external stimuli.

If a person is unable to relax well, he manifests severe stress syndrome. It can be acquired both psychologically and physiologically.

* How is anxiety different from a phobia?

Phobia is defined as it is an irrational and unreasonable extreme fear to a particular situation or things that are not dangerous by nature and are not found to be troublesome by other individuals. In contrast, anxiety disorders are emotional illnesses characterized by excessive fear, autonomic nervous system symptoms and addictive and avoidance behaviors.

However, a person with a phobia has intense symptoms of anxiety arising during a particular situation or when frightened by a specific stimuli.

* How is anxiety different from average everyday nervousness or worry?

Nervousness or worry is normal for individuals. It is part of the normal reaction to different stimuli. However it becomes a problem when it occurs long term or if it is chronic.

Like fear, it is a normal response if there is the presence of danger or in unexpected situations. Like anxiety, it is generally more complex and lasts for a long period of time. It is characterized by nervousness, dyspnea and an inability to think clearly.

* Is performance anxiety ("stage fright") normal?

Stage fright is one of the common manifestations of anxiety. For most people, this is a normal tendency. This is the feeling of being uncomfortable in front of the crowd. In America, this is considered to be the greatest anxiety disorder. It takes a lot of courage for a person to present himself before an audience.

* What is a panic attack?

Panic attack is a type of anxiety disorder where there is a fear of having spontaneous panic-like symptoms in a place where help is not accessible. Major symptoms of the disorder include breathing difficulty, increased pulse rate, chest pain and nausea.

* What is agoraphobia?

Agoraphobia is closely related to panic attack. This is a condition where people suffer from being in open places or crowds. It is derived from the literal definition that means "fear of the marketplace." In actuality the fear doesn't necessarily come from the fear of being in open places; rather, it comes from the fear of having a panicky feeling when the person is in public where escaping can be difficult or where help is not readily available.

Anna Agewell is a regular contributor to anxiety and stress-related resources such as Anxiety Tip. Website: http://www.AnxietyTip.com

Asperger?s Syndrome And Anxiety

2008-06-08T22:16:00.000-07:00

Children with Asperger?s Syndrome are known to be more naturally ?anxious? than their non-ASD peers. The challenges presented by the 5 characteristics of Asperger?s Syndrome (social impairment, communication impairment, sensory sensitivity, repetitive behaviours and difficulty with change) potentially make their world a confusing and frightening reality. Add anxiety to the mix and you may have a child who is anxious and worried 100% of the time. Anxiety and stress over sustained periods of time is shown to lead to exhaustion, the development of allergies and illness.

Children with Asperger?s Syndrome demonstrate their anxiety through a variety/combination of behaviours:-

? Physical symptoms (stomach pains; headache; racing heart; sweaty palms; constricted chest; tight muscles; insomnia)

? Avoidance desire

? Inattention and

? Irritability

Anxiety in children with Asperger?s Syndrome can be triggered unconsciously; when this is coupled with their inability to verbalise effectively it compounds the effects of anxiety ? the Asperger child can be extremely anxious, and unable to tell you why (they may not know themselves). They may be able to tell you they have a stomach ache, or don?t wish to go to Joey?s birthday party, but not know why.

Children with Asperger?s Syndrome are known to have ?perfectionist? attitudes towards many areas of their lives, and this can be witnessed through their ?obsessive/compulsive? behaviours, their repetitive patterns of behaviour and their difficulty coping with change. This self-imposed ?perfectionist? attitude can contribute to their anxiety and ?pressure to perform?. In other words, children with Asperger?s Syndrome usually place extreme/unrealistic demands on themselves. It?s important to remember this when dealing with an anxious ASD child.

Some useful techniques for supporting an anxious Asperger Syndrome child include:

? Redirection/distraction

? Physical energy ?burn? (physical activity such as running, bike riding, jumping on a trampoline, swimming etc)

? ?Whole-body? activities (tug-of-war; monkey-bar; rolling on floor/ground)

? Body brushing/massage

? Deep pressure activity (lying under a heavy blanket/cushions/mattress)

? Chewing/sucking (relieves pressure in the jaw)

? Listening (hearing what the Asperger child can tell you)

Anxiety levels in children with Asperger?s Syndrome are ?cyclic? in nature, making it more difficult for parents/teachers/carers to identify anxiety triggers. Cycles vary from 4-6 weeks (often linking with lunar cycles). What causes the ASD child mild anxiety one week, may cause extreme anxiety ( and/or avoidance desire) the next.

When our Asperger son was 9 he progressed from a child who was slightly more anxious than his peers, to a child who was extremely anxious, paranoid and agitated in the space of 6 months. Various methods of dealing with anxiety were introduced by the many therapists/professionals treating our son, much of them with conflicting advice. All of them failed to acknowledge the physical symptoms our Asperger son experienced, tending to present the attitude that the anxiety was ?self-imposed?, and ?if he?s not going to speak about what?s causing the anxiety, then we can?t help him dispel the physical symptoms of that anxiety?.

Our son with Asperger?s Syndrome is now nearly 16, and in the last year has begun to verbalise much more about his experience of that time. He tells us he was very frightened by his physical symptoms, and most of the time he didn?t know what it was about a situation or event that was causing him anxiety, he just knew that the thought of participating sent him into panic. The ?fight or flight? response occured almost immediately (before he?d had a chance to process the feeling of panic) and he felt he had no control over his world.

He also says we should?ve listened to him more. For example, if he said didn?t want to go to Joey?s birthday party, we should?ve understood that he:-

a) knew birthday parties were fun
b) liked eating party food
c) liked singing Happy Birthday
d) knew all the other kids were going
e) wanted to be like all the other kids

We should?ve understood that if there was any way he could?ve coped with the party, he would go. At that point he?d already tried 100 things in his head to talk himself into going. In saying he didn?t want to go, his real message to us was ?I can?t cope with that today?.

As you support your child with Asperger?s Syndrome to cope with their anxiety be mindful of ?hearing? them ? not all avoidance desire is ?manipulative? behaviour.

Yes, children with Asperger?s Syndrome can be manipulative, but their desire to not be ?different? together with their ?perfectionist? attitudes is a strong, internal force that drives them to be all they can be.

Nelle Frances is the mother of a 15 year old with Asperger's Syndrome, a Special Needs Educator and Author of the Ben and His Helmet series of books for Asperger children. She is also an active member of 5 Asperger's Syndrome Support and Advocacy Groups. For more information and Support Strategies visit http://www.nellefrances.com

Do Not Let Stress And Anxiety Get To You

2008-05-30T22:22:00.000-07:00

Do not let stress and anxiety get the best of you. It can tough in today?s world to manage the stresses of managing a family, being in relationship, managing your career, and other things in your life. Here are some suggestions on how to not let stress and anxiety get to you.

Take things slow and at an easy pace. Some people tend to rush into things without thinking and then they get stressed. When doing a certain task, take a deep breath and take things slowly. There will always be things to do, so rushing will not make that much of a difference.

Learn to plan ahead. Following a structure plan will save you a lot of stress and anxiety than if you have no plan at all. Having a plan will reduce problems that may come up. Knowing how you are going to do something ahead of time will help you in the long run.

Ask for help when you need it. You cannot do everything all by yourself. There are times when you will need the assistance of others. Do not feel embarrassed to ask for help. We are always learning new things from new people every day. Asking for assistance will reduce the stress and anxiety of the situation.

Learn effective techniques in managing stress and anxiety. Talk to a counselor who can give you advice on how to manage the stresses in your life. Once you learn effective techniques in managing your anxieties, get into the habit of using them in your life.

Having a lot of stress and anxiety is not good for your health. Stress can lead to many illnesses and other health problems. If you have trouble dealing with your anxieties, then talk to a professional. There are ways to deal with stress and anxiety. You just have to learn how to manage it.
Stan Popovich is the author of "A Layman's Guide to Managing Fear? an easy to read book that presents a overview of techniques that are effective in managing persistent fears and anxieties. For additional information go to: http://www.managingfear.com

How To Overcome Anxiety

2008-05-29T22:27:00.000-07:00

Anxiety is a condition that usually arises with excess stress and worry. It is usually the feared possibility of the consequences of an action that brings about anxiety. The people who get anxious are always worrying about the bad things that might happen and thus create an environment of fear in their minds.

Anxiety comes in many forms. Some suffer from panic disorder where there are unpredictable attacks of panic on the person, with its physiological consequences, while some others feel helpless in an embarrassing situation and this is agoraphobia. There are also others suffering from various other phobias like fear of heights, insects and water. Some feel that they are always watched by others, and thus suffer from social anxiety disorder. People who have undergone some traumatic event in their past suffer from post traumatic stress disorder. Some people perform repeated and ritualistic behaviors to rid themselves of obsessive compulsive disorders and the most common form of anxiety is generalized anxiety disorder. These people are usually over anxious of a situation and may end up in some major depressive disorder.

As it can be seen, anxiety comes in many forms, and the first step to be taken in the treatment of anxiety lies in finding out what the cause is. Once the reason of the anxiety has been found out, it proves to be rather easy to cure anxiety. It is best to avoid these situations as much as possible in the beginning of your treatment so that there is no feeling of anxiety at all.

It may be needed to approach a psychiatrist to help in the treatment of anxiety. Under their guidance, you learn to handle anxiety attacks in three steps; before, during and after the anxiety attack.

A person who suffers from anxiety should not set self-defeating goals. It is instead better to set productive and possible goals that improve one?s thought and action. With this step, the patient learns to gain better control over oneself and thus overcome anxiety. When suffering from a bout of anxiety, it is better to calm oneself naturally rather than trying to fight or control one?s anxious feelings.

Someone with anxiety should work at producing positive thoughts in the mind. Once pessimistic or unpleasant thoughts enter the mind, it is better to divert oneself and think of other situations with vivid, optimistic pictures. If possible, it proves to be better to think positive thought of these pessimistic thoughts, using objective words.

Jason Rickard is the owner of Your Favourite Shop - Offering White Noise and Relaxation CDs - Visit Hapa Health for more articles.

Outstanding Presentations Start In The Mind: Five Presentation Skills Secrets For Overcoming Public Speaking Anxiety

2008-05-28T22:18:00.000-07:00

Public speaking presents such a challenge for many people. In the Book of Lists, public speaking anxiety and making a presentation constitute the number one fear; the fear of dying is number two. Like the old saying goes, ?People would rather be in the grave than make a presentation.? You see people sweat, shake, and quiver while they are speaking. Sometimes, employees bypass promotions, and business owners bypass business opportunities rather than give a presentation. I saw a manager who was on the corporate fast track quickly become derailed because she couldn?t complete her presentation in front of senior management.

So what do great speakers do to prepare themselves to be great presenters? They prepare their minds to give a great presentation. That?s right; it all starts in your mind. How can you develop a great speaker?s mindset and start giving outstanding presentations? The following are five secrets for powerful public speaking:

1. Believe It So That You Can Achieve It

I am approached by people who say, ?I can?t speak in public,? ?I am a bad speaker,? or ?I could never speak in public.? Without hearing them speak, I say, ?You?re right.? Because once you make those negative statements, they become self-fulfilling prophesies. When you say, ?I am a bad speaker,? your subconscious mind is thinking, ?Well, he or she said it, so it must be true; so I will act like a bad speaker.? Positive speaking attitude (PSA) is one of the first things I work on during my presentation coachings. Replace the negative speaking attitude with a PSA to master your self talk and improve your presentation skills. Instead of saying, ?I am a bad speaker,? say the following:

* ?I am improving my public speaking abilities everyday in everyway.?

* ?Every opportunity to make a presentation is an opportunity for success.?

* ?I am a good public speaker today; and, with continued practice, I will be a better public speaker tomorrow.?

* ?I am mastering my presentation skills everyday!?

When you make these positive affirmations, your subconscious mind hears it and says, ?Yeah, I am improving,? or ?Let me speak because it is an opportunity for success,? or ?I am mastering my speaking skills.?

Manage your self talk for a PSA. You will feel a new confident attitude concerning public speaking.

2. Think About What You Want to Accomplish

I will ask the question, ?What do you want to accomplish with your presentation?? Many times I will be on the receiving end of a blank stare or the student might say, ?I just want them to listen to me.?

Take time to think about what you want to accomplish by giving your presentation. Is it that you want to entertain the audience, do you want to persuade them on an important issue, or maybe you want the audience to take action after hearing your presentation. Going into your presentation knowing what you want to accomplish creates focus and is a big confidence builder.

3. Visualize Success

Recently, I had the opportunity to speak at an association conference with over five thousand people in the audience. Joy, my wife, was sitting in the audience with our friend Jim who came to hear me speak for the first time. As I was about to speak, Jim leaned over and asked Joy if I was nervous speaking in front of such a large group of people. Without blinking an eye, Joy said, ?He was born for this day. He saw this day coming when he first started speaking.?

I visualized that day long before it happened. Whenever I give a presentation, I take time to visualize a successful presentation and positive outcome. The more details I include in my visualizations, the more vivid and real it becomes for me. The night before the presentation I will find a quiet place at home or, if I am on the road, a hotel room, and meditate to start the visualization process. I will visualize my drive to the event, greeting the host and audience, and how my powerful presentation will sound and look on that day. I will also visualize the audience?s positive response to the presentation.

Take time to visualize the details of giving a great presentation. Like the old saying goes, ?Fake it ?til you make it.? If you visualize you are a great speaker, you will take the steps and create opportunities for yourself to become a great speaker.

Visualize that the audience wants to hear your message and they want you to do well. Remember, it?s their time also and they want to receive value out of your speech.

4. Own the Room

Whenever I speak, I ?own the room.? I mentally tell myself that for the next thirty minutes, hour, etc., I own the room. The corporation, association, or government may own the building or venue I am speaking in, but during the time I am speaking, I am the owner of the room and the audience will be my guests, my friends. That way I am always in control to give an outstanding presentation.

Think of your speaking area as your house, your home, your castle. When you invite friends into your home, aren?t you in control and want to provide a safe, entertaining environment for your guests? The same is true for your speaking audience; you want to provide a safe, entertaining, and enriching experience for them.

I always say, ?Giving presentations is not about me, it?s about you (the audience).? What I mean is that if I am constantly thinking about how I sound, look, and feel while I speak, I am not thinking about what I can share with my audience. Concentrate on the value you will give to your audience members and you will never go wrong.

5. Eat the Elephant

Many times I hear the following:

?I could never speak in front of a group of people, but one-on-one I am fine.?

Well, I ask, ?How do you eat the elephant?? Break the elephant into smaller pieces. It is the same when you ?digest? the audience. Don?t think of the audience as a whole, think of the audience as individuals ready to hear your message. Concentrate on thinking of your audience as individuals, and your message will come across that way to the individual audience members.

Follow these five secrets for creating a positive mindset for confident public speaking. Overcoming your public speaking anxiety will improve your presentation skills and create new opportunities for you through public speaking.

Ed Sykes is a professional speaker, author, and coach in the areas of presentation skills, leadership, motivation, stress management, customer service, and team building. You can e-mail him at mailto:esykes@thesykesgrp.com, or call him at (757) 427-7032. Go to his web site, http://www.thesykesgrp.com, and signup for the newsletter, OnPoint.

Inside Looking Out At How To Get Rid Of Your Anxiety And Panic

2008-05-27T22:19:00.000-07:00

1. Controlling panic and anxiety

You have control but you can't permanently stop anxiety and panic. When your child fails to call you and let you know if he or she is ok, then you will panic and fears will imprint your mind. Now, you can run with that fear and panic, while stressing over the situation or you can do something about it. Did you call his or her friends? Did you call the school? Did you call everyone your child knows? Did you tell the neighbors? Think before you react. Oh yes, you have probable cause to worry, however, your child being late does not mean the worst happen. Are you comprehending this?

2. Results of panic

Panic can cause many negative things. When we start to dread the worst, it builds and causes anxiety and panic. We think horror, terror, and the worst, thus training our mind to consider all negative possibilities.

3. Causes of fear

I cannot stress that fear is the number one cause of anxiety, panic, fear, death, murder, crime, alcoholism, drugs, rape, and so forth. If you search the documents or history, you will find fear racing through the channels of each mind that acted out in a wrongful way. Check it!

4. Reality test

You can choose to take the following test. Whoops! Didn?t mean to spark your emotions... Do not worry however, since this test is to check your reality. You come to a road crossing and a car pulls out in front of you speeding away. What do you feel? How do you react? You reacted out of fear, and probably called the person a jerk or worse after your emotions calmed down. You likely panicked, freaked, and felt anxious wondering if the car would hit you. What was real and what wasn't?
For more great Anxiety related articles and resources check out http://counselorhelp.info

How To Get Rid Of Anxiety And Panic - Stop The War

2008-05-26T22:22:00.000-07:00

In sociology, precipitate and irrational actions of a group are often referred to as panics, as for example "sex panic", "stock market panic". (See hysteria). Panic is usually understood to mean active, but senseless behaviour (e.g. trying to flee in a random direction or suddenly attacking others without consideration), while hysteria often carries a more passive notion (as in crying uncontrollably). An influential theoretical treatment of panic by a sociologist is found in Neil J. Smelser's, Theory of Collective Behavior.

1. Conflict

Conflict exists in all of us. Inside you are conflict that causes your mind to combat with your body and emotions. Inside you, often you confront many memories that sometimes are not good. You start to feel hostilities, while battling the draw. What you need is peace. You need to set up a campaign inside you although you may struggle and compete with your emotions, body, and mind. You are dominated by anxiety and panic.

2. Slave

Read and contemplate. A slave is not all bad. You think of slave and your mind roles back to former days, at what time a person was forced to do something he/she may not wanted to do, but the fact is slaves bring us great rewards. If not for slaves in this time or at the former times, we would have poor crop, since most of the white supremacy was lazy and worked (what they called) less than human beings for little payment.

3. Domination

Slaves are meek. Meekness is a highly commendable quality. The problem is slaves were often dominated by another person, which this person dominating them is the one with panic and anxiety problems, along with many other problems. I am not friendly with racism or prejudice, since I have a passion you cannot understand or relate to, i.e. I strongly oppose. If you think I give a damn about what others think about my strong beliefs, thus I am sorry for you. Think about what I just said.

4. Who we are

Work ethic is very important. We all are slaves and have been for decades. Before black man was slaves, Asians, whites, Jews and the like were all slaves. Successful people are slaves.

For more great anxiety related articles and resources check out http://counselinghaven.info

Overcoming Social Anxiety and Be Yourself Using Hypnosis

2008-05-23T22:20:00.000-07:00

Copyright 2006 Lyndsay Swinton

Being yourself socially is what most people want ? the ability to engage others, present ourselves gracefully and above all, relax and enjoy other?s company.

Overcoming social anxiety is possible, especially if you allow hypnosis to help bring out the ?real you? in company.

Most social anxiety comes from being too inwardly focused. You are so aware of your shaking hands, your sweating body and racing heart that your mind empties of any social skill, wit or courtesy you once possessed. At this point, you are right not to trust yourself to speak as it?s unlikely you?re emotionally in touch with people around you. So you keep quiet and the party goes on around you and you get more frustrated and inwardly focused.

This negative cycle of nervousness and self monitoring can be broken using hypnosis. You can use hypnosis to practice being relaxed in social situations, hearing yourself speak clearly, noticing how people laugh at your jokes and how genuinely interested you are in others.

It?s normal to feel some social anxiety when first meeting people ? in fact the adrenaline boost can make you more spontaneous and quick, which is great. Hypnosis can help teach your body to level out stress hormones and stop them before they stop you.

Be prepared for people asking interested questions about you ? remember they are not necessarily prying into your private affairs! Maybe consider some ?standard? replies to the usual questions e.g. what you do, where you live etc. particularly if there are things you?d prefer not to disclose. Obviously you can?t prepare a full script for the evening, but a few handy ?lines? will ease your way into conversations and help the real you come out to play.

Being more relaxed in company allows you to be more outwardly focused and gives you the mental free space to concentrate on mirroring and matching people you're talking to. 93% of what is said by you remains unsaid, so by mirroring someone's body language, you say loud and clear "I like you, you're interesting, we're in tune with each other" without even opening your mouth. This works regardless of whether you're looking for a mate or not. When you're relaxed in company, you'll find yourself naturally matching the pace of their conversation and energy levels, again unconsciously saying "I like you". The virtuous circle is that people like you more when you let them know you like them.

Overcoming social anxiety and being yourself is possible if you take time to work on being relaxed in private, then testing it out in public. The more positive social experiences you have, the more confidence you will build, and the world will be wondering where you?ve been hiding yourself all this time!

Suffering From Anxiety Problems? You Are Not Alone

2008-05-22T22:17:00.000-07:00

Many people around the world suffer from anxiety disorders of many different types. In the US it is estimated that around 20% of the total adult population suffers from some form of anxiety disorder, which is considered to be a form of mental illness.

There are a number of different types of anxiety disorders and it is often difficult to tell one from another. The different types can include general anxiety, obsessive compulsive disorders, panic attacks, post traumatic disorders, social anxieties and a wide range of specific phobias.

It is more common for women to be affected by some forms of anxiety than it is for men to be affected.

There can be a wide range of causes for any of these, and other, anxiety disorders. These can be chemical in nature, often from some form of chemical or hormonal imbalance in the brain. There can be environmental factors and others, such as stress, unresolved conflicts and various learned behaviors.

Anxiety attacks can manifest themselves in a variety of ways. For example a sufferer can experience physical symptoms such as rapid heartbeat and chest pain, shortness of breath and dizziness. They can suffer insomnia, tension in various parts of the body and extreme irritation.

Anxiety is extremely widespread, and if serious can impact greatly on the quality of life of the anxiety sufferer. But it can usually be treated, often with very good results.

There are a wide range of options for people who suffer from one or more of the various forms of anxiety and related disorders. It is common for medication to be used, and this can include antidepressants and other anti anxiety medicines, which can be very effective.

These medicines can be used in conjunction with other forms of treatment as well. There are various therapists and counselors, including behavior therapists, who treat undesirable behaviors. They can use cognitive therapies, involving changing negative thought patterns as well as relaxation therapies often involving breathing control, massage and sometimes aromatherapy.

Some anxiety attack sufferers can be helped with a range of natural remedies. It is surprising how effective it can be just ensuring that the sufferer adheres to a well balanced nourishing diet to maintain good blood sugar levels and nourish the body. Exercise is also very important. There are also a range of dietary and vitamin supplements that can be used such as vitamin B.

Anxiety disorders or attacks can be very frightening for the person who experiences them, expecially if they are unexpected. But they need not be disabling for most people, as they can often be successfully treated.

If I?ve Got An Anxiety Problem What Should I Do?

2008-05-21T22:31:00.000-07:00

Anxiety problems, and mental health problems in general, seem to be on the increase in our fast paced modern day society. More and more anxiety and related disorders seem to be in the news.

Anxiety and it?s associated disorders are the most common of all the mental illnesses that afflict us. It is estimated that around 20% of the adult population will be affected by some form of anxiety disorder at some stage in their lives. For a population as large as ours that is a large number of people indeed.

People with some form of anxiety disorder are more likely to use scarce health care resources. They go to the doctor more often than average, and are more likely to end up in hospital than the average.

This of course places a large burden on our health care system and the amounts of money spent on combating anxiety and it?s related disorders is massive. It is estimated at over $40 billion dollars a year.

There are a range of anxiety problems that people encounter, some well known and some not so well known. Post traumatic stress disorder is well documented as it is experienced by so many of our soldiers who have seen active duty, but some of the other forms are less well known.

Some types of specifically recognised disorders are specific anxiety phobias, such as fear of spiders or heights, panic disorders, obsessive compulsive disorder and social anxiety problems.

And then there are anxiety problems that are not specifically defined and are known as generalized anxiety disorders. They are characterised by a constant and persistent fear of or worry about ordinary things.

Of course there are always situations where almost everyone would be anxious, these happen to all of us in our lives and it is normal to be anxious when encountering situations such as these. The mere fact that an individual is suffering from some form of worry or fear is not of itself evidence of an anxiety disorder.

But people who suffer from generalized anxiety disorders suffer from a continuing fear or worry when there is no reason to fear or worry. That is the important distinction, there is no need to be scared or worried, but they continue to be.

This condition can take over their lives to the point where they feel they cannot control it and it is manifestly excessive. That is where there may well be a problem for the individual, and the continuous worry can seriously interfere with their life.

If you feel that you are becoming more and more anxious about things which shouldn?t really be a cause of such anxiety, or that your anxiety is out of control, it is well worth investigating further. It is not helpful to attempt to ignore the situation and hope it will go away, it may not, and may well get worse.

Seeking help is the most important thing you can do in this situation.

Got A Social Anxiety Problem?

2008-05-21T00:21:00.000-07:00

Social anxiety is particularly common in our society. It is estimated that up anywhere around 20% of the adult population is affected by some form of anxiety, including social anxiety, at some stage in their lives. The good news is that social anxiety is a disorder that can often be successfully treated.

There are a range of treatments available for sufferers of anxiety in it?s various forms. These include counseling, medications of various types and a whole panoply of relaxation techniques and other remedies. These can sometimes successfully include herbal remedies.

These can be complimented with dietary changes, the inclusion of exercise into the lifestyle and sometimes additional vitamin supplements to offer the possibility to sufferers of any one of the dozens of types of anxiety of a full recovery.

Many of the herbal anxiety remedies help to reduce stress and induce relaxation. These can include the use of Kava Kava and Chamomile, skullcap, Siberian Ginseng and Valerian root.

Chamomile is often used as a relaxant. It can be brewed and taken as a tea, or else it can be added to bathwater and a long and sooting bath taken. Jasmine can also be used as a relaxant in bathwater with great success.

There are many different types of herbs which can be useful in relaxing anxiety sufferers. This relaxation can help them in their quest to overcome their affliction, and combined with other remedies as described above, can be extremely successful.

However it is always important to consult a qualified herbalist before using any form of herb as a treatment, just as it is important to consult a doctor for specific medical problems. And always use any recommended product exactly as instructed.

Anxiety can have some severe effects on the immune system as a result of the stress felt from the anxiety attacks. Often this can be alleviated somewhat the addition of various vitamin supplements to the diet. It is extremely important that the anxiety sufferer maintain a strong immune system.

It is also important to ensure that the person maintains a good nourishing diet. This will also impact the immune system and help it to remain in good order. And paying attention to reducing certain foodstuffs in the diet can also be beneficial. For example it is well worthwhile to reduce the intake of caffeine and refined sugar. This will help reduce the incidence of specific anxiety attacks.

Moderate physical exercise as often as possible is often recommended to help reduce the incidence of stress and give the individual a physical outlet for any symptoms of stress he or she may be experiencing.

And it is also well worthwhile considering a new and relaxing hobby, perhaps one like yoga, to help maintain vitality and physical relaxation.

Anxiety can be overcome. It takes some effort and will power, and often some professional help. But anxiety need not be a life sentence.

How To Understand And Conquer Anxiety Attack Symptoms

2008-05-18T22:01:00.000-07:00

Anxiety attack symptoms often leave a person believing that the worst is going to happen to them. If you are reading this, looking for answers about your specific condition, you need to take note that the way that you feel is not necessarily reality. This can be very hard to understand and it can be quite impossible to wrap your mind around. Yet, anxiety attack symptoms can be very real and very scary in themselves. Understanding what these symptoms are, and working to correct them, will allow you to excel in treatments for yourself.

What Symptoms Are Evident?

The first thing to understand about your anxiety panic disorder, social anxiety disorder or any other form of anxiety disorder is that the symptoms you face are symptoms and not reality. It is important to spot these anxiety attack symptoms so that you can ultimately see it coming on and treat it.

Here are some of the feelings and symptoms that you may experience during an anxiety attack:

? Irrational heightened fear. Although those that face anxiety disorder often have an overall fear and endless amount of worries, during an attack this is heightened and elevated to something much more serious in their minds. ? Pounding heart, racing heart and chest pain. ? Problems breathing, often, you may feel like you have just run a marathon although you have not done much physical activity. ? Feelings like you are losing it, you may feel that your mind is just being overtaken; you can not concentrate or focus. ? You feel physically shaken; your legs are jelly, your stomach hurts, your muscles do not move as you are telling them to. You may even feel numbness, tingling and chills. ? You feel as if you are dying.

Anxiety attack symptoms can be just one or two of these or they can be many more. You should realize or try to realize, when these symptoms are occurring as this can be a helpful signal to you to realize that this is not rational thought.

In anxiety attack symptoms, your body is reacting to the way in which you are thinking. While you should not try to treat your condition alone, you can work with behavioral specialists that will help you to work through the problems effectively. In most cases, people that have anxiety disorders of any type feel as if they just can not seek out the help that they need. While this may be the case, getting through this one event can help you to ease out of the terrible conditions you are facing right now.

Knowing what anxiety attack symptoms are can help you to notice when you need help. Realizing when a loved one is in this situation can be helpful to them as well. Often, the irrational feelings that they are having are very real and very terrifying to them. Getting them the help they need is essential to their own well being.

You can find info on anxiety attack symptoms and tips for panic attacks and more by visiting our mental health website.

Why Is It So Difficult To Come Out From Stress, Anxiety, And Depression?

2008-05-16T22:08:00.000-07:00

Most people who face stress, anxiety and depression problem believe that it is very difficult to come out from the illness.

They are 100% right, and that is the reason why they could not overcome the illness.

For those who came out from the illness without taking any drugs, (well, drugs doesn't cure you anyway), it is easy.

And....they are 100% right too, and that is the reason why come out from the illness.

The point is : You have to first believe you can come out from the illness!

Sound easy right? But why so many people can't make it?

Simply because things that are easy to do is also easy not to do!

By changing your mode of thinking you can change the whole different way you look at all yours "problems"! It is all done by your mind.

Ask yourself this question, do you know that drinking a lot of water good for your body? Do you know that drinking a lot of sodas is harmful to your health? Would it be easy to drink water and not soda?

But why many people still drinks sodas? It is because things that are easy to do, is also easy to not do.

Ask yourself another question, do you know that exercise is good for your health? What about taking a 10 minutes walk after your dinner with your loved one? Isn't that easy to do? But how many of us are actually doing that?

Now, is it easy to change your mode of thinking so that you can release yourself from being stressed? Why are you not doing it?

"But, it is very difficult to change the mode of thinking!"

Before you jump into that conclusion, let's try this test.

Imagine you have not been drinking any water for the whole day, and you are thirsty. I put a glass of water in front of you, and tell you that you can have it, what would you do?

Your answer: You will drink it.

But, what if I tell you that the glass of water contain poison that is fatal?

Will you still drink it?

Do you see how your mode of thinking of the water had just changed?

Change of mode of thinking is probably one of the easiest thing to do, but yet so many people don't do it, not because it can't or difficult to be done, they simply ignore and put excuses to do it.

The Mind Is The Limit.

Kam Meng, Mok writes about self-development. Get a copy of "Stress No More" from http://www.stresscat.com and find out more about his work at http://www.brainszone.com

Quiz - Do You Get Anxiety Attacks?

2008-05-15T22:21:00.000-07:00

Anxiety is very common. Fear, worry, anxiety, unease are all very common feelings. Anxiety attacks are not very common, but many of us suffer from anxiety attacks. Are you one of them? Let us find out.

What are anxiety attacks? An immediate onset of great amount of anxiety suddenly is an anxiety attack. Most of the anxiety attacks have physical symptoms. Let me give you an example. Say you have to deliver lecture tomorrow in front of an audience of thousand people. You will get anxious about that and remain so all through the night. But when you reach the podium, you may get the anxiety attack despite all the preparation. Most of us get such attacks. The situation may be different for all of us. There rare cases where people get anxiety attacks if they have to talk to someone of opposite sex.

Why do we get anxiety attacks? The causes of such attacks are mainly rooted in our ancestry. Our ancestors were taught by nature to save themselves by running away from any danger if they could not fight it. We have inherited those genes. Though we do not face fierce animals in jungles, we face situations that make us equally scary and we want to runaway, but unlike our ancestors we cannot run away in social situations.

The other reasons may include some incidents of childhood, that are carried to the adulthood or other psychological reasons that are better diagnosed by a medical professional. If anxiety attacks are damaging your social and work life, get treated. In case of normal attacks that you feel you can manage yourself deep breathing may help.

CD Mohatta writes for ecards, screensavers and wallpapers. The topics of his writings include love, inspiration, holidays, birthdays etc. You can view free wallpapers, send free greetings and solve fun quizzes on personality.

Seven Ways to Transform Your Relationship to Stress and Anxiety

2008-05-01T22:44:00.000-07:00

Stress is amazingly persistent, even seductive. We get used to feeling tight and tense. Though positive thinking has its place, unless it's backed up by practical wisdom, it tends to get overwhelmed and fade away.

Here are seven proven tips for a whole new relationship with stress and anxiety:

1. Control your REACTION with these seven simple words.

The first step is to remain alert when people try to weigh you down with their nervous comments and attitudes.

The next step is to reply to the attempted attack: "I have nothing to say to that." This cuts off the contagious effect of the stressful assault. It blocks the tendency to accept and imitate depressing words from others. Your nature does not fall down to the level of the anxious remark, but remains high above it.

Negative people WANT to get you involved with their defeat, and this is a major method they use to do it. Your reply ("I have nothing to say to that") prevents them from drawing you in as their victim.

Inner life author Vernon Howard writes, "An attitude of defeat in another person cannot touch you unless you carelessly accept it as yours. And there is no need at all for you to accept it. A quiet refusal to enter the battlefield is the perfect reply."

2. Let go of painful grudges by living in the present moment.

Hating someone is like drinking poison yourself and hoping the offender will die from it. We shut the door on our own development when we fail to grant others the same opportunity for change. Therefore, it is our responsibility to release to the providence of a higher power those who have caused harm, while simultaneously realizing they will be held accountable for their actions.

The secret to success without stress is to realize your newness in the present moment many times each day. NOW is so alive and energetic, so tangible and real, that painful grudges cannot "live" here. Grudges can only stay around when fueled by unaware and unproductive mental visits to the past.

3. Observe negative thoughts with the aim of understanding them instead of trying to suppress them.

Self-Observation is a master key to stress-free living. Instead of claiming stressful thoughts and feelings as our own, we can observe and understand them. This understanding sets us free!

Self-observation is practical spirituality at its best. Marcus Aurelius, the ancient Roman Emperor said, "Those who do not observe the movement of their own minds must of necessity be unhappy."

4. Pause often and enjoy a deep breath.

People are often so tense with stressful thinking they barely breathe!

We can do something highly beneficial and intelligent. We can take brief breaks many times a day, even if for only 30 seconds! We can pause, take a deep breath, look around and relax.

Suppose you feel tempted to give in to someone when you know you should not. Instantly fall into internal relaxation. Breathe away your tensions. Your habitually anxious and resentful attitudes will fall away like leaves from a tree. They will be replaced by a clear mind that reveals what is best for you.

5. Realize you have far better things to think about!

The old way of thinking has its favorite grooves, like negative mental film clips that pull you away from the present moment. When you detect yourself involved in one of these internal movies, pause and say to yourself, "There are better things to think about." This instantly snaps the spell and moves you to higher ground.

You'll feel much less stress and an abundance of new vitality as you reclaim the energy once consumed by these negative mental film clips. Suddenly wake up and come home to yourself by enthusiastically declaring, "There are better things to think about!"

6. Stay clear of negative zones of influence.

Our society is rampant with negative influences. They come from so many places, like frantic people, advertising and untruthful politics. Never forget: Unaware people want you to vibrate on their stressful level. It is your duty, your noble mission in life, to live in harmony with your Heart - YOUR AUTHENTIC AND INTELLIGENT SELF. Though physically you may be in a stressful place, once you connect with your Heart, you have the spiritual power to stay free inwardly. No law says you must fall under stressful zones of influence.

7. Refuse to make stressful or angry comments.

Stress spills out into the world. It is like a snowball rolling down a hill that starts small then gathers size and momentum. Therefore, we must stop stress in its infancy, and the best place to do so is BEFORE it leaves the mouth.

Here's a wonderful way to dissolve stress in your life:

This insight exercise is called SELF-SURPRISE. Here's how it works. You are about to say something angry or hurtful to another person. The statement has left the dock - it is traveling at the speed of light toward the mouth. Your AWARENESS steps in and a higher choice is made; a switch is thrown and you do not say what you were about to say. You say something helpful and cheerful instead!

You'll instantly feel the trueness of practicing this exercise. Anger or stress did not succeed in dictating your speech. Your power of choice lifted you above its arrows. This is not the practice of phony niceness. It is the __expression of true strength and authentic self-command. It can only occur when your awareness is active, like the presence of a lighted lodge in the dark forest.

Conclusion:

The one supreme power that guarantees personal happiness is personal right thinking. This "right thinking" is based on practical wisdom. Try these seven methods, and you'll see a huge difference in your life. You'll have LOTS of energy!

Social Anxiety - Are You Just Shy?

2008-04-24T03:03:00.000-07:00

Most people unfamiliar with anxiety see it as just a simple case of the nerves. Those of us who live with anxiety know it is much more than that.

Anxiety is similar to fear, yet very different. Let me explain. Fear is a rational emotional response to a real threat. Anxiety is an irrational emotional response to an imagined threat. However it feels very real to those of us who suffer with anxiety on a daily basis.

Example: Imagine you are walking down a dark deserted road and you turn around to see a man coming at you with a gun. This is real... this is fear.

Now imagine you are walking down a familiar street in broad daylight and you imagine some disaster is about to happen, to you, and without warning. There is no visual threat, it is all imagined, though very real in the mind of a person suffering anxiety. This is imagined... this is anxiety.

Social anxiety or social phobia is often misdiagnosed. Often, you are just labeled as being shy.

"Oh, you are just shy?" Are you sick and tired of hearing that? Are you wondering what is wrong with you? Do you feel like no one understands? You are not alone!

I lived with "shyness" all my life. Everyone told me to just "get over it." I wanted to scream! Something is wrong with me! I can't just get over it!

Then I got older. The problem with my "shyness" got worse. Other symptoms started to arise. Depression, anxiety, panic attacks, agoraphobia, and many others.

If you are still wondering if you are just shy, or if it is something more, maybe this will help.

Do you worry for days, weeks, months about an event you have to attend?
Do you immediately start coming up with excuses not to attend an event?
Do you have an extreme fear of being judged by others?
Do you have extreme fear of talking to strangers?
Do you find it extremely hard to post in forums, newsgroups, use an instant messenger, or any form of conversation online?
Do you find it almost impossible to use the phone?
Do you panic when someone knocks on your door?
Do you even get nauseous and not answer it?
Do you avoid going to the store?

Some of these you may do, some you may not, and there may be other things you do or avoid that is not on this list. It should give you some points to ponder. Notice a couple of key words in the examples above. Extreme and Avoid.

Someone who is shy may blush when meeting someone new. Someone with social anxiety may also blush when meeting someone new. However, this person may also feel nauseous, light headed, and tremble. Their heart might race, they may sweat excessively, their mouth and throat may get extremely dry, they may have panic feelings and want to find the nearest exit.

It is imperative for anyone with these kinds of feelings seek professional assistance.

I have been living with Social Anxiety all of my life, though misdiagnosed until late adulthood. I now share my daily struggles in hopes to help someone along the way. http://anxietymadness.blogspot.com/

Goal Setting - Anxiety & Panic Disorder

2008-04-24T03:02:00.000-07:00

Are you a smart person?

Some of you maybe thinking "I can't be" after all - I suffer with this yucky horrible anxiety and panic attacks each day of my life.

However I can assure you that you are of high intelligence. It was your ability to over think/over analyze and place so much effort into your anxiety and panic attacks that it became a disorder.

It's your every thought of something that makes you feel anxious or panicky that swings to your next "attack".

If you were anything like me - I used to inspect my body for any little changes - and any little changes must mean its CANCER or some other terrible disease I managed to Google last night when I was feeling nauseous, shaky and short of breath.

By the way... it's incredible the amount of horrible diseases you can find for just a few short symptoms typed into your Google browser!

BUT what if you used this energy and time that you give your anxiety and panic disorder and placed the focus on a positive goal you want to achieve?

Say for example - you want to earn an extra $5,000 this year - whether it's for a family holiday or one of them big beefy television sets!!! OR to start a new course, get a degree - whatever it is that your heart truly desires.

Now - you think about this goal EVERY single DAY! You're constantly working towards "how you can achieve this".

What do you think will happen?

I can tell you what will happen - you will gravitate towards your goal. You will *think* less about your anxiety and panic attacks and you will begin to see results! Results that you want!

If you have successfully managed to make your life a living hell with anxiety and panic disorder - (because believe me, I know how much energy you put into keeping it alive) - just imagine how successful you could be if you placed this same amount of energy into achieving your goals! Achieving the things you truly desire and want!

It's only a matter of time before it becomes a habit - so why not make a habit out of achieving your dreams and desires.

Anxiety Disorder Get more information like this for free by joining our free newsletter at: http://www.anxiety-panic-free.com

5 Quick Ways To Ease Stress, Depression & Anxiety

2008-04-07T22:22:00.000-07:00

No ceremony with this article, let's go straight into five quick ways that will help you find relief from stress, depression and anxiety.

1. Take regular breaks from the firing line. Working hard without regular breaks is a great way to build up stress and tension. Make sure you have at least one 15-minute break in the morning and one in the afternoon as well as at least 20 minutes for lunch. If possible, eat lunch away from your workstation. Equally, if you have a lot to deal with in your life right now, taking a day, or a weekend elsewhere - longer if you can - to get some breathing space will really help. Even just a day away from the firing line will enable you to get some distance from the problems and help you to gather your thoughts.

2. Regular exercise can help relieve stress, depression and anxiety. Exercise releases endorphins into your system and will give you a natural boost. It will also provide you with a break from brooding and dwelling upon problems and troubles - but only if you perform the right kind of exercises. Avoid: Exercises that allow you to brood (weight lifting, jogging, treadmills) and perform exercises that require your full concentration. Competitive sports such as squash, tennis, badminton and circuit training are all excellent examples. It is important that you do not brood when you exercise because although you will be benefiting physically, you are still stressing yourself mentally and the stress, depression and anxiety will worsen.

3. Stop beating yourself up. Self-deprecation is a huge part of stress, depression and anxiety. Each time you beat up on yourself, you will erode confidence and self-esteem. Never tell yourself you're useless, worthless, stupid, hopeless, boring, ugly, and a loser. Never convince yourself that other people hate you, that others find you difficult to be around and that you're better off being alone. You would never deem it acceptable to say such things to other people and you must deem it equally unacceptable to say them to yourself. These words and phrases are powerful and they will hurt you. Accept you're not perfect and that you make mistakes - just like everybody else does - and cut yourself some slack. From this day, make a pact with me to never indulge self-deprecation ever again. IT IS UNACCEPTABLE.

4. Isolation is another problem experienced by stress, depression and anxiety sufferers. OK, there will be times when you just want your own company. During such times, you can brood over and over again on problems and events and beat yourself up for hours on end. Not good. Instead, use isolation more positively. Occupy your mind by tackling a jigsaw puzzle, a logic problem, a crossword, read a book or perform a hobby such as painting, playing a musical instrument or whatever it is you have an interest in. In this way, isolation will help you to grow instead of causing you further pain.

5. Television, radio and newspapers can all supply you with a daily hit of negativity and help lower your mood. In the main, they concentrate on the negative side of life: crime, corruption, war, scandal and natural disasters and can give you a distorted view of reality. Not to mention the amount of image manipulation they subject you to. Give yourself a break from this negative drip feed and avoid them completely for one week. You may find, like I have, that they have no place in your life after that. Trust me, you won't miss them.

That's five, quick tips for you to help fight stress, depression and anxiety. Please give them a try, they'll all help to boost your mood levels very quickly indeed.

Former anxiety sufferer Chris Green is the author of "Conquering Stress", the internationally acclaimed program which will help you to permanently conquer stress, depression and anxiety without taking powerful drugs. For a free mini course, please click here => http://www.conqueringstress.com

Rely on personal loan for your anxiety.

2008-03-31T02:50:00.000-07:00

Life is unpredictable and unforeseen. We often go through a tough time due to our financial instability. This is where we require money to lead our life without worries. Personal loan can sort out all your difficulties. Personal loan is designed to cater to your personal as well as business needs. Now you can get rid with all your worries of bad debts. Personal loan can help to wave off bad debts. In addition to this, you can go for home renovation or buy a car or use the amount for wedding purpose, education expenditure just to name a few of its multiple uses.

Personal loan is divided in to two main categories- secured personal loan and unsecured personal loan. These two loans differ from each other. In secured personal loan, you are required to offer your property as a security to the lender. You have low interest rate and small monthly payments. Where as there is a risk losing the property, if you fail to pay the loan money back. You can borrow a large amount, as you are offering your property as collateral.

In Unsecured personal loan there is no risk to your property because you are not required to offer anything as collateral but you bear high rate of interest and short repayment duration. This loan is taken for short duration of time.

Personal loan is also given to people with adverse credit. Earlier they were rejected because of their poor history, but now things have changed. They are offered loan by different creditors but at higher rate of interest. Personal loan has the solution for every one.

Internet is the right option to look for more information. You can find lot of information if you make a thorough search. Make yourself comfortable with all the facts and figures of personal loan.

The author is a business writer specializing in finance and credit products and has written authoritative articles on the finance industry. He has done his masters in Business Administration and is currently assisting Personal Loans as a finance specialist. For more information please visit: http://www.go4ukloans.co.uk

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Test Your Anxiety Response

2008-03-31T02:49:00.001-07:00

Worries and anxieties are part of our life. The difference between us is our response to any event. The cause may be common, but the response may vary widely. Some anxiety and worry is good. Otherwise we cannot save ourselves. Fear is one of our defense mechanisms. It is fear of death that stops us walking on a highway. Fear, worry and anxiety are related. Let us examine and quiz ourselves about our anxiety response. Too much anxiety can stop us from working. How to quiz ourselves about our anxiety response? Let us find out.

We are said to feel anxiety when we are apprehensive about future and fear what may happen. All of us experience lot of anxiety when we are to go for a surgery. Such events create maximum anxiety. Should every situation make us feel anxious? The answer is no. Are you an anxious person? Do you experience more anxiety then your friends in the same situation? If yes, it is time that you rethink about yourself.

Quiz yourself about anxiety. For example, you may to get up early than usual and reach for a very important appointment or work. Few of us will have no anxiety about that, but some of us will not be able to fall asleep because of anxiety. They are worried that they may not get up early and not reach in time. This anxiety causes more damage than benefiting us. Such common anxiety must be eliminated. Quiz yourself about different situations and compare your anxiety response with others. If you are responding with higher level of anxiety, reduce it with conscious effort. Try this fun quiz to know about your anxiety and other personality traits. Can you beat anxiety? and How well do you handle a crisis?

Post-traumatic stress disorder is an anxiety disorder that's triggered by your memories of a traumatic event

2008-03-29T04:27:00.000-07:00

Overview

Post-traumatic stress disorder is an anxiety disorder that's triggered by your memories of a traumatic event -- an event that directly affected you or an event that you witnessed. The disorder commonly affects survivors of traumatic events, such as sexual assault, physical assault, war, torture, a natural disaster, an automobile accident, an airplane crash, a hostage situation or a death camp. Post-traumatic stress disorder also can affect rescue workers at the site of an airplane crash or a mass shooting. It can affect someone who witnessed a tragic accident.

Not everyone involved in a traumatic event experiences post-traumatic stress disorder. However, the disorder affects more than 5 million adults each year in the United States. Post-traumatic stress disorder is twice as common in women as it is in men. Treatment may involve a combined approach including medications and behavior therapy designed to help you gain control of your anxiety.

Signs and symptoms

Signs and symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder typically appear within three months of the traumatic event. However, in some instances, they may not occur until years after the event and may include: § Flashbacks and distressing dreams associated with the traumatic event. § Distress at anniversaries of the trauma. § Efforts to avoid thoughts, feelings and activities associated with the trauma. § Feelings of detachment or estrangement from others and an inability to have loving feelings. § Markedly diminished interest or participation in activities that once were an important source of satisfaction. § In young children, delayed or developmental retrogression in such areas as toilet training, motor skills and language. § Hopelessness about the future -- no hope of a family life, career or living to old age. § Physical and psychological hypersensitivity -- not present before the trauma -- with at least two of the following reactions: trouble sleeping, anger, difficulty concentrating, exaggerated startle response to noise, and physiological reaction to situations that remind you of the traumatic event. These physiological reactions may include an increase in blood pressure, a rapid heart rate, rapid breathing, muscle tension, nausea and diarrhea. Risk factors

The severity of the traumatic event and how long the event lasted appear to be factors in the development of this disorder. Other factors that may increase the likelihood of developing post-traumatic stress disorder include:

§ A previous history of depression or other emotional disorder § A previous history of physical or sexual abuse § A family history of anxiety § Early separation from parents § Being part of a dysfunctional family § Alcohol abuse § Drug abuse

When to seek medical advice

It's normal to undergo a wide range of feelings and emotions after a traumatic event. The feelings you experience may include fear and anxiety, a lack of focus, sadness, changes in sleeping or eating patterns, or bouts of crying that come easily. You may have recurrent thoughts or nightmares about the event. If you have these disturbing feelings for more than a month, if they're severe or if you feel you're having trouble getting your life back under control, consider seeing your doctor or a mental health professional.

Overview

Schizophrenia is a chronic and often debilitating mental illness. The condition can cause you to withdraw from the people and activities in the world around you and to retreat into a world of delusions or separate reality.

Signs and symptoms

Signs and symptoms of schizophrenia may include:

§ Delusions -- personal beliefs not based in reality, such as paranoia that you're being persecuted or conspired against § Bizarre delusions -- for example, a belief in Martians controlling your thoughts § Hallucinations -- sensing things that don't exist, such as imaginary voices § Incoherence § Lack of emotions or inappropriate display of emotions § A persistent feeling of being watched § Trouble functioning at work or in social situations

Generally, schizophrenia causes a slowly progressive deterioration in the ability to function in various roles, especially in your job and personal life. The signs and symptoms of schizophrenia vary greatly. A person may behave differently at different times. He or she may become extremely agitated and distressed, or fall into a trance-like, immobile, unresponsive (catatonic) state, or even behave normally much of the time. Signs and symptoms that occur continuously and progressively may indicate schizophrenia. In general, schizophrenia has symptoms that fall into three categories -- negative, positive and cognitive:

Negative signs and symptoms

Negative signs and symptoms may appear early in the disease, and a person may not think he or she needs treatment. They're referred to as negative because they indicate a loss of behavior or of a personality trait. Negative signs generally accompany a slow deterioration of function, leading to your becoming less sociable.

Such signs may include:

§ Dulled emotions (lack of expression) § Inappropriate emotions (laughing while expressing terrifying images) § A change in speech (speaking in a dull monotone) Positive signs and symptoms Positive signs include hallucinations and delusions. They're called positive because they indicate a trait or behavior that's been added to the personality. § Hallucinations. Hallucinations occur when you sense things that don't exist. The most common hallucination in schizophrenia is hearing voices. You may carry on a conversation with voices that no one else can hear. Or you may perceive that voices are providing you instructions on what to do. Hallucinations may result in injuries to other people.

§ Delusions. Delusions are firmly held personal beliefs that have no basis in reality. The most common subtype of schizophrenia is paranoid schizophrenia, in which you hold irrational beliefs that others are persecuting you or conspiring against you. For example, some people with schizophrenia may believe that the television is directing their behavior or that outside forces are controlling their thoughts.

Cognitive signs and symptoms

These signs and symptoms tend to be more subtle than positive and negative ones. Cognitive signs and symptoms may include: § Problems making sense of incoming information § Difficulty paying attention § Memory problems

Misconceptions about schizophrenia

Schizophrenia may exist alone or in combination with other psychiatric or medical conditions. Misconceptions about schizophrenia and its relation to other mental illnesses abound. The following truths will help clarify what it is and is not:

§ Schizophrenia isn't the same as a split or multiple personality. Multiple personality disorder is a separate, rare condition. § Although some people with schizophrenia develop violent tendencies, most don't. Many withdraw into themselves rather than interact with others. § Not everyone who acts paranoid or distrustful has schizophrenia. Some people have a paranoid personality disorder, a tendency to be suspicious or distrustful of others, without the other features of schizophrenia. § Not everyone who hears voices is schizophrenic. Some people with depression may hear voices. Hearing voices may also occur as a result of a serious medical illness or from the effects of medication. Substance abuse and schizophrenia

While not necessarily a sign of schizophrenia, drug abuse is more common in people with schizophrenia. Nicotine is a commonly abused drug by people with schizophrenia; it's estimated that 75 percent to 90 percent of people with schizophrenia smoke compared with about one-quarter of the general population. Unfortunately some drugs, such as amphetamines, cocaine and marijuana, can make schizophrenia symptoms worse. Others, such as nicotine, can interfere with schizophrenia medications.

Causes

Researchers haven't identified the cause or causes of schizophrenia, although they believe genetic factors play a role. About 1 percent of the general population develops schizophrenia compared with 10 percent of those with a close family relative who has the disease. Chemical or subtle structural abnormalities in the brain may contribute to causing this illness.

When to seek medical advice

By its nature, schizophrenia often isn't an illness for which someone is likely to voluntarily seek treatment. To a person with schizophrenia, the delusions and hallucinations are real, and often he or she may believe there's no need for medical help. If you're a family member or friend of someone who is exhibiting possible signs of schizophrenia or another mental disorder, you may need to be the one who takes him or her to a medical professional for evaluation. Additionally, people with schizophrenia are more likely to attempt suicide, so if your loved one talks about committing suicide, seek professional help immediately.

Screening and diagnosis

Before making a diagnosis of schizophrenia, your doctor likely will rule out other possible causes of the signs that may suggest schizophrenia. It's possible that other mental or physical illnesses may cause signs similar to schizophrenia.

Your doctor will want to discuss your family and medical history and do a physical examination. Your doctor may ask for blood or urine samples to see if medications, substance abuse or another physical illness may be a factor in your signs.

Among the other mental illnesses that may at least partly resemble schizophrenia are depression, bipolar disorder, other psychoses, and abuse of alcohol and other drugs.

It's also possible that physical illnesses such as certain infections, cancers, nervous system disorders, thyroid disorders and immune system disorders may produce some psychotic signs. Psychosis is also a possible side effect of some medications. If no other underlying cause is found, doctors diagnose schizophrenia based on the signs and symptoms.

Listen to Arthur Buchanan on the Mike Litman Show! http://freesuccessaudios.com/Artlive.mp3 THIS LINK WORKS, LISTEN TODAY!

With Much Love, Arthur Buchanan

President/CEO Out of Darkness & Into the Light 43 Oakwood Ave. Suite 1012 Huron Ohio, 44839

www.out-of-darkness.com www.biologicalhappiness.com www.mentalillnessandme.com www.adhdandme.com The only place where your dream becomes impossible is inyour own thinking. --Robert H. Schuller

First Kiss - Dealing with the Anxiety

2008-03-28T02:36:00.002-07:00

Getting close to landing your first kiss? Are you overwhelmed with stress? If the answer is yes, then you must read this article. It will slash your anxiety in half.

1) Eliminate Expectations Don't expect to set the world on fire with your first kiss. Instead, decide that you just want to give a normal 10 second kiss. Shooting for a realistic goal will lower your stress considerably. 2) Remember that you'll get a 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th + chance. Once that initial kiss is made, you guys will do it a hundred more times. You'll be so relieved and thrilled to be kissing, that you'll want to do it all the time. So, if you screw up a little on your first kiss, don't sweat it. You'll get another chance to do it better...probably within the hour.

3) It's probably their first kiss, too Don't expect to be judged on your performance. If they haven't kissed anyone before, either, you can be damn sure that they're also stressing about it. In fact, after you guys pull apart from your first kiss, it's likely they'll be so busy wondering "Am I doing this right", that they won't stop to consider whether you did it right.

4) They want you to kiss them Go ahead and assume that the person you're dating wants to kiss you. Obviously, they're physically attracted to you. Otherwise, they wouldn't be dating you. It's only natural for them to want you in a more physical way. Of course, they want to kiss you.

5) Think positive thoughts Psyche yourself up. Think how happy you'll be once you land that first kiss. Think of all the hours of making out that will be going on after you get the first kiss over with. Think how great it's going to feel. Don't delay this ecstasy any longer.

6) Billions of people kiss every day A kiss is a normal everyday thing for several billion people. Your mom and dad, neighbors, and other people all over the world kiss all the time, so what's the big deal? If they can do it, why can't you? If it's no big deal to dinosaurs like your parents and grandparents, why should you have a problem with it?

7) Visualize it Try to picture how it's going to go down. When you go to bed at night, close your eyes and try to imagine how you're going to make your approach, how you're going to hold them, etc. The more you visualize this moment, the more comfortable and stress free you'll be when the time comes to do it for real.

8) Practice it in your room...seriously Physically go through the motions that you visualized in the previous step. Practice walking up to your sweetie, practice what you're going to say (and in what tone of voice), and practice leaning in. You can even practice kissing your hand. Believe it or not, but these techniques actually work. Going through the motions will prepare you for the real thing.

Todd Peterson is the editor of the popular teen community HighWorld.com

Visit HighWorld.com for more on teen life

Get immediate relief from Anxiety Disorder and Panic Attacks using breathing techniques

2008-03-28T02:36:00.001-07:00

Get immediate relief from Anxiety Disorder and Panic Attacks using breathing techniques.

Mike Carlson

Many of the symptoms we feel during an anxiety or panic attack are very real physical reactions by our body, even though the threat may be more a product of our mind than it is a reality.

Throughout my years of learning do conquer my anxiety disorder, I learned that a) there is no instant cure or "quick fix" and b) no single avenue of treatment alone, such as medications, will be an effective, long term solution.

One of the single most effective ways of reducing the debilitating physical reactions your body has to a perceived threat (which is partly what an anxiety attack is) is to learn deep breathing techniques.

Once you learn to control your breathing, when you feel anxiety attack coming on you'll be able to quickly relax and reduce those feelings. You'll quickly feel much better, and what a huge step that will be!

Part of what happens when your mind perceives danger is it shortens up your breathing, producing a lot of the choking, panicking, fast heart beats that you feel.

It's important for you to use these breathing techniques before or right when you feel anxiety coming on. However, start practicing any time you get a chance, at least once a day.

You'll want to practice slow, steady breathing through your nose. To be sure you're doing this technique well; slowly inhale through your nose, while counting to 6. Hold your breath for a second or two, then slowly exhale also while counting to 6, hold for a second or two, and repeat.

Also try and breathe using your stomach and not your chest. To test this, place your hand on your stomach as you breathe, and you should feel it moving slowly up and down with your inhales and exhales.

Now practice this each day, when you're driving to work, or relaxing after work would be great. Allow yourself to relax while doing this. Start using this technique when you start to feel anxiety coming on, or when you know you'll be heading into a situation that usually causes a problem with your anxiety disorder, even before you start to feel the symptoms come on!

This is just one of the techniques, when combined with a holistic "life" approach to anxiety disorders and panic attacks that can allow you to live anxiety free!

It is possible, it can be done, but you have to do it! Start today

Mike has lived with Anxiety all of his life. He has spent many of those years trying many "traditional" treatments and searching for new solutions to living anxiety free. By taking some traditional treatments and also "Going outside the Box" Mike is now living free of fear and living a full life he never thought possible!

Visit
www.Live Anxiety Free.com

Anxiety Depression

2008-03-27T05:15:00.000-07:00

Anxiety anxiety disorder anxiety attack anxiety treatment anxiety depression anxiety social anxiety symptom anxiety stress anxiety medication anxiety attack symptom anxiety disorder social anxiety disorder generalized anxiety separation anxiety phobia workbook anxiety attack panic anxiety phobia anxiety coping 10 anxiety charge depression distress emotional healing life overcoming person steps take through whole anti anxiety medication anxiety status age anxiety in madness motherhood perfect anxiety test 2nd anxiety beat coaching completely depression edition powerful program revised self updated

Anxiety attack can change drug free life new panic that therapy when anxiety information anxiety performance anxiety celexa anti anxiety drug anxiety depression symptom anxiety cymbalta anxiety disorder symptom anxiety disorder phobia anxiety child anxiety dog separation anxiety depression medication adult anger anxiety decrease dream dream guided indigo indigo meditation relaxation relaxation stress technique anxiety fear anxiety medicine anxiety relief anxiety stress symptom anxiety management anxiety disorder general anxiety child in anxiety center midwest stress anxiety disorder panic anxiety drug anxiety paxil anxiety physical symptom anxiety help anxiety disorder treatment anxiety dog in separation anti anxiety anxiety cause anxiety math anxiety diet anxiety high anxiety wellbutrin

Overcoming Anxiety Disorder

2008-03-27T04:05:00.000-07:00

Overcoming anxiety disorder is achievable with just a little bit of hard work.

When I first made the decision of overcoming anxiety disorder I tried a number of different methods.

First method I tried with overcoming anxiety disorder was medication per my doctor's recommendations. I was on Aropax, valium and xanax. Xanax just made me sleepy all the time and Aropax and valium had the opposite effect and actually increased my anxiety.

It was at this point I decided to withdraw from medication, as I was looking for a solution that would help overcoming anxiety disorder certainly not increase my anxiety!

I then resorted to natural methods of finding a way of overcoming anxiety disorder.

I tried relaxation tapes, meditation (meditation is difficult to master at the best of times, and if you intend to try this method of overcoming anxiety disorder I recommend you dedicate at least half an hour everyday to it for at least 6 months), however the fastest results I found for overcoming anxiety disorder came from distraction techniques.

Using distraction techniques I was overcoming anxiety disorder within the first week. There are a variety of distraction techniques you can use when overcoming anxiety disorder. It is a matter of finding what best suits you for your situation.

Sign up for our free newsletter and discover more techniques on <strong>Anxiety Disorder</strong> You can sign up here at: http://www.anxiety-panic-free.com

First steps toward stopping your Anxiety Disorder and Panic Attacks.

2008-03-26T05:18:00.001-07:00

First steps toward stopping your Anxiety Disorder and Panic Attacks.

By Mike Carlson

If you're like me, you've already been through a great deal in trying to find a solution to your anxiety disorder and panic attacks. Or, maybe you've just figured out that there is a name for how you've been feeling. I've spent most of my life in and out of various treatments, reading books, trying medications, and so on with varying levels of success. I found out a whole lot of information on the WHAT and WHY of anxiety disorder, but very little on the HOW, the steps on what to do to actually change the course of my life and live my life without anxiety holding me back.

After more than 20 years of trial and error, I've finally managed to do just that, and I'm going to let you in on the first step of my secret today.

You have probably lived with this thing for all of your life, like I have. How are you going to even know what it's like to feel "normal" if you never have! How do you know how anxiety disorder is affecting your life's outcome when it feels "normal" to you, because you never knew any different? All that you know right now is, you see some people around you doing big things, and you know that you are more than capable, more than intelligent enough, to do those same things. Yet, there is something holding you back.

We need to start doing something TODAY. You're going to start figuring out what those things are in life that are causing you anxiety. This may sound easier than it is! Some are obvious. Some have been there so long that you're so used to them that, once you discover them it may surprise you.

Take a notebook, a binder, whatever works for you to write in. Carry it with you if you can, but at least write in it every night while things are still fresh. I would like you to write down every time that you felt some form of anxiety, no matter how small, up to a full blown panic attack. One of mine used to be that each morning I would feel mild anxiety as I got up and did my morning routine. As I started to notice this, I had no idea why I was even feeling this way at first. But I identified it in my notebook, and by noticing it, I then was able to start to realize what the cause was. But that step is for another day.

So every day start writing these things down. Pay attention. Bring your notebook with you every chance you get. Start being aware of new things that have just "been there" for ever, then you can start on to the next step!

To succeed we have to take action. Here is your first step. There is no "magic pill" or quick fix for anxiety disorder. So get started!

Visit
www.Live Anxiety Free.com

How Acupuncture Can Help Anxiety

2008-03-26T05:16:00.000-07:00

Traditional medicine primarily uses relatively strong drugs to bring relief to those who suffer from anxiety. While the drugs do provide a degree of relief, some of the complications make one wonder if it is really worthwhile.

There is another way, however, and this article will show you how acupuncture can help anxiety.

Acupuncture In The United States

The Food and Drug Administration in 1996 officially welcomed acupuncture into the United States. Since that time, many have found it to be beneficial in quite a variety of ways, including for anxiety.

Many who practice the use of acupuncture are medical doctors who now combine it, into their medical practice. There are now over 20,000 certified practitioners in the United States.

While it has been tested both in the United States and England, it still remains a little on the outside - partly because people don't like needles. Alternatives to the needles now use more hi-tech methods - acupressure and mild lasers, which they say has about the same effect.

How Does It Work?

The basic idea of how it works is a little foreign to the minds of those of of us who live in the West. Still, the idea is interesting. They believe that the body, when healthy, allows the free flow of energy, called qi (chi) throughout the body.

The energy, they say, flows through 12 channels, called meridians, where the streams of chi come together and intersect. When there is a restriction of chi, the result are symptoms, and health problems.

Acupuncture, through the use of the needles, works on those points where the channels intersect, to unblock the flow of chi.

Those of us that live over on this side of the ocean might replace chi with the words life-force. With that restoration of the proper flow of the life force, the body can then begin to use its natural self-healing mechanisms. Acupuncture specialists often also use herbal remedies as part of a treatment program.

Modern research has shown that acupuncture stimulates the body to release chemicals in your body called endorphins. Endorphins are your body's natural pain-relievers. They may have something to do with how acupuncture helps to relieve anxiety.

Treating Anxiety

Many of the treatments for anxiety largely involve the acupuncture points found on the ear. However, studies have shown, with various control groups, that only particular areas of the ear bring any noticeable difference.

But the differences were rather amazing. While doctors still do not know why it works, they do know that there are measurable differences.

The patients that had the correct areas of the ear needled, were those that had a significant reduction in anxiety and stress-levels.

Acupuncture works on both the physical and the emotional states to bring about a general good state of well-being. It also works for other emotional problems, too.

Before you visit your local acupuncturist for depression, however, make sure that they are certified by your state.

Acupuncture Treatments

A couple of nice things about acupuncture is:

? Many insurance companies now cover it ? It is drug free - though your doctor may desire you to continue ? It uses natural healing

The average treatment can last anywhere from a couple of minutes, up to about an hour - with no negative after-effects.

Annie Beal makes it easy for anyone to feel better
naturally with acupuncture and acupressure. To
receive your free 7-part mini-course visit:
www.acupuncturegold.com/tips.html

Words That Relieve Stress, Depression & Anxiety

2008-03-24T22:51:00.000-07:00

One of the most common flawed modes of behavior performed by every sufferer who enters into a harrowing episode of stress, depression or anxiety concerns the words they use to describe situations and events they are confronted with. In using powerful, emotive words, sufferers will trigger the fear response and the more they use such words, the worse their suffering gets.

Powerful, emotive words are part of everybody?s vocabulary. Sometimes, we use powerful words when we lose our temper or we become angry and frustrated. In this state, we give vent to our feelings and the emotions within us have an outlet.

This is fine. For most people, once their emotions have been expressed, they return to their usual selves and life carries on as normal.

But it doesn?t work like this if you are prone to stress, depression or anxiety.

In these states, sufferers will react negatively to every event they are confronted with in their lives. One of the negative reactions concerns using powerful and emotive words that can make even the most insignificant of events a major problem. Words can and do have that much power and in this article, I?m going to show you how this works with three of the worst words you can use to assign meanings to events. They are:

Nothing, everything and never.

For example, let?s say your relationship with your spouse breaks down. Here?s how using the above words can trigger stress, depression or anxiety:

?Well that?s it. EVERYTHING has gone wrong in my life. I?m NOTHING without him/her and I know I?ll NEVER be happy ever again.?

Can you see how flawed this highly emotive reaction is and can you see how these words ? seemingly innocuous by themselves ? have made one event a major, stressful episode by assigning a catastrophic meaning to your whole life?

To avoid arousing such fearful emotions, here are three better, much less emotive words you can use to lower the intensity:

For everything, use ONLY. For Never, use TEMPORARY. For nothing, use SOME.

So let?s use these words to find a less intense meaning to the event in our example, the breakdown of an intimate relationship:

?OK, my relationship is over, but it ONLY affects my love life. SOME things will change but other areas of my life ? my work, my friendships, my hobbies and my social life will carry on as normally as possible. I?m hurting now, but this is TEMPORARY and things will get better in due course.?

Can you see how using different words can dramatically reduce the impact and make much clearer sense of the event? This is exactly why some people never enter into a stressful, depressive or anxious episode even when they are faced with the most trying of circumstances, such as relationship breakdown.

Everything, nothing and never are just three of the emotive words used by sufferers. There are many more ? including expletives that are far too strong to use here ? but if you use the three alternatives I?ve given in this article, you will drastically reduce the chances of entering into an episode of stress, depression and anxiety.

Be aware of the words you use to assign meanings ? mind your language!

See you soon.

Canine Separation Anxiety

2008-03-24T04:09:00.000-07:00

One of the greatest joys of dog ownership is the tight bond we experience and encourage with our dogs. However, if your dog becomes too reliant or dependant on you, canine separation anxiety can develop.

Canine Separation Anxiety is an enormous problem to an estimated 10% of all puppy's and older dogs. Somewhat ironically, it is the major cause for dogs ending up in animal shelters. I wish I could say dog separation anxiety is easily fixed , but the truth is it can be a very difficult and time consuming problem to turn around.

Let's take a look at separation anxiety from your dogs perspective. You are the most important thing in your dogs life. Dogs are very sociable creatures and thrive on company for many reasons. If your dog had a choice he/she would spend every bit of his time with you. So it's only natural that when you go out, your dog can experience varying degrees of distress and anxiety. He becomes confused, vulnerable, doesn't know where you are going, why he can't be with you and if you will be coming back to him. When you are separated all he wants is to be reunited with his pack - which is you.

Punishment is never the answer to treating dog separation anxiety!

Does Your Dog Suffer From Separation Anxiety?

There's every chance your dog is suffering from a Separation Anxiety disorder rather than another dog behavior problem if:

1. Your dog gets really worked up and anxious when you are preparing to leave the house. Things like picking up your car keys or putting on your coat can trigger the behavior.

2. Your dog engages in inappropriate behavior only when you are separated. I expand on this topic further down the page, but behavior such as urinating inside, excessive barking and destructive behavior are common symptoms of Separation Anxiety in dogs.

3. Your dog follows you everywhere you go and immediately becomes distressed if he can't be near you.

4. When you arrive home your dog is over the top with his greeting and takes a while to calm down.

Why Do Dogs Suffer From Separation Anxiety?

There are many theories on this one. In some cases the cause or trigger can be pinpointed to a particular event, but often there appears to be no explanation for the Separation Anxiety to commence. What I can say is that Canine Separation Anxiety regularly occurs:

- Straight after a change in routine. Such as your work hours changing or a family member leaves home. Remember dogs are creatures of habit and any changes can be very unsettling to them.

- If you have been on vacation or unemployed for some time and have been spending heaps of time with your dog. When you go back to work your dog becomes anxious and distressed.

- Unfortunately dog's rescued from animal shelters contribute a highly disproportionate number of Separation Anxiety cases.

- After your dog experiences a traumatic event while on his own. If a thunderstorm lashes your home while your dog is alone, this can trigger Separation Anxiety in the future.

- If your dog is rarely left alone and becomes overly reliant on his pack.

- When you move house to a new neighbourhood.

How Does Dog Separation Anxiety Manifest Itself?

- Barking - Whining - Licking - Destructive Behavior - Chewing - Howling - Panic Attacks - Digging - Inappropriate Urinating - House Soiling - Self Mutilation - Escaping - Diarrhea - Loss Of Appetite - Excessive Salivation - Vomiting - Jumping Through Windows - Crying

What Can You Do To Help Your Dog Overcome Separation?

The treatment administered to your dogs separation anxiety problem depends on its severity. You will find lots of theories and suggestions regarding the correct way to treat separation anxiety - I'll just inform you of what's worked for me.

The 4 Step Program I Used To Fix My Dalmation's Separation Anxiety Problem

My dalmation Harrison developed Separation Anxiety seemingly for no reason when he was about 7 years old. He would start digging and crying as soon as I left the house, even if my other family members were home. My Veterinarian suggested this training process, it achieved the desired result but took plenty of time and patience.

Aside from the 4 step program listed below, I continued to practice the general day to day duties of responsible dog ownership. By this I mean things like providing a safe and comfortable bed, plenty of exercise and obedience training.

Harry would start to get anxious (his whole body would shake) at the very first sign of me leaving the house. This typically would be putting my shoe's on or turning off the TV or heater. It became a real problem for Harry, myself and the rest of my family, this is how we eventually solved it:

Step 1

Since Harry was always by my side when I was home I had to slowly teach him that he didn't always need to be close to me. I started out by ignoring his attention seeking behavior (jumping up, barking etc.) and then did some solid practice of his down stay. Little by little we extended the time and distance we spent apart, until he was happy to be alone for up to 30 minutes. Of course, we still spent lots of fun time together.

Step 2

The next step was to get him used to being outside when I was inside. Again we started off with very small periods apart and gradually lengthened the time over a couple of weeks. If you try this Separation Anxiety treatment make sure that you don't just leave your dog outside to get all worked up and stressed. The trick is to start out leaving your dog out for a few seconds, then going out and reuniting before he shows any signs of Separation Anxiety. Give your dog a treat or dog toy to keep his mind off missing you. Only initiate contact with your dog when he is calm and quiet.

Step 3

The next step in fixing Harry's Separation Anxiety problem was to eliminate the distress caused by me getting ready to leave the house for work. What I did was write a list of all the triggers that started Harry's anxiety. I then set about desensitizing him to these triggers. I'd put my shoe's on, and not go anywhere. Put my coat on, then sit down to read the paper. Pick up my car keys and just carry them around with me, jangling along as I went about my business. After a while (about 3 weeks) Harry barely offered a sideways glance at my shenanigans.

Step 4

When Harry was completely calm in situations that would have unsettled him in the past, I left the house. At first I just stepped outside, shut the door and came back inside within 20 seconds - before he made a sound. Again this was a slow process, similar to step 2. I extended the time outside the front door and then graduated to starting the car, then driving around the block before I came back inside. You can provide a tasty treat to your dog on your way out the door, something that he can work on for a while. Harry's favorite was a frozen Kong stuffed full of peanut butter and a few liver treats, this eventually kept him occupied for hours. Remember that when you return home, don't make a huge fuss. Come inside, get changed, pour yourself a nice hot coffee, then greet your calm dog.

This process did prove effective for me and my anxious dalmation. All up the 4 steps took about 5 weeks to work through and fix Harry's Separation Anxiety problem. My Vet suggested that I supplement this training with some medication. I didn't go down that path, but it would have been my next step if required.

Whichever method you choose to treat dog separation anxiety, be sure to stick with it and don't expect any immediate results.

Chris Smith is a dedicated dog owner and creator of www.dog-obedience-training-review.com

You are the best person in the world to train your dog - do it the right way, at home

Speech Anxiety: A Rational Fear Carried Too Far

2008-03-21T04:04:00.000-07:00

People, on average, detest the idea of giving a speech. If you have ever been forced to take a course in public speaking at the high school or college level you have probably witnessed what strong forms of speech anxiety can produce. Shakiness, stuttering, visible sweating, hyperventilation and even fainting are possible among those with a great deal of anxiety who are forced to get behind the podium.

A series of studies confirms the fact that public speaking is feared more than death. Think about that for a moment and just how ludicrous it is. More people are afraid of delivering a simple presentation than they are of life's end. Clearly, that is irrational. No logical person would trade their life away in order to avoid ten minutes in front of co-workers discussing recent company trends.

So, we know that speech anxiety is common. We know that it can lead to all sorts of discomfort and nastiness for people forced to confront it. We also know that many people are so afraid of speaking that they consider it a fate worse than death. All of that points to one conclusion: speech anxiety is a very powerful force.

The fear of public speaking, although more intensely felt than some other fears, still holds a lot in common with other sources of nervousness. Assuming a fear is misplaced to at least some extent, the original source of the worry tends to stem from some level of personal insecurity and/or a lack of information. Ignorance is not bliss. Ignorance creates fear, and that fear is intensified even more when we know we are ignorant. That is the case with public speaking.

We do not feel comfortable giving a speech and we know it. We feel unprepared, disorganized and unsure of our ability to make a point without humiliating ourselves in front of others. We feel inadequate and we know it long before we open our mouths to give an introduction. Had we found the information necessary to approach speech construction and delivery and learned it, we would feel better about the situation.

If everyone knew some simple ways to come up with a great presentation and some simple tricks regarding delivery, they could approach public speaking with a greater level of assuredness. If they knew even more about public speaking--perhaps even some details and perspective on speech anxiety--their fear would be even further mitigated.

There are few people in the world who can hop up in front of others and being speaking without hesitation or fear. They are the exceptions. Most of us, all things being otherwise equal, would choose to avoid giving a public presentation. That preference may be a reflection of our personality, but it is also a reflection of our good sense.

You see, we do not want to give a speech because we know we are inadequately prepared to do a good job. Our fears may be inappropriately large, but they are rooted in some honest self-assessment. We fear what we do not know. We fear that even more when we know just how much we do not know!

If you were called upon to deliver a public speech today, how would you react? If you said you would be glad to do so and were ready to go that means one of two things: either you have a great deal of confidence based on having developed good public speaking skills or you are one of those few people who have no qualms about presenting (even if they don't have the talent or technique to do it well). In other words, those who have no fear of public speaking are either skilled or ignorant without realizing it.

The fear of public speaking is rational. Many people, however, carry that rational fear to an irrational extreme.

How can we combat this? The answer is simple: information. If once is willing to seek out information and guidance regarding the development of public speaking, anxiety can be calmed. Information also leads to the development of skills, which will further abate any speech anxiety. There is even available information that deals directly with the issue of speech anxiety, making it that much easier to conquer. Fear breeds in ignorance, and eradicating that ignorance with a solid guide to public speaking is a sensible solution to the problem.

For more information regarding Public Speaking please visit

Public Speaking

Ways To Relieve Anxiety Symptoms

2008-03-21T04:02:00.000-07:00

Our society today can often be very overwhelming and it is important to make your anxiety is in check as well as any other issues that you may have going on at the time. Anxiety is felt by everyone at some time in their life, like when giving a speech or going on a job interview. For people with severe anxiety, it is much worse and is felt on a constant basis. People with anxiety issues often experience some or all of the following symptoms: extreme fear, abnormal phobias, heart palpitations, panic attacks, shyness and obsessive behaviors. Therapy, medication, and relaxation exercises can all provide relief of anxiety symptoms and when used together the results are even better.

Therapy is usually the first step used in relieving anxiety issues. A therapist can help you to discover the underlying causes of your anxiety and can suggest the best ways to help you get through it. Some techniques that are used to help relieve a person?s anxiety often include cognitive or behavioral therapy. Cognitive therapy is when you are taught to use different ways of thinking when you are in a situation that may cause anxiety. By reprogramming your thought processes you can decrease your anxiety at the time, by telling yourself more positive things when anxiety is felt. Behavioral therapy is when you are constantly confronted with the anxiety filled situation until your start to feel more comfortable. Taken in baby steps the therapist will talk you through the process as they slowly get you to come to terms with the situations that cause you anxiety, and it goes away.

Medications are also very commonly used to decrease a person?s anxiety. Under the supervision of your therapist a medication may be prescribed that can help elevate anxiety temporarily. Some of the medications include: SSRI?s like Lexapro, Paxil, Prozac, Zoloft, Celexa, or Luvox, MOAIs like Parnate or Nordil, and TCAs like Tofranil, Adapin, Vivactil, Anafranil, Surmotil, Elavil, Sinequan, Endep, Norpramin or Ludiomil. If you do choose to use medication to treat your anxiety, it is best to do so under the strict supervision of your physician because many of these medications have side effects and all have to be prescribed.

Relaxation exercises can also help to elevate anxiety. Panic attacks caused by heightened anxiety can be calmed by deep breathing exercises. Mediation has been known to relieve anxiety symptoms before a situation that might trigger it, by having a relaxing effect on the person. Yoga and other exercise programs have also been shown to relieve anxiety somewhat. Since the endorphins released during the exercise can have a calming effect on the person, anxiety is often reduced.

Many people suffer every day from anxiety problems or panic attacks that can stop them from leading a normal life. If you feel that you have a problem with anxiety or panic attacks therapy, medication, or relaxation exercises can prove to be very effective in treating your problem. The symptoms of anxiety can constantly rule a person?s life and if they become serious it is very important to seek out professional help for your mental health.

Dave Michaels writes on home, health and computer subjects. For more anxiety symptom information visit www.anxietysymptoms.net

Depression Treatments And Symptoms Of Anxiety Depression

2008-03-20T04:14:00.000-07:00

More than 17 million American people are affected by anxiety depression symptoms, so that the specialists have been calling this illness as psychiatric flu.

When the young people are concerned, the psychiatric factors are the ones that influence the anxiety depression symptoms. People have to be thought by the specialist how to deal with the stress factors and also they need to know how to improve their own capacity of handling these stressing factors. Almost the majority of the anxiety depression symptoms are very respondent to different treatments, especially to medication. As a modality of reducing stress, anyone can cut some hours from the work schedule program and a refusal of some social obligations. As for the more improved stress confrontation capacity, the patient is supposed to do a lot of relaxing exercises, more adequate sleeping hours and a healthy diet.

Finding an effective antidepressant drug is not an easy task, as every individual has one particular set of characteristics and therefore it is not possible a priori to establish which antidepressant will be that effective one. Beyond to depression medication, other treatments like psychotherapy, integrated therapy and depression medication, electro convulsion therapy and the therapy with light are today available. Each one of these approaches has detailed prescription lists. As an example, the depression medication treatment and that psychotherapy one have a rate success from 60 to 80%. This integrated modality has one of its particular indications in the advanced shapes of depression. Some patients show the persistence of residual symptoms between an episode and the other and in the shapes in which depression medication or psychotherapy alone is not effective.

There is a large number of anti depression drugs that can help remedy the harmful effects of the depressive symptoms but some of them have more side effects than others and this is the reason why they get dangerous. Considering from the price point of view, there are cheaper and more expensive anti depression drugs that can be used for treating this disease, but they may have severe side effects, such as: wither mouth, urine abstain, sedation and a lot of sexual problems. Talking about sexual mal functions, some drugs, which were recently discovered, characterize an important development regarding the sexual abnormality. Each medication used for treating the disease in question has a skimpy different profile of side effects, so it may be possible for one to try several solution treatments in order for the doctor to discover the most appropriate one.

Michael Rad is the webmaster of http://www.depression-treatment-expert.com, a free informational resource hub dedicated to explaining depression and related treatments. Other health-related websites that you might be interested in include www.arthritis-hub.com and www.breast-enlargement-expert.com

Anxiety Attacks And Panic Attacks

2008-03-19T05:29:00.000-07:00

Countless individuals who suffer from anxiety live their lives in fear and never genuinely delight in all of the pleasures that life has to offer them. Anxiety can develop when fear, nervousness, paranoia, and worry have been set in place and have become prevailing. This is a state of mind that focuses on negative emotions and may be the issue of an underlying traumatic experience.

Although anxiety starts in the mind, it will strike the body as well. Some of the physical symptoms associated with anxiety are a result of the pressures of fear and panic. These symptoms may comprise of shortness of breath, heart palpitations, and increased perspiration. It is very likely that the fear may also lead to a feeling of an upset stomach or nausea.

One of the primary physical results from anxiety may be that when the body is in a fearful condition, the immune system becomes depressed. When someone faces a real fear or peril, they experience what is known as the "fight or flight" reaction. This reaction is a commonplace component to human survival and is an inborn reaction to a perceived danger. For those who are living with anxiety, panic, and fear for a extended period of time, they are subjecting their immune systems to a state of consistent suppression. This may result in a susceptibility to infections, sickness, and also disease.

Accompanying anxiety are phobias and fears. Numerous people face common fears all through their lives and this is something we all expect throughout life, it is when individuals develop unhealthy fears for things that aren't logical, or have a totally exaggerated reaction to a fear is when the phobia begins to interrupt their normal life.

In reality, the fear may become so severe that just performing ordinary day-to-day tasks become virtually unthinkable to do. Along with the physical side effects, anxiety is devastating because it robs the sufferer of deriving any enjoyment from life. Scientific fact-finding has decided that practically twice as many women as men suffer from anxiety, fear, and panic related conditions.

Life is far too short and precious to waste it in fear and not experiencing the joy and pleasure that is yours to delight in. There are also other anxiety related illnesses such as Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, it is very important to look for help for any anxiety related disorder that you are confronted with.

Psychiatrists may suggest a course of therapy along with medication to help you cope with the fears. Many of the medications that are frequently prescribed may have side effects and have to be taken according to their instructions.

To manage your fear and live your life in peacefulness, security, and stability will be your ultimate rewards. It may be a long hard travel of intensified therapy and other treatments, but it will be well worth it.

Aromatherapy can assist you in countless ways as well. For instance, when you are feeling afraid, you can relish the physical and emotional benefits provided by an aromatic bath. By bathing in tranquil and nerve calming herbs, you can contend with fear naturally and let go of tension and anxiety. Add 10 drops of Chamomile to a hot bath for a relaxing anxiety-soothing bath. Be sure to soak for at least 20 minutes to realize the full benefits. You can also make a fabulous massage oil by using 6 drops of Bergamot essential oil, 6 drops of Clary Sage, and 3 drops of Frankincense. Combine these essential oils with 1-ounce of carrier oil, such as Jojoba or Sweet Almond for a wonderful fear relieving massage.

Carlie Edwards publishes online articles & useful information on Today's Issues. Info on Anxiety-Panic Attacks visit Anxiety-Panic Attack For a variety of related topics visit Health-And-Beauty-Worx.Com

Natural Remedies For Anxiety And Panic Attacks

2008-03-19T05:27:00.000-07:00

Natural home remedies are increasingly popular for treating a wide range of conditions. You shall read about new ways to promote wellness - ways that are close to nature.

A lot of people combine conventional medicine with alternative medical measures in finding cures to treating anxieties. This gives a method of using modern medical knowledge and this combination is better known as complementary therapies. A lot of practitioners of the conventional and complementary areas agree to the benefits that can be derived from this fusion.

Here we shall discuss one alternative technique designed specifically to cure anxiety and panic attacks.

Homeopathy

Homeopathy is a form of medicine that deals with tiny quantities of herbs, minerals, and other substances. Through this healing method, ailments are treated by activating the body's natural defenses, quite often with just one dose.

The wonderful thing is that it is reported to have zero side effects. According to the National Center for Homeopathy, around 40% of the populace in France and 30% of the people in England use homeopathy as a means of curing their illnesses.

Moreover, the cost of homeopathy remedies is much smaller compared to conventional medicines. Homeopathy involves restoring balance to the body's immune system or natural defenses. In principle, this branch of alternative medicine is based on the belief of eighteenth century German physician and founder of homeopathy, Samuel Hahnemann.

He formulated the principle known as the "Law of Similars," where he concluded that effective medicine must generate symptoms in healthy individuals that are identical to the diseases that will be cured. This means that when a person develops an illness out of a certain substance, it will take a similar substance taken in diminutive proportion to treat the sickness.

In the field of homeopathy, it is likely that two persons with different ailments may be given the same remedy. Conversely, two persons with the same ailment may be given different remedies. This can be likened to two cars of the same model. One owner may say the car is good because it's durable, while another may say it isn't because it frequently breaks down.

The problem may lie in the way the cars have been assembled or the way the two cars are used in different manners. A homeopath heals a person based on both emotional and physical symptoms. That is why two persons with the same illness but different symptoms are sometimes given different remedies.

A homeopath heals the person as a whole, not just the ailment. This is why it takes a longer time for a homeopath to see each patient again.

Here are some do's and don'ts to remember that are required to maintain and enhance the efficacy of the remedy.

1. As with most medicines, keep homeopathic medicine in a cool dark place.

2. Don't expose the remedy to strong scents or odors because its efficacy might diminish.

3. Avoid using facial cosmetics, lip balms, mint-flavored toothpaste and mouthwashes, and products with camphor.

4. Avoid drinking coffee because its essential oils might decrease the effectiveness of the remedy.

To treat anxiety, a dose of Gelsemium 6X every 15 to 20 minutes may help, but only up to a maximum of 4 doses. (Homeopathic cures classified as X have been diluted 1 to 10.) For worse cases of panic attacks, try a dose of 30C Aconite. (Homeopathic cures classified as C have been diluted 1 to 100.) Stop dosage when you begin to feel calmer.

For more related information visit: http://www.AnxietyAttacksCure.com - a site that offers advice for avoiding, coping with anxiety and panic attacks. Get professional knowledge on dealing with symptoms, drug side effects and improving your life!

The author has worked in healthcare for 15+ years

How I came back from ten years of anxiety and panic to fully recover-by ex sufferer Paul David

2008-03-18T22:16:00.000-07:00

Firstly I would like to introduce myself. My name is Paul David and I suffered from every form of anxiety and panic for 10 years. My recovery came from a meeting with someone who had a full understanding of this condition, in fact he taught me more in one hour than anyone else was able to teach me in 10 years. With this persons help I was able to recover within a few months.

My recovery came because I was given a full understanding of my condition. This is the only way to recover in my opinion. When you know why you feel like you do this takes the whole fear out of your symptoms, it stops you going round in circles everyday trying to find answers to why you feel like you do. It gives your body the freedom to recover. Just like a broken leg or a cut your body is wanting and waiting to recover.

After my recovery I then went on to study the whole panic and anxiety subject in full, in this time I not only realised how much rubbish was spoken on the subject, I was also shocked to find out how many people actually suffered, I knew I was not alone but I could not believe how little information there is out there for a condition for which millions around the world suffer from.

This is why I decided to dedicate my life to helping others, over the years I have been asked many questions from people who suffer and below I list the most common ones.

Q.1 I feel so strange and out of touch with the world around me. Am I going mad?

No, you are definitely not. You may feel as if you are, but this is just another offshoot of anxiety. Anxiety is not a mental illness. These feelings cannot harm you and there is nothing to worry about.

This feeling of strangeness has a totally logical explanation. It comes from the constant worrying about how you feel as you search your mind for answers to your condition. Your mind has become tired and less resilient through watching yourself and worrying about your symptoms, day in, day out. It has been bombarded with worrying thoughts and becomes fatigued. Just as our limbs can tire, so can our mind. It craves a rest from all this introspection of oneself.

In fact these feelings of unreality are your body's way of protecting you from the onslaught of worrying thoughts. Your mind has a safety mechanism that protects against all this, causing us to feel strange and not with it. It is crying out to be left alone and just like a broken arm will heal itself so will your body, you just have to step out of the way and let it.

The main thing is not to dwell on how you feel. These feelings are temporary. Constantly worrying about ourselves and how we feel is the very thing that keeps this feeling alive and when we learn how to stop the habit, it will disappear. Once we are able to change the pattern of our worrying thoughts, we can reverse these feelings of strangeness. You are bound to worry if you don't know why you feel like you do. That is why again 'understanding' is the key.

This is one of the questions I have been asked more than any other. I go into more detail in my book as I know that it is a symptom that needs special attention.

I found this feeling of detachment very hard to accept and understand myself, but when it was explained to me in full, I was able to rid myself of this disturbing symptom.

Q.2 Why do I feel better in certain situations and not in others?

This is a very common one and it all comes down to how you think in other situations. For example, you may feel better in the safety of your own home rather than at a family gathering. There is no difference in both of these situations, the only difference is in the way you think. You are the same person and it is not the situation that makes you feel worse it is your thought pattern. You may spend the day worrying about going to a particular function, setting your body up to be anxious on arrival and then blame it on the situation you are in rather than the thought pattern you have created during the day while at home. You may get there and then also worry about making a fool of yourself, spending the whole time tensing against how you feel and creating more anxiety. Do you see how we do this to ourselves? It is not the situation, but our perception of the situation that causes us to feel worse in certain situations. You are merely doing it to yourself with your thoughts.

You must just accept how you feel wherever you are and in whatever situation you find yourself; deal with yourself and not the place. Sometimes a place may hold certain memories of failure, which makes us feel anxious, but this soon passes when we learn to accept how

If you truly accept how you feel in every situation and stop all the "What if's" and other negative thoughts that just increase anxiety, you will find that although you may feel uncomfortable at times, nothing bad is going to happen to you, and in time your reactions lessen until you feel more able to cope, day by day. Anxiety loves avoidance, so take it's power away and move forward and embrace these feelings of fear, even if you're in a situation where you feel you have failed in the past.

Avoiding symptoms just does not work, as you must realise by now. I was taught to let all feelings be there, not to avoid them but to go through them. This worked for me, I had faced the demons head on and realised this was the only way to stop fearing them. I ignored my body's instinct to avoid and started to embrace how I felt, I moved towards the feelings of fear. Eventually, I started to understand my condition so much more. I went from not been able to even mention or hear the word anxiety, to barely giving it a second thought.

I mention the word 'understanding' again, because this is the key to recovery. How can you not fear something you don't understand! How can you accept something that still scares you?

Q.3 Will these feelings ever go away?

Yes, they will, once you understand why you feel like you do. You can unmask the fears you hold about anxiety. There are so many myths about anxiety that it worries me just how many people are mis-informed and truly believe they will never get better, and that they will just have to live with this condition. Too many people spend years like I did, searching for that elusive miracle cure that just does not exist.

Understanding anxiety takes away so much fear out of how we feel. Every stage and symptom has a logical explanation that can be explained. With less fear and more understanding, we also calm the constant worrying; it is the lack of information on the subject that keeps the worry cycle going. Constant worrying that we will never get better also adds to the belief that we will just have to live with it.

Once we start to understand anxiety and use the tools we have learnt to cope with how we feel, the change can be dramatic. In my recovery, I found that the more knowledge I had and the more I understood my condition the easier it was to accept how I felt. I started to lose fear of my symptoms and how I felt. Eventually they began to hold less power over me and I started to pay them less respect. Like I once said to someone, "Your symptoms hate to be ignored".

It is your desperation to rid yourself of how you feel that keeps your anxiety alive. The stress you put on yourself day in day out, the constant worrying and thinking about your condition, puts a tremendous pressure on your body. Is it any wonder you stay anxious? It's time to stop beating yourself up about how you feel and give your body the rest it craves.

Knowledge is power. The less you fear your symptoms, the less they mean. This also stops the worry cycle you may find yourself in, which is the very thing that keeps anxiety going. You are bound to worry if you don't know what is wrong with you, that is why you need an explanation to help break this cycle.

Q.4 Why do I find it so hard in social situations? I find it so hard to communicate with people.

How can we expect to feel part of this world when all we do is worry about ourselves. Is it any wonder we find it difficult to follow a conversation when all we are concerned about is ourselves and how we feel. It is like being two separate people, one trying to hold a conversation, the other watching our body's reaction. Is it any wonder we struggle to fit in to the world around us?

Once we find the courage to accept how we feel, even embrace these feelings, we find it easier to follow what the other person is saying. We become less concerned about how we feel which gives us more time to be interested in the situation we are in and become more involved in the present.

Q.5 Why do I seem to have so many bad thoughts running around all day?

The reason you seem to have your attention on yourself all day and it feels like there are hundreds of thoughts running through your mind is because of all your confusion about how you feel. You go round in your mind all day long, looking for answers, trying to find a way out of this hell. Some people may even stay up all night reflecting on the whole day, trying to figure it all out. Mostly these are negative or worrying thoughts and that's why they seem to come automatically and with so much force. When you are in an anxious state, emotions seem to be ten-fold. Everything magnifies, a little problem becomes massive, and something that you could dismiss when you were healthy, sticks around all day.

Eventually thinking just becomes automatic; it becomes a habit. All day, every day, these thoughts seem to come before you even think them. Looking at it from another angle, when people meditate, they stop thinking for hours on end until it becomes a habit and they can go all day without a worrying thought. That is why they feel so refreshed.

Not you, your thoughts just carry on and on and when your mind is tired, like it is now, it grasps hold of every thought, pulls them in and they seem to stick. Don't worry that thoughts come so often and seem so bad. These thoughts are not real, they are just exaggerated thoughts due to your overactive, fatigued mind. They hold no danger to you at all; they are just THOUGHTS and nothing else. Don't ever think, "I must not think that". Let all thoughts come, do not run away from any of them. See them for what they are - thoughts - exaggerated because of the way you feel. They can do you no harm and they mean nothing. They won't be around when you recover, so pay them no respect.

Why not try following a negative/scary thought through and ask yourself, "What's the worst thing that could happen?" Ask yourself, "Is it really going to happen? Is this thought rational in any way?" If you do this, you may find an answer to a thought you have been so frightened of. So the next time you can see them for what they are and let them go, and deep down inside of you there is a place where you can see thoughts for what they are, you will realize they just come from habit and are just not important.

For more information and a fuller understanding of your condition please visit my website below.

http://www.anxietynomore.co.uk

My name is Paul David, my job is helping people around the world have a better understanding of the whole anxiety and panic condition. I studied this condition for years after my recovery and found that there were far too many people out there without the help and answers they required. My hope is to reach out to as many people as possible and help them understand, why they feel like they do and also to give people a plan for full recovery

Latent Anxiety Releases Perception CD

2008-03-13T04:51:00.001-07:00

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

IIja Rosendahl Creates A Stand Alone D.Y.I. Recording

Los Angeles, CA--April 10, 2006--German born IIja Rosendahl has a dream, he wants to receive the respect and attention he deserves from people that care about his music. That is what nearly every artist seeks yet it is so difficult to find because of the fierce competition in independent music.

With the new Latent Anxiety release, Perception, there is very strong chance that Rosendahl will reach his goals. The title says it all; this music is about how you perceive your world. Even with the law of averages and the many obstacles that you may have to overcome, you still have endless opportunity. With the right attitude and some talent, things can happen.

In 2001, IIja began playing guitar in a self-educated way then switched to the electric guitar shortly thereafter, which makes his accomplishments even more astonishing. He put together an incredible album, which also includes his first songs created with a 4-track recorder and a drum computer. When you stop and think about how simplistic that is then listen to Perception, you will find it hard to believe that this is how some of the recordings came together. Each track on the album stands alone and you will find value in every one. With memorable cuts such as "Cold As Ice" and "Fading Away," which serve as superb representations of his style, powerful guitar playing, and vocal prowess, this music is hard to forget. The most interesting thing about this music, besides the way it came together, is its versatility and sturdy cross over ability. Being an 80's child brings out a certain stylistic approach and influences from bands such as Depeche Mode, INXS, U2, Sisters of Mercy, Iron Maiden, Van Halen, Duran Duran, Simple Minds, and Roxy Music come to mind. The cross section of tastes spans a wide range and that is exactly what you will hear on Perception. There are some parallels to IIja's other talents he has at his command, he can speak five different languages, and at times, sounds like an entirely different vocalist from track to track. In the end, the language he speaks is universal, and it is all wrapped up in a nice package inside the music.

Perception is everything in life so when you hear this rocking rock-electronica-progressive-chill out you will be pleased and most certainly be back for a second helping.

Contact:
Latent Anxiety c/o Delvian Records
Ilja Rosendahl/Benjamin van der Wel
Address: 1270 Springbrook Road, Suite H, Walnut Creek, CA 94597-3995
Tel: 925-256-1770
Fax: 925-256-1774
Email
Website
iTunes Link

PR Created and Distributed By MuzikReviews.com

Keith "MuzikMan" Hannaleck conducts interviews, writes reviews, biographies, press releases and articles for Independent and Major artists Worldwide. Articles are dispersed on a vast network of websites. Links to sites with great music content are provided on Homepage and Links Page

What Your Anxiety Symptoms Are Really Telling You?

2008-03-13T04:49:00.000-07:00

Are you suffering from the gnawing nagging feeling of overwhelming unsettled emotional discomfort? Is it effecting your self-esteem and motivation?

Most are familiar with the general anxiety disorders that can be triggered by fears, impending doom, obsessive-compulsive, post-traumatic stress and more. But what about other not so obvious things that raise apprehension and uneasiness that you can't explain?

What is at the root of your anxiety symptom? It may be buried deeply in your subconscious, but most likely you are just not currently aware of the cause. There are many possible things that can be the source of the disharmony leading to undesirable emotional feelings. What do you feel that you can't cope with? Does it relate to the general condition of your life?

What if you are feeling anxious because deep inside you know that you are not thinking and acting in ways that support your core self? You may not even be consciously aware of what is truly important to you, but your incongruent behavior is causing internal friction that your emotions are responding to. Not being aware of why you feel the way you do supports the anxiety, you feel powerless and unsure. But why are you uncertain?

It is normally based on your perception and subsequent interpretation of something. There can be some subtle things that are the cause of stress and anxiety.

Here are 5 places to look for some possible root causes of your anxiety symptom:

1) Personal integrity is compromised -- Are some of your thoughts and behavior not in alignment with your most important values? This situation can be tough to detect until you look for it, as you may not be clearly aware of your deep values. If there is a conflict between your behavior and your deepest core values you will feel emotionally unsettled. Your thoughts and actions must be congruent with your deepest values in order to feel harmonious.

2) Less than honest interactions -- Are you less than honest and forthright in your interactions with others? If you are living even small lies you may be fooling some of the people some of the time, but never yourself. Deep within, you know what's going on and your inner self will let you know when something is not right. However, if you are not aware of your inner thoughts and feelings you may not be sure what your anxious feelings are based on.

3) Cheating Your Potential -- Are you not utilizing all of your potential? Do you make excuses for not using all your potential? Are you full of reasons and justifications in an attempt to feel right about your less than full effort? You know this inside; you can't cheat yourself and get away with it. When you are consciously not aware of it you can feel out of control without knowing why. Not utilizing your full potential can be stressful and anxiety symptoms will come from your feeling not in control.

4) Stuck in the Procrastination trap -- You know that you are not getting done what you want to get done and what you are capable of doing, but can't seem to do anything about it. Also you become unsure that you can do anything about it since you have not been able to up to this point. When you get stuck in this cycle the frustration with yourself can turn into anxiety, as you don't know what is behind it, plus worrying whether you can ever change it.

5) Fearing your future without knowing why -- This relates to the first four items, in that if any of the above conditions are present you can easily feel unsure of your future. Facing the future with self confidence requires that you be well grounded in who you are and in touch with your potential. Not being secure and feeling unsure whether you can do anything about it is stressful and can lead to anxiety.

Stress and anxiety can go hand in hand as you are continuously aware of your feelings of uncertainty and the resulting fears. It can even be the cause of depression if the situation seems like it's hopeless.

The key is to root out these base causes of your emotional feelings, reassess them and change your perception to better align with the life you want.

Anxiety symptoms are red flags your inner referee is throwing up to notify you that something is not right, out of balance. If you let it go, just like a physical ailment, it gets worse and becomes more and more established. These self-concepts originated from some perceived need to protect or satisfy in some way. Since you are feeling unsettled, they are likely no longer supporting your best interest. Your inner self is making you aware of an opportunity to change for the better.

To discover what the sources of your stress and anxiety are and what were the benefits, ask yourself some probing questions to peel open your thoughts. Once your thoughts are revealed, then reassess and establish a new perception and interpretation of the situation or idea.

Start with a blank tablet and a pen or pencil. Get yourself calm and relaxed. Write the first question at the top, then without thinking write what ever thoughts come up without analyzing or judging -- just write. For example --

~Why am I feeling this way?

~What is my biggest fear in life?

~What is the worse that could happen regarding this fear?

~Why do I fear this?

~How can I think differently about this that will better serve me today?

~What am I most uncertain about today?

~Why am I uncertain about this?

~What benefit do or did I get from thinking this way?

~Do I need to continue thinking this way?

~What can I learn from this?

~What is a better way of looking at this?

Asking questions of yourself may not be easy at first, as your mind is not accustomed to thinking in this fashion. But with diligence, you will learn to allow your thinking to open up revealing much more about yourself than you were previously aware of, but it's there.

Also useful method to help to reveal your inner thoughts is to meditate on it. Meditation helps to calm and quiet the surface chatter that keeps you distracted and separated from your inner thoughts, allowing for their rediscovery.

Another beneficial self-improvement activity is to clarify, establish and define a solid foundation for yourself. Just as a tall building cannot be stable without a strong foundation, neither can a successful life. You can solidify your place in the universe, discover your purpose, align with intention, and establish a vision and a personal mission. You can clarify your core values, your potential, your strengths and how you will support your purpose.

With establishing a solid foundation for yourself you will elevate your self-concept, self-esteem, self-confidence and self-motivation --it's how to relieve stress, anxiety and depression. You will be able to grow and change without excessive fear, doubt and worry.

Continuous self-improvement with a positive attitude leads to happiness, positive thinking and unlimited possibility.

John Halderman

Design A Life System

Stop collecting unused information! Discover why books don't help your life success -- leaving you stuck with a false sense of improvement! Time to DO something! Fill the VOID between information and dynamic results. Kick your life into high gear with free "Effective Personal Development" Newsletter and 40-page free report revealing secrets to daily growth and change. http://www.designalifesystem.com

Treatment for Depression and Anxiety: Is Taking Prescription Medication for Anxiety the Best Option?

2008-03-12T04:40:00.000-07:00

Here is the good news about anxiety disorders: They are treatable. There are a variety of treatments for anxiety, including behavioral therapy, cognitive-behavioral therapy, relaxation techniques and medication. But the question more and more patients are posing to their doctors is: Is prescription medication the best treatment option?

Anxiety is complicated to diagnose because it is often found to be a symptom of other medical conditions or a side effect of other behaviors. For example, some people react to too much caffeine by exhibiting symptoms of anxiety disorders, including, occasionally, panic attacks. Other conditions that can be accompanied by anxiety are hypoglycemia, hyperthyroid, insomnia, premenstrual syndrome and, most often, depression.

When a patient who is suffering from depression is also suffering from anxiety disorder, doctors can often see it as a good sign. In general, it means that the person has not accepted or given in to their depressed condition, and is anxious about it. To alleviate the anxiety, doctors can recommend different types of therapy, each of which can work equally well. Most doctors recommend cognitive-behavioral therapy, which helps the patient first to identify the cause of his anxiety, talks him through it, and then slowly and carefully exposes him to situations which make him feel anxious and teaches him how to cope.

In addition to therapy and learned relaxation techniques, doctors will sometimes recommend prescription medication for anxiety -- most often benzodiazepines like Xanax. These medications should not be taken for more than a few months at a time and should not be relied upon as a permanent treatment option. They can be highly addictive and can also produce disturbing side effects, which makes many examine them closely before agreeing to try them.

In many cases, anxiety can be treated without any medication at all. In cases where medication is recommended, there are also natural treatment options for those who are reluctant to begin a regimen that includes prescription medications. If you decide to pursue this route to anxiety relief, look for remedies that include ingredients like passion flower, which is also used to alleviate hypertension, insomnia and nervous tension. Other effective ingredients are lavender, which is one of the most popular panic attack treatments, and lemon balm, a natural anxiety treatment that also serves as a general tonic for the nervous system.

Whichever methods you employ, remember that there are many effective methods of treatment for anxiety and depression, and that patience and persistence will eventually lead you the healthy option that is best for you.

Webmaster: You are authorized to reprint this article providing the author bio/resource box is left completely in tact - including all hyperlinks.

Tess is a Homeopathic Practitioner/Herbalist who contributes to Native Remedies - where you can find Herbal Remedies for health conditions including natural treatments for anxiety and anxiety relief.

Stop Anxiety - Master Your Environment

2008-03-11T04:06:00.000-07:00

You have felt it come over you... the sense of your body overreacting. The knots in the stomach, the tenseness, the rapid heartbeat, the uncomfortable feeling of panic. You have those anxiety attacks, big and small, and you would like to have the control to stop them. You can get that control. You can master your body and its reactions. Just like you have learned to do any of the many things you've learned in your life, you can learn how to control and eliminate the causes of anxiety.

RESOURCE GUIDE - http://stop-anxiety.5x1.net

Anxiety is a fear reaction triggered by environmental conditions. Somewhere along the way in your life you met conditions that left you uncomfortable. You remember the conditions of that bad time and your brain has stored that combination of events and memories. That brain stored reaction is triggered when conditions arise that have been linked to that prior time.

Your brain is trying to protect you, but in many cases it has inappropriately linked events and memories and fear together in a mix that creates anxiety at the wrong time. You have to do some work to untangle that bad mix in your head. This can be done by you, once you're shown how. It's just like learning how to swing a golf club, drive a car, or do a dance.

It's a question of knowledge and practice. When you learn what to do and then how to do it you can solve problems and do things that you couldn't do the day before. Take a look at the Resource Guide link that is shown above to get direct information to help you.

We are all sensitive beings. That's part of being human. That sensitivity gives us the openings to enjoy the many beautiful and thrilling things in the world. But our brain is not perfect at putting events and memories together. Sometimes our brain tries to protect us and help us, but has actually created a mixed up grouping that triggers anxiety at the wrong time and for the wrong reasons. We can fix that. You can fix that. Just like you can learn to play the piano or ride a bike, you can guide your brain and body to learn in ways useful to you. You can also guide your brain and body to overcome reactions or habits that are not serving you well. Anxiety attacks tell you that your brain and body have developed a reaction that is not helpful to you. It's like having a bad swing in golf. The wrong combinations got embedded. You can work that out and get yourself back to where you want to be. It takes knowledge of what to do and then some practice to get right.

Take advantage of the knowledge available to you to reduce or eliminate your anxiety. The Resource Guide link is one proven method that you can use to reduce your anxiety. If anxiety is bothering you and you want to do something about it, you can. Anxiety can be overcome.

You'll enjoy life more when you've cleared out the bad combination of emotion, environment and fear that is causing you to suffer anxiety. Do you want to enjoy life more? Well, sometimes you've got to make the effort to get what you want. Here's the knowledge to reduce anxiety and eliminate that from your life. If you want to eliminate anxiety, take it. The knowledge and freedom can be yours. It's a walk in the park. A nice one at that.

Note to Publishers: You may freely republish this article in print and online provided you do not edit or alter the contents, and you include the About the Author bio as is. When published online the links must be kept hyperlink active.

William T. Gray writes on a variety of health, wealth and personal relationship topics. His articles are widely published. See http://stop-anxiety.5x1.net for more information.

Depression treatments and symptoms of anxiety depression

2008-03-11T04:04:00.000-07:00

More than 17 million American people are affected by anxiety depression symptoms, so that the specialists have been calling this illness as psychiatric flu.

Michael Rad is the webmaster of Depression Treatment Expert , a free informational resource hub dedicated to explaining depression and related treatments. Other health-related websites that you might be interested in include Arthritis treatment information and Breast Enlargement Expert

Low Self-Esteem and Child Separation Anxiety: What You Need to Know!

2008-03-10T04:58:00.000-07:00

Low self-esteem is one of the predictors of Separation Anxiety Disorder, so fostering a strong sense of self-worth is vital in helping your child pass through his normal phase of Separation Anxiety. There are many ways to help bolster a child's self-esteem, including noticing and commenting on his accomplishments. Giving a child positive feedback is one of the best ways of communicating what you want. For example, saying, "Thank you for coming here so quickly when I called you," not only makes the child feel good, but it reinforces the appropriate behavior.

Separation Anxiety creates a negative cycle for children, as they are liable to feel more anxious as a result of low self-esteem and may, in turn, feel bad about being so anxious. That is one of the reasons parents need to strive not to belittle children for their Separation Anxiety. Rather than explaining to the child what he "should" be feeling, let him know that you recognize what he is feeling. Reassure him that you will return and that he is safe in the environment. This self-esteem issue may grow if a child is receiving treatment for Separation Anxiety Disorder or is missing a lot of school as a result of these fearful feelings. Again, the parent needs to reassure the child and find ways to improve feelings of self-worth.

There are a variety of activities that can be used to raise self-esteem. Simply taking notice of something the child has done well and complimenting him on it can be helpful. Children with low self-esteem often find it difficult to accept compliments or to recognize their own positive traits, so the adults need to help them discover good things about themselves. Teaching the child to use positive self talk can help him to better recognize and accept those good traits. It is also helpful to teach him new skills that are age appropriate, so he sees his ability to be successful at new tasks. You should, of course, offer encouragement through each stage of the learning process and show your pride as he accomplishes his goals.

Giving your child an opportunity to make his own decisions can also improve his self-esteem. Allow him a voice in making decisions, and respect the choice he makes. Ask him questions like, "Would you like to wear your red shirt or your blue shirt." When he answers, agree with his choice by saying something like, "Yes, this red shirt is very pretty." You might give older children a choice for dinner and let them help you prepare the meal. The theme here, of course, is to praise your child for his accomplishments. Make sure you do it realistically, though. Children have a way of knowing when you are praising them just for the sake of it, and you also don't want to give them unrealistic expectations. It is great to commend your child for the A he got on his spelling test, but if he is a B student, don't tell him he's so smart that he will be getting all A's. When his next test comes back with a B, he will be disappointed in his effort.

Learn how to beat your own child's separation anxiety with The Separation Anxiety Solution at: http://www.separation-anxiety-solution.com

Sleeping Problems and Separation Anxiety in your Child

2008-03-08T02:50:00.000-08:00

Children suffering from Separation Anxiety often want to sleep in their parents' beds. This may be the child's way of reassuring himself that nothing will happen to Mom or Dad during the night. While this can be endearing at first, it can eventually grow into a problem. There are many parents who now have children that refuse to sleep in their own beds. As you can imagine, this brings about several undesired consequences, not the least of which is not having your bed to yourself.

If you have already found yourself in this position, it is time to do something about it. Getting your child to sleep in his or her own bed can be a challenge, but the benefits for both you and the child make it worthwhile. Refusal to let the child sleep with you will probably result in a flood of tears and possibly some real tantrums, so you must be prepared and have a strong resolve. Our babies' cries tear at our hearts, but keep in mind the fact that you are doing this for the good of the child (and the rest of the family).

How do you get your child to move out of your bed? The first step is to make it exciting. Perhaps take him shopping for a new nightlight, as waking up alone in the dark can genuinely be frightening. One of the best ways of combating Separation Anxiety is to create routines, and bedtime is no exception. In fact, it is one of the most important routines to set. Perhaps your routine will involve a bath followed by a story in the child's bed. When you have finished, kiss him goodnight and let him know you will be there in the morning before leaving the room. You must resist the urge to give in to repeated requests for water, more kisses, etc., and if your child gets up, you must firmly insist that he return to bed. This is not the time to return and tuck him in all over again.

Some children will go to extraordinary lengths to try and break your will. Of course, they don't do this on purpose--although sometimes it seems like they do! Your child may cry for several hours or even make it through the night without sleeping. If this is the case, do your best to stick to your normal routine the next day, and he will eventually become quite tired at bedtime. If he develops a severe case of insomnia, however, you may need to speak with a therapist. Some children will also cry until they literally vomit. In this case, you should clean up the mess and return the child to bed. Such a reaction may go on for a period of time, but it will dissipate. You do not want to rebuke the child for this physical reaction, but you also should not offer lots of sympathy; as that can encourage such a response to being put in his own bed.

The most difficult aspect of getting your child to sleep in his own bed is also the most difficult, and that is not giving in to the cries and pleas. It may be necessary to sit outside your child's door for a while so he can see you, and that is o.k., but responding to the cries and tantrums is not. In fact, giving in once is going to set your progress back, possibly to the beginning. If he keeps getting out of bed, you may have to lower your voice, crouch to his level and reinforce your command to return to bed. It is difficult to see your child distressed this way, but in the long run, he will become happier and more independent.

When your child wakes the next morning, be sure to point out that you are still in the home, just as you promised you would be. This is fundamental to most aspects of teaching children to move past their Separation Anxiety. When you leave for the grocery store, for example, tell him "goodbye" and let him know you will be back soon. When you do return, point out that you did just as you said you would. The idea is to reinforce for the child that nothing bad is going to happen to you while you are out of his presence. That includes during the sleeping hours of the night!

Learn how to finally beat separation anxiety in your child with The Separation Anxiety Solution at: http://www.separation-anxiety-solution.com

Three Proven Ways to Handle Your Writing Anxiety

2008-03-08T02:49:00.000-08:00

Writing anxiety and writing block are informal terms that are used to denote pessimistic and anxious feeling about writing. Researches showed that the majority of students exhibit unusually strong apprehension about writing. This debilitating condition forces students to avoid majors, jobs, and courses that require writing.

In fact, having some level of writing anxiety can help you concentrate, really your thoughts together, and devote all of them to writing. However, in excessive quantities it can become a hindrance; here is where the actual problem lies.

Some experienced writers claim that this feeling has the situational character and is not pervasive in person?s writing life. Others say that writing block and anxiety show up only during our most stressful deadline-driven periods, and stay until we find the way to show them the door.

Writing anxiety encroaches upon a writer, who doesn?t know what to write about, or simply doesn?t know where to start writing, and is usually accompanied by (1) continuous procrastination of the writing tasks, (2) becoming nervous because of the impossibility to write anything at all, (3) quickening heartbeat, and sweaty palms.

All in all, every writer, at least once in his life, experiences moments, which create anxiety. Surely, there is a great deal of variations among individuals; however, there are some common experiences that writers can find stressful.

Writing anxiety can be a result of a great variety of social, academic, and personal factors. Some of them are:

? Writing for readers that have previously been overly critical and demanding to the writer?s work.
? Working in limited or unstructured time.
? Adjusting to the new forms of writing that causes some troubles to the writer.
? Being preoccupied with college life and social issues.
? Professors that may seem intimidating and relentless.
? Fear to failure.

Such circumstances can increase the stress level of the writer and become an awful distraction. The good news is that there are ways to restore writing equilibrium and get down to writing. Here are some practical steps to help writers unlock their writing talents.

I. Brainstorming and organizing your ideas

Brainstorming and organizing your ideas are as important as the process of actual writing. As a matter of fact, it provides a guaranteed solution to overcome the writer?s block. This strategy is very simple.

You begin with a blank sheet of paper or a computer screen. You write your topic at the top, and, then, write everything you can about it. While brainstorming different ideas, you don?t care about grammar and editing, you simply brainstorm various approaches to the subject matter under consideration.

When you are completely out of ideas, you look at the list of the jotted ideas, and reconsider your topic, cutting down the ideas that stray away from it.

Then, you organize these ideas and find the central idea that gives a decent place to start the first draft, and states an essential truth about your topic. Since you have found the leading idea, try to arrange all the other points in the logical order that you?ll use in your essay.

II. Free writing

Free writing is one of the best ways around the writer?s block. Free writing is a non-stop writing designed to uncover ideas that has no rules and forms to follow. Focused free writing involves writing on a particular topic as a means to discover what you already know or think about it. It helps you write when you don?t feel like writing, loosens you up and gets you moving.

You write down the topic at the top of the page. Then, you set your clock for five or ten minutes, and put your pen to paper. The main idea is to write for a short, specified period of time, keeping your hand moving until your time is up. Remember that you are not allowed to stop, even if you have nothing to say, write first that occurs to your mind in the act of writing. And one more thing to remember is that you don?t form any judgments about what you are writing. When the time is up, you go back over the text, and identify ideas that should carry over your text.

III. Clustering

Like brainstorming and free associating, clustering allows you to start writing without any clear ideas. To begin to cluster choose the word, which is central to your assignment, write this word at the middle of the paper. All around it place the words that occur to you when you think about this word. In such a way you write down all the words that you associate with this concrete word. You write it quickly, circling each word, grouping them around your central word, and connecting the new words to the previous ones.

Clustering doesn?t have to be logically built and well-structured; it allows you to explore new insights without committing them to a particular order.

Hope that these options will help you handle your writing anxiety and forget about this mental deadlock once and for all!

Linda Correli is a staff writer of http://www.CustomResearchPapers.us/ and an author of the popular online tutorial for students "What Teachers Want: Master the Art of Essay Writing in 10 Days", available at http://www.Go2Essay.com/. Visit Linda?s web log at http://custom-research-papers.blogspot.com/.

linda.correli@customresearchpapers.us

Child Separation Anxiety: How to Prevent it in Your Own Child

2008-03-06T03:47:00.001-08:00

Separation Anxiety is hard on the child and hard on the parent. While some amount of it is to be expected, there are a few things parents can do to lessen the stress. Of course, we talked a little about transitional objects. Children are often comforted during the parents' absence when they have an item from home to keep with them. This is where the security blanket might come into play. Perhaps you remember being especially attached to a teddy bear or other stuffed animal as a child. Chances are, this fluffy creature or fuzzy blanket acted as your transitional object.

Shortening the length of the goodbye can also be key in lessening Separation Anxiety. Be sure to have all of your child's necessities packed in one place so that you can hand them over to the caregiver and make your exit. It is important to say goodbye to the child, however. Sometimes it seems like sneaking out the door is the easiest way to avoid a scene, but it will only add to the child's sense of distrust about you leaving. Having everything gathered together makes it easier to leave without having to keep returning to drop off items from the car and thus drawing out the inevitable. If you are leaving the child with a caregiver at your own home, resist the urge to return to the house, even if you can hear your little one crying. It generally takes a few minutes for kids to calm down, and every time to return, you are increasing that duration.

Anticipation of a separation can also increase the child's anxiety, so it's best not to discuss it too much ahead of time. It may be helpful, however, to practice separating so the child becomes accustomed to the act. Set up a time with a friend or family member when you can drop the child off for short periods of time. Try leaving your child there for 15 minutes or so, and then return and point out that you did as you said you would. Gradually increase the time you are gone, remembering to always say "goodbye" before you leave and to make note of your return. It is best to return while the child is awake, too, so he is aware that you are safe before trying to go to sleep.

You can also decrease our child's anxiety by making the situation less novel. This suggestion is less for parents who deal with Separation Anxiety each day when dropping the child off at the same daycare, and more for those whose children become clingy in new situations. If you are planning to drop your child off at a new daycare or school, it can be extremely helpful to do a little reconnaissance first. Ask the caregivers for names of other families at that daycare or school and look into setting up play dates before the big event. Then you can take your child to the new environment, and he will already know someone there. You can extend this by taking the child to the new place for a little tour for the both of you before his first day. Talk about all the fun things you saw and the child will experience when he returns to spend time on his own.

Finally, children often respond to separation as their parents do. If you find leaving your child to be traumatic, don't let on. Be brave and avoid letting him see you cry. The same is true upon your return. It is great to hug the child and tell him how happy you are to see him, but getting overly emotional will just reinforce the child's idea that separation is difficult. For the majority of children, this phase will pass with time, but there are ways to lessen the effects. As with so many aspects of parenting, your strength will likely be the factor that teaches your child the proper response to separation.

Learn many more tips and tricks to overcome Child Separation Anxiety at... http://www.separation-anxiety-solution.com

Information Security peril a high anxiety among Software Development and Outsourcing Companies

2008-03-05T04:18:00.000-08:00

Information security has turn into a top anxiety among software development companies evaluating current and possible outsourcing dealings, according to a new survey by Booz Allen Hamilton. Further, companies distinguish a considerably higher security risk in working with offshore providers over those in the United Stat, due to a be short of faith in permissible and narrow surrounding influences in developing countries.

Answerer represented a huge variety of firm and company sizes, and eighty seven percent are new outsourcing or actively bearing in mind doing so. The survey was develop to provide imminent into perspectives on the enormity of information security risk peril in outsourcing relations, how companies vision the information security capabilities of seller, and the information security and database privacy dare that the outsourcing companies must address to build the trust and buoyancy of their buyers.

Information security is 1 of the high three most important factors in selecting an outsourcing partner, selected by fifty percent of standing, ahead of financial resistance, business reliability, and standing. In fact, eighty five percent of defendant said they may be helpful to pay ten percent to fifteen percent more to be safeguard of better security.

"The software outsourcing and development industry is at a crossroads," "As security business grow, the industry needs to develop security capabilities that bring back the faith of outsourcing client and offer them with the information they wanted to make better decisions."

The survey indicates rising anxiety about cyber world crime, data theft of customer, and security issues for network. Approximately seventy percent of respondents reported reviewing their outsourcing plan in reaction to investigation of recent huge profile cyber world crime event. Half of all respondents are doubtful of the security claims by outsourcing venders. Thirty percent of respondents find security competency claims unendurable to verify, and twenty percent find vender security claims not believable.

Particularly, while 2/3 of companies judge the prospect of cyber threats "extremely important," only thirty five percent sense that way about physical estrangement and normal disasters. In fact, companies are more anxiety about stealing or wrong use of outsourced database than they are about the danger of violence. Violence is viewed as a reasonable to important threat by forty eight percent of respondents, while ninety one were rather or extremely concerned about data staling or wrong use.

When question somebody about outsourcing vender situated offshore, respondents overpoweringly point to a superior concern over risks of security. 76% recognize a "fairly higher" or "often higher" security risk pressure with offshore venders.

Software outsourcing with operations in South America and Asia particularly challenge by the perceiving gap. Most survey respondents point to that requirement of security management need to be fulfilling in the agreements and contract governing outsourcing dealings, with nearly eighty percent reflection it as the significant management dare in outsourcing. On the other hand, the legal and narrow communications necessary to support the contracts is seen as missing in these key geographies.

Jim John Offshore Software Development India

How You Can Conquer Stress - Anxiety - Depression?

2008-03-05T04:17:00.000-08:00

Out of the fog and into the light-

Here's How You Can Conquer Stress, Depression, & Anxiety Quickly, Naturally & Permanently And Enjoy A Brighter, Happier Future. Chris Green

Chris Green has tested and created a comprehensive, scrupulously researched program that provides 100% of the information you need to get better and stay better. It's a program that's helped thousands of people around the world to conquer stress, depression and anxiety without taking medications and find happiness.

This isn't psychodynamic therapy, meditations, incantations, ECT, NLP, hypnotherapy or herbal supplements. It doesn't involve foul-tasting potions or brews and it doesn't involve mysticism, new-age religion, spirituality or such like that you have tried before and they've failed. My unique, incisive program contains the ONLY WAY to conquer stress, depression, anxiety, worry, nerves and panic. Permanently and without taking powerful, expensive drugs.

Now You've Found The Light At The End Of The Tunnel...

Right now you're feeling pretty low about things because I've been there too. For 5 years, anxiety and depression made Chris Green's life a living hell. After losing everyone and everything he ever loved, he went right to the edge. He figured life held nothing for him. Nothing but sadness, loneliness and pain.

So he knows how it feels to be without hope, helpless and afraid. He knows how it feels to be totally exhausted day after day, you may not understand why you're going through so much torment.

It's awful it really is, especially when you know NO ONE understands what it's like. Haunted by the past, trapped in an isolated present and terrified of the future, seems like nothing in your life is worthwhile, everything is going wrong and you feel helpless, hopeless and that nothing will ever change for the better.

You just want to live a normal, happy life - and you want more than anything else for the choking fog to go away. It's exactly how he felt for 5 painful years - years he can never have back. Years his anxiety cruelly robbed from him.

Today, you've found light at the end of the tunnel. Because you're about to discover how to get rid of stress, depression and anxiety, not just temporarily, BUT PERMANENTLY. The facts you need to know about these modern plagues, along with the natural techniques you can use to conquer them, will be in your hands in just a few minutes!

A Safe, Natural Program Can Help You Conquer Stress, Depression And Anxiety ONCE AND FOR ALL

Chris his going to share with you the powerful secrets about psychological illnesses the medical community don't want you to know. He'll show you how you can find happiness again by beating these illnesses without taking powerful, expensive medications. HONESTLY, YOU DON'T NEED MEDS TO GET BETTER. Because Chris and thousands of his clients have done it - you can too!

He'll show you why and you'll see what, exactly is at the root cause of your illness. This is why his program "Conquering Stress" is so unique. It is the only program you'll find that will give you a complete understanding about what's happening to you. With this understanding, you can then move to eliminate the pain of these illnesses from your life FOREVER. And you'll do it using his highly-effective, wholly natural method. 100% GUARANTEED.

http://anxiety-stress-depression.blogspot.com/

A Guide to Combating Stress and Anxiety

2008-03-04T04:15:00.000-08:00

It is no secret that stress and anxiety are a big problem in today's world. Everyone today seems to be working harder, staying at work later, juggling family and career, and otherwise burning the candle at both ends. This multitasking can help us be more productive, but it also causes greater levels of stress, and stress and anxiety continue to top surveys of the top problems in people's lives.

A quick look at the pharmacy or health food store can reveal a lot about just how serious the stress and anxiety problem is in today's modern world. There are a host of prescription medications designed solely for fighting stress, and the health food stores are full of herbs, powders and potions that promise to relieve stress and help us relax.

Of course these remedies are not appropriate for everyone, and anyone who feels that stress is a problem should be sure to consult with their physician for advice. Some prescription medications, and even many over the counter and herbal stress remedies, can have harmful side effects, so it is important to gather as much information as possible before seeking a pharmaceutical solution to your stress.

In many cases, the natural approach to relieving stress and anxiety is the best way to proceed. There are many natural ways to fight stress and anxiety, including meditation, yoga and simply getting enough sleep. No one approach is right for everyone, and it is important to tailor your anxiety cure to your own needs.

One of the major causes of stress and anxiety is simple lack of sleep. All too few of us get the recommended eight hours of sleep a night, and in many cases our sleep is disturbed during the night. Simply sleeping through the night, whether through the use of prescription sleep medications or good sleeping habits and sleep hygiene, can have a huge impact on reducing stress and anxiety.

Reducing anxiety can have a big impact on our health. Many of the most serious diseases today are brought on by stress and anxiety, so reducing anxiety can actually improve our physical as well as our mental health. Dealing with stress and anxiety issues will not be easy, but there are many advantages to getting those problems under control. Not only does stress affect our relationships and our mental well being, but it can have a significant impact on our physical lives as well. Getting those things that are bothering you behind you can give you real peace of mind, and it may even improve your health.

For more information on fighting anxiety visit http://www.anxietyland.com

Anxiety - Negative Self Talk

2008-03-03T03:20:00.000-08:00

Anxiety is a response which is innate in every healthy human being. We will all step back from the edge of a precipice, or jump when we hear a loud bang. Some of us however are more prone to anxiety than others, and controlling or curing anxiety relies upon understanding what anxious people do differently. Eastern philosophies have long known the importance of how one views one's environment. There is the age old tail of two travellers approaching a mountain range. The first traveller, looking forward to reaching his destination and relishing the new sites and sounds, sees the peeks reaching to the sky and views them as nature's gems, a site to behold. The second traveller, homesick, weary and loathe to reach his destination, views the very same peaks, from the very same angle, but thinks of them as the teeth of the entrance to hell.

The moral of this slightly melodramatic tale is that our environment is what we perceive it to be. We think something is dangerous only because, either consciously or unconsciously, we tell ourselves that it is. The process goes something like this:

Events ----> Our interpretation ----> Negative self talk ----> Negative emotions and reactions

Why we tell our selves that a certain situation is dangerous is another matter, we have learned to do that in the past and the cause is not necessarily important now. The important thing is that we stop this negative self talk.

At this point it becomes necessary to accept that both the cause and solution to your anxiety issues lie inside you. It's easier to blame it on brain chemistry imbalance, genetic weakness, and all sorts of other matters outside your control, but the simple truth is that by accepting responsibility today you can set in motion a very profound healing process.

Negative self talk doesn't just effect people with anxiety and panic attacks, it also effects those people who are constantly worried, too stressed, can't relax, or get depressed.

Negative self talk often starts with "what if..." type questions or self limiting statements like "I can't do that", or "I can't cope".

The traditional way of counteracting these negative thoughts is through cognitive therapy. You capture the thought and argue it out, either in your mind or on paper. For example:

"What if the elevator gets stuck?"
"I won't be able to cope, I'll go mad and may die, I'll faint, people will think I have a problem."

"Is that true? Let's examine the evidence."
"You have always coped in the past and will again in the future, panic can't make you mad as nasty as it feels and neither can it kill you. Neither does it often make you faint as your blood pressure goes a bit higher, not lower. Lots of people fear getting stuck in a lift, no body would think you were weird. But here's the big news: the lift is the safest form of transport, the chances of it getting stuck are thousands to one."

This kind of reaction can often lessen the impact of the negative self talk and open up new choices. It is a great first line of defence, but other methods exist which will banish the negative self talk, instead of merely keeping it at bay. The problem with cognitive therapy is that it sticks to conscious, surface thoughts. I would recommend doing cognitive therapy but supplementing it with something like the Sedona Method, which gets deeper into the issue and bridges the gap between psychoanalysis and cognitive therapy.

Anxiety 2 Calm looks at various techniques to overcome anxiety, panic attacks, phobia and stagnation. It includes sections on the Sedona Method, EMDR, and much more. All information is free and there is also a blog and a forum and many more interactive features. Feedback on experiences with medication and those expensive programmes and CD courses that are always advertised is useful to help others who are in a similar predicament to yourself or your loved one.

Thomas Chant runs Sundance Solutions, a company which specializes in gaining search engine ranking and attracting quality visitors by writing and syndicating high quality articles and producing fantastic reader friendly copy

Three Proven Ways to Handle Your Writing Anxiety

2008-03-03T03:19:00.000-08:00

Some experienced writers claim that this feeling has the situational character and is not pervasive in person's writing life. Others say that writing block and anxiety show up only during our most stressful deadline-driven periods, and stay until we find the way to show them the door.

Writing anxiety encroaches upon a writer, who doesn't know what to write about, or simply doesn't know where to start writing, and is usually accompanied by (1) continuous procrastination of the writing tasks, (2) becoming nervous because of the impossibility to write anything at all, (3) quickening heartbeat, and sweaty palms.

Writing anxiety can be a result of a great variety of social, academic, and personal factors. Some of them are:

* Writing for readers that have previously been overly critical and demanding to the writer's work. * Working in limited or unstructured time. * Adjusting to the new forms of writing that causes some troubles to the writer. * Being preoccupied with college life and social issues. * Professors that may seem intimidating and relentless. * Fear to failure.

I. Brainstorming and organizing your ideas

Brainstorming and organizing your ideas are as important as the process of actual writing. As a matter of fact, it provides a guaranteed solution to overcome the writer's block. This strategy is very simple.

You begin with a blank sheet of paper or a computer screen. You write your topic at the top, and, then, write everything you can about it. While brainstorming different ideas, you don't care about grammar and editing, you simply brainstorm various approaches to the subject matter under consideration.

When you are completely out of ideas, you look at the list of the jotted ideas, and reconsider your topic, cutting down the ideas that stray away from it.

II. Free writing

Free writing is one of the best ways around the writer's block. Free writing is a non-stop writing designed to uncover ideas that has no rules and forms to follow. Focused free writing involves writing on a particular topic as a means to discover what you already know or think about it. It helps you write when you don't feel like writing, loosens you up and gets you moving.

You write down the topic at the top of the page. Then, you set your clock for five or ten minutes, and put your pen to paper. The main idea is to write for a short, specified period of time, keeping your hand moving until your time is up. Remember that you are not allowed to stop, even if you have nothing to say, write first that occurs to your mind in the act of writing. And one more thing to remember is that you don't form any judgments about what you are writing. When the time is up, you go back over the text, and identify ideas that should carry over your text.

III. Clustering

Clustering doesn't have to be logically built and well-structured; it allows you to explore new insights without committing them to a particular order.

Hope that these options will help you handle your writing anxiety and forget about this mental deadlock once and for all!

Linda Correli is a staff writer of http://www.CustomResearchPapers.us/ and an author of the popular online tutorial for students "What Teachers Want: Master the Art of Essay Writing in 10 Days", available at http://www.Go2Essay.com/ Visit Linda's web log at http://custom-research-papers.blogspot.com/

ELIMINATE STRESS AND ANXIETY FROM YOUR LIFE--BECOME RESILIENT!

2008-03-01T03:29:00.000-08:00

"We can't solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them." -Albert Einstein

Each one of us has different levels of resiliency when it comes to dealing with our life situations. Do you need to learn some ways of becoming more resilient?
Take this brief Stress Quiz and find out!

1. Do you worry constantly and cycle with negative self-talk?
2. Do you have difficulty concentrating?
3. Do you get mad and react easily?
4. Do you have recurring neck or headaches?
5. Do you grind your teeth?
6. Do you frequently feel overwhelmed, anxious or depressed?
7. Do you feed your stress with unhealthy habits-eating or drinking excessively, smoking, arguing, or avoiding yourself and life in other ways?

The most important first step in dealing with your stress is to accept and acknowledge that it is your emotional reaction to a situation or event in your life that causes your stress, not the situation itself. We can't often do anything about the situation, but we can work with our reaction to the situation-this is where our power is!

I created the Snap Out Of It NOW! Method to help myself, and now you, to become more resilient and more creative. In other words, to learn how to interrupt and SNAP Out of the destructive cycle of emotional reactions that are engaged when faced with a difficult life situation.

Breathing Awareness Exercise:

The breath is your key to self-resiliency. The breath is your entry into your body-bringing light to the darkness, warmth to the coldness, and boundless possibilities for breaking free from your everyday reality.

The following exercise takes less than a minute and you can do it anywhere-at the grocery store, in your car during traffic, even in the middle of a fight or disagreement with another person. Sometimes just one single minute can be your best friend!

Launch Yourself to Places You Have Never Gone Before!

1. STOP, LOOK, and LISTEN-acknowledge you are stuck in a negative think-feeling pattern-you're stuck in a destructive cycle of reactions within your own body.
2. Become aware of your BREATH by listening to your breath going in and out your nose. Enter your body with your breath.
3. BREATHE to the negative feeling sensation in your body that's present wherever it may be, and as you exhale you are releasing the disharmony within your body. You are NOW free to deal with the situation in a creative new way!

You are shifting the state of your body and mind away from disharmony (frustration, anger, fear) back to its natural state of harmony (appreciation, love, joy)! Within this state of harmony you are more flexible, resilient, and creative. Isn't it wonderful to have a tool that will launch you into possibilities you never saw before!

Dr. Adrianne Ahern has a PhD in Clinical Psychology and is the author of the upcoming book, Snap Out Of It...Now! 4 Steps to Personal Fulfillment Using the Power of the Breath Empowering patients for over 15 years to face any challenge, Dr. Ahern gives individuals a new prescription for living a more fulfilled life. Contact: www.SnapOutOfItNow.com

Anxiety Symptoms

2008-02-29T02:44:00.000-08:00

Anxiety is a part of everyday life in the new millennium. But for people, it expresses itself much worse than for others. Anxiety symptoms that go beyond the typical expressions of unease and nervousness should not be ignored. While many people can expect to suffer an anxiety attack at some point in their life, recurring episodes of extreme anxiety are definitely not normal.

Anxiety itself is good. It serves as the body?s warning system that something may be amiss; that we need to move into a state of preparedness. Among these anxiety symptom are a rapid heartbeat, dry mouth and sudden perspiration. Surely nobody reading this has ever managed to escape those sensations.

But how many have been found themselves in stressful situations in which they became dizzy, grew short of breath, felt pain in their chest and a sudden need to urinate? While these are all common symptoms of everyday anxiety, if you find yourself feeling all of them, chances are you have gone beyond the norm and experiencing an actual anxiety attack. If you experience these symptoms on more than a few occasions, you may be to the point where you should consult a doctor.

Still, even these anxiety symptoms do not definitely mean you are experiencing an anxiety disorder. After all, the human body responds differently to varying situations of stress. For some people, the very thought of walking onto a stage and speaking to a large crowd of people would bring on all of the above symptoms without it necessarily indicating a disorder.

However, if in addition to the above, you also experience one or more of these anxiety symptoms, it is definitely past the point where you should at least be conducting some research. If you begin to experience deep feelings of apprehension, or even outright dread, of certain situations even when you are not anywhere near to being in those situations and you experience the physical symptoms, chances are you anxiety is to the point of a disorder. In addition, isolation of oneself from others can often be a sign of a more serious problem. Nervousness, jittery behavior, irritability, jumpiness; all of these are normal responses under certain circumstances, but if you notice a link between feeling them and either facing or just thinking about stress-inducing environments or events, it may be time to consider professional help.

Anxiety symptoms are a normal part of the day for most of us. Unless you get to work at your dream job and then go back to your dream home life, chances are you will experience a facing pulse, or a dry mouth today. It can be difficult to determine if the anxiety you are feeling is normal or something more. The worst thing to do is compare your reactions to anybody else; what may seem excessive to them might actually be normal for you. However, if you do find yourself experiencing these anxiety symptoms and you are concerned, definitely seek out the advice of friends and family to help locate the possible source of your anxiety.

Ignatius Rink - http://www.anxiety-attack.info and http://www.anxiety-symptom.info

OVERCOMING ANXIETY WITH HYPNOSIS

2008-02-29T02:43:00.001-08:00

Are you tired of feeling anxious in life? Do things bother you or make you feel nervous and you want to change? If you struggle with panic and anxiety attacks, you are certainly not alone. Typically, anxiety creates what is called a "fight or flight" response, which means the body releases hormones to help you deal with or escape the situation. Most often, you would experience things like rapid heartbeat, fast breathing, tense muscles, and a sick feeling in the stomach. What most people do not realize is that this fight or flight response within the body is something we can activate.

For example, if you had recently accepted a new job and you know Monday morning the day you start is just around the corner, you might begin to experience some or all of the symptoms associated with anxiety. Your stomach may begin to knot up, your head hurts, you breathe fast, and you feel simply miserable. Whether your anxiety is caused by a new or old situation, it can be devastating. In fact, anxiety for many people becomes so intense that managing a relationship, raising children, owning a home, or maintaining a job is a serious challenge.

Just as anxiety can control aspects of your personal life, it can also cause problems in how well you perform in your job. Perhaps you have a position of public speaking or performance. While you love your job and do well, you find periods when your face becomes flushed, the palm of your hands sweat, and you can feel your entire body tensing up. This too is anxiety, which is difficult to manage. Although you do well in your job, hypnosis can teach you how to do great in your job. In other words, for people struggling with anxiety, they are being held back from reaching full potential.

The good news is that hypnosis can help in a number of ways. Remember, anxiety comes in many different shapes. For instance, panic disorders are so severe that a person might feel as if he or she is having a heart attack and dying. Anxiety attacks are not quite as severe but they too create intense worry and concern. With hypnosis, the subconscious mind is retrained how to handle situations that might create the sense of anxiety. You will learn to be more confident, learn how to relax better, and gain a much better handle on challenging situations.

One type of anxiety that is common is known as social anxiety. With this, you might have an overwhelming fear of being in public or social situations. If you deal with this type of nervousness, you would find yourself turning down opportunities for parties or other social gatherings. Then in situations when you are around people, you feel embarrassed, at a loss for words when approached. Obviously, this is no way to live. Typically, nervousness such as this is debilitating but again, hypnosis can give you back control through self-confidence and understanding.

Other forms of anxiety where hypnosis can make a significant difference include Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and special phobias. For PTSD, you might have experienced something traumatic in your life whereby you now have nightmares or flashbacks. For example, survivors of 09/11, people who have lost a loved one in a car accident, or individuals who served in war are all prime examples of PTSD. For special phobias, this could include anything from a fear of animals to fear of flying to fear of spiders. Regardless, in both cases, you have lost control over your life but hypnosis is an excellent tool for giving you back control.

The type of hypnosis used and the longevity of treatment depend on the individual and the area of concern. However, by working with a qualified hypnotist or hypnotherapist, you will make improvement and be amazed at how much more enjoyable life can be. Typically, three to five hypnosis sessions will be enough for you to see a noticeable difference. Soon, you will not be nearly as anxious as you once were and eventually, not anxious at all. Just imagine the freedom to live again without fear, nervousness, or anxiety - hypnosis will give you all this and more.

Tony Robinson is a firm beliver in hypnosis. He is also a Webmaster and International Author. Visit http://www.betterhypnosissite.com/ for his tips on hypnosis

Valerian Use as Sleep Aid and as an Anxiety Fighter

2008-02-27T02:49:00.000-08:00

What Is Valerian?
For centuries, the tall perennial herb with pinkish flowers known as valerian (Valeriana officinalis) has been enlisted to help restless insomniacs get a sound night's sleep. Today this mild, nonaddictive sedative is quite popular both as a sleep aid and as an anxiety fighter, particularly in Germany, France, Belgium, and the United Kingdom. And in recent years its popularity has grown enormously in the United States as well.

Health Benefits of Valerian:
Although there has long been controversy over what makes valerian so effective as a relaxant, it is increasingly accepted that this herb does, in fact, work as the ancients once claimed it did. In addition to promoting sound sleep, valerian has a reputation for easing anxiety and relaxing tense muscles. It may also have a role to play in relieving digestive conditions, such as diverticulosis and irritable bowel syndrome.
Valerian added to bath water in the form of a very strong herbal tea or as an essential oil is said to have a calming effect, although specific scientific evidence is sparse.

Specifically, Valerian may help to:

Improve sleep.
In the brain, valerian is thought to bind to receptors for a nerve chemical called GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid). By blocking some nerve impulses from reaching the brain, the herb seems to shorten the amount of time it takes to fall asleep as well as improve the quality of sleep that results. And, unlike some of the more commonly prescribed sleep medications, Valerian is not addictive. Nor does it cause morning grogginess (when taken at recommended doses), as some prescription drugs do.
Numerous studies of insomniacs have shown that those who take valerian fall asleep faster than participants given a placebo. The quality of sleep improves as well, according to several recent studies. In one placebo-controlled trial of 27 people with insomnia, Swedish researchers found that 89% of those who were given a valerian preparation reported improved sleep, with 44% rating their sleep as "perfect."
Even more impressive results emerged from a well-designed 1996 trial involving 121 insomnia sufferers. Among the benefits of Valerian root extract taken one hour before bedtime (2 tablets of 300 mg each): significantly improved sleep quality, ream recall, and sense of psychological well-being.

Valerian may also be useful for people without insomnia per se.
In a 1983 trial that involved 128 healthy people, those assigned to take a valerian root preparation were far more likely to fall asleep faster than those given a placebo. The Valerian group also tended to stay asleep longer. Overall sleep quality improved significantly, particularly in those who rated themselves as poor sleepers to start with.

Reduce nervous tension, anxiety, and restlessness.
German health authorities endorse the use of valerian for restlessness and sleeping disorders that are caused specifically by nervous conditions. In fact, anyone who suffers from stress, panic attacks, or other nervous conditions may want to give Valerian a try. Valerian is thought to lessen anxiety because in blocking brain receptors for the neurotransmitter GABA, it also inhibits nerve impulses and stress-related messages from reaching the brain. More research is needed, however.

Lessen stomach cramps and improve digestive system disorders.
Animal testing and clinical research indicates that Valerian has antispasmodic properties. This may explain why it's valuable for countering spasms of the muscle tissue in the digestive tract and easing the intestinal pain that frequently accompanies irritable bowel syndrome. The herb's calming effect may also contribute to healing; after all, many digestive disorders are provoked by stress.

Forms of Valerian Available:
1. Tincture
2. Tablet
3. Softgel
4. Liquid
5. Dried herb/tea
6. Capsule

CLick here for more Information and for buyers guide: Valerian.com

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