A Definitive, Well Research Referenced, Guide On How To Survive The Recession. You Will Learn The History And Why We Are In This Financial Crunch And Possibly Heading For A Depression. Find Out How To Financially Survive, And Maybe Prosper. Recession Survival Guide.

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Anxiety

Is a normal reaction to stress. It helps one deal with tense situations in the office, study harder for an exam, keep focused on an important speech. In general, it helps one cope.

Panic Attacks

Are sudden surges of overwhelming fear that that comes without warning and without any obvious reason. It is far more intense than having anxiety or the feeling of being ’stressed out’ that most people experience.

Symptoms of Anxiety Panic

Chest Pain

Caused by muscle tension, chest pains can make you feel very scared. The initial reaction of anyone with anxiety who gets pains in their chest is that they are dying of a heart attack. This is not true.

Sweating

Sweating is a normal bodily reaction and is designed to reduce the body temperature. As the body heats up sweat is released onto it through sweat glands. As the sweat evaporates it takes heat with it, cooling the body.

Some people believe the cause of all their anxiety problems lies buried in the past. When you were young, the theory goes, a trauma occurred that you were unable to react to suitably at the time.

Most anxious people complain of aching muscles and general fatigue, these are very common symptoms of panic attacks and anxiety. Muscle tension can cause pain or sensations of tightness anywhere in the body; most common in anxiety are pains in the chest, neck and shoulders.

Causes of Anxiety & Panic

Characteristics of pain

The pain is usually localized to the chest wall, and can be fleeting and sharp, or can be a sharp “catch” that interrupts a breath.

Evaluation

This condition is usually apparent after taking a careful history. However, if the patient has risk factors for coronary artery disease, a noninvasive evaluation to rule out cardiac disease is often necessary.

Anxiety and panic attacks are partners. Anxiety is the driving force, the fuel that acts like an accelerator providing the thrust for the body to go into overdrive.

‘Hidden’ reasons for anxiety

Although Tony had not realised it he had been under increased pressure since his mother had taken ill and there had been some changes at work. Feeling pulled in every direction he had carried on unaware that these concerns were pressing down on his anxiety accelerator.

Treatments of Anxiety & Panic

“A panic attack is a sudden surge of overwhelming fear that comes without warning and without any obvious reason. It is far more intense than the feeling of being ’stressed out’ that most people experience.”

Therapy & Anxiety

Work through problems, develop coping skills, and gain greater sense of control over your life. Learn more about the benefits of therapy.

Control your worry

Pick a place and time to do your worrying. Make it the same time in the same place every day. Spend 30 minutes thinking about your concerns and what you can do about them.

Natural Remedies for Anxiety Disorders

Relaxation techniques may work just as well as anti-anxiety medications. Read on to learn more.

Relax

You may learn techniques to help you relax. These may include muscle relaxation, yoga, biofeedback and deep breathing. Muscle relaxation is simple. Start by choosing a muscle and holding tight for a few seconds.

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Dr. John Breeding, Ph.D. Psychologist, talks about depression. In this video he discusses the how psychology and psychiatry differ from their approach to depression. Is depression really a chemical imbalance in the brain or a psychological problem? Often time people are given antidepressants like Prozac, Zoloft, Paxil, Luvox, Celexa, Lexapro, Effexor or Wellbutrin. SSRI (Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors) are often promoted as correcting chemical imbalances in the brain but there is no proof that depression or mental illness is caused by chemical imbalances in the brain nor is there any proof that antidepressants correct an imbalance. These medications often time have horrible side effects like agitation and sexual dysfunction. This is a different view of depression. In this video Dr. Breeding will discuss tips on how to recover from depression, become a more happy person. Visit Dr. Breedings website at www.wildestcolts.com This video was produced by psychetruth http www.livevideo.com www.myspace.com

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Cure Public Speaking Anxiety Quickly And Effectively Using Scientifically Proven Methods. Download The E-book Immediately. Public Speaking Anxiety Cure.

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Everyone knows what depression feels like. Everyone feels the blues at times. Sadness, disappointment, and fatigue are natural parts of life. There is a correlation between the blues and clinical depression, but the difference is like the difference between the sniffles and pneumonia.

Depressive disorders are whole person illnesses; they concern the body, feelings, thoughts, and behavior. The depression itself can make us feel as if it’s hopeless to try to find help. The excellent news is that 80 to 90 percent of people with depression can be treated successfully, but the bad news is that only one sufferer in three seeks treatment. More bad news is that almost half the American public see depression as a character defect, rather than an illness or emotional disorder. In addition, only half of all cases of depression are correctly diagnosed, and only half of those get satisfactory treatment.

We tend to confuse depression, sadness, and grief. But the opposite of depression is not happiness, but vitality – the ability to experience a full range of emotion, including happiness, excitement, sadness, and grief. Depression is not an emotion itself. It’s not sadness or grief, it’s an illness. When we feel at our worst, sad, self-absorbed, and helpless, we are experiencing what people with depression experience, but they don’t recover from those moods without help.

The trademark of depression is a unrelenting sad or empty mood, sometimes experienced as tension or anxiety. Life shortage of pleasure. People with minor depressions may go through the motions of eating, sex, work, or play, but the activities appear shallow; people with more severe depression withdraw from these activities, feeling too drained, tense, or hostile to contribute. There is often a nagging fatigue, a sense of being powerless to focus, a feeling of being ineffective.

People with depression usually experience a lowered self-esteem. In a depression, you may feel that you are a helpless victim of fate, but also feel that you don’t deserve any better. Feelings of guilt, dishonor, and misery are common.

There are often a host of physical symptoms, of which sleep disturbances are key. People may have difficulty falling asleep or may get up early without feeling refreshed. Others may sleep excessively, again without feeling rested. Appetite may increase or decrease. There may be difficulty in sexual functioning. There may be harassing aches and pains that don’t respond to medical treatment. But there are physical illnesses that cause symptoms like depression – Lyme depression, diabetes, thyroid conditions, anemia – and depressions can cause physical symptoms like other diseases.

If you are feeling depressed, it is important to be sure that an underlying health problem does not exist, and you should see your physician for a checkup. At the same time, if you know you have a health problem and are feeling depressed, don’t imagine you will feel better once the health problem is under control.

There is a sequential process in the recognition of depression. First is a stage of confused pain in which the sufferer knows he suffers, but doesn’t know why. People often blame circumstances. Adolescents blame their home lives, married people blame their spouses, and employees blame their bosses. But there is acknowledgment that the pain is not ordinary.

The second stage is recognition that something is definatley amiss. It may be that external circumstances have changed but the pain keeps on going, or it may be a gradual recognition that the suffering is so dangerous that circumstances can’t be blamed. This is a painful recognition that often takes years. It is an acknowledgment of a damaged self. But because of the nature of depression, the self-blame and guilt that are manifestations of the disease, this acceptance does not always lead to searching for help.

People then may move to the third stage, a crisis that habitually leads to professional intervention and diagnosis. It is often a suicide attempt or psychiatric hospitalization. The diagnosis often supplies hope, that treatment or a cure is possible, and explanation, a way to understand what has only been confusion before. The fact is that this is a diagnosis of a mental illness, with all the shame and stigma that that entails.

The fourth stage involves acceptance of an illness identity. Depression comes to be seen as an outside agent invading the self, rather than as a manifestation of the self.

It is essential that anyone suffering from depression gets good help from a competent, qualified professional. If the warning signs are obvious, always seek a professional diagnosis. Going to a health professional with your troubles could prove, at worse, embarrassing, if the problem is really just a seasonal case of the blues that can be dealt with without medical intervention, but the potential cost of failing to diagnose a serious case of depression should far outweigh any concern about potential embarrassment.

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panic attack is a distinct time period of extreme fear or discomfort that is accompanied by one or more of the accompanying symptoms.

Symptoms might include:
palpitations
sweating
trembling or shaking
shortness of breath or smothering
feelings of choking
chest pain or discomfort
nausea or abdominal distress
dizziness or light-headedness
pins and needles
diarrhea
dry mouth
headache
derealization or depersonalization
and chills or hot flushes

The two main types of panic attacks are: 1.Spontaneous attacks and 2. Situational panic attacks. Here are the definitions to both of them.

1) Spontaneous Panic Attacks These are not affiliated with a situational spark and appear to come ‘out of the blue’. These panic attacks can happen during periods of relaxation or when sleeping.

2) Situational Panic Attacks Occur either in expectancy of a situation or in a situation where an assault has previously been felt. Generally the symptoms become evident as one enters the situation.

Here are outlined a few of the fears people have resulting from the panic attack symptoms.

Three of the most basic fears created by the panic symptoms are:

1) Losing Control, Will I black out in Public? Am I Having A Heart Attack? Experiencing Out of Touch Impressions or a Sense of Unreality

2)”Am I going crazy?”

3) It is perceivable for anyone to fear they may be going crazy when they suffer from the panic attack symptoms. There’s so little actual public awareness of mental illness so people frequently leap to extreme conclusions. These conclusions are generally based on misinformation and an active mental imagery.

4 more fears of panic attack sufferers are:

1) Losing Control

During a panic attack, because of the symptoms the people are experiencing, they are inclined to believe they are going to “lose control”. This deprivation of control can be physical’ i.e. – that all your critical organs will completely lose control of themselves and descend into total chaos or that the person will mentally lose a grasp on realness. Oftentimes, it is those who detest being embarrassed in public, suffer from this fear the most.

One thing you must remember is. You are not going to lose it. As a matter of fact, I am pretty confident, that with all the panic attacks you might have felt in public places.  The chance that somebody even made the observation that you were embarrassed is slim to none. In the society that we live, we are naturally social animals and fear to be seen in some kind of embarrassing situation. i.e. Doing something we feel is against the “social norm”, such as yelling out in a restaurant or maybe even bolting out of a get together with no explanation. In the end, even if we do embarrass ourselves In a public situation, what does it matter we are only human.

2) Passing Out in Public

Panic attack symptoms are usually brought on by a feeling of being light headed, which in turn brings on the fear of blacking out or fainting, usually this happens in public places. The reason this fear escalates to this extreme is because if you black out in a public place we become defenseless, especially whenever we do not have a friend with us. The overwhelming feeling of: How and who will help me if I am passed out on the floor in a public place? Automatically goes thru the persons head. Also in advanced cases, the thought of never waking up or falling into a coma crosses the persons mind.  These are just a few of the panic ridden thought process that the person deals with.

3) Heart Attacks

The concern of having a heart attack to anyone that deals or has dealt with panic attacks is a very major concern to that person. A person that deals with panic attack symptoms at some point will fear for the health of their heart. There are differing components associated with heart attacks that are not associated with panic attacks. here are some heart attack symptoms.  look and see how they are different from panic attacks.

The major symptoms of heart disease are shortness of breath and chest pain as well as irregular palpitations and fainting. Such symptoms are in most instances related to the amount of physical effort exerted. I.e.’ the heavier you exercise the more distressing the symptoms and the less you exercise the less frequent the symptoms become.

Occasionally individuals have similar concerns about their heart as they do with their breathing. People actually convince themselves that if they worry enough about their heart or concentrate too much upon its activities. Their heart will get confused and forget how to beat correctly. It is common for people who suffer from panic attacks to keep a regular tab on their heart to see if it is still beating or beating irregularly.

4) Thoughts of Unreality

Out of all the symptoms that panic attack sufferers have this symptom is the least talked about or written about.  This symptom is usually brought on by, exuberant anxiety or in other words extreme or excessive anxiety.  it is the sensing as if nothing is real, everything is not reality.  The people that feel this also have the feeling, that they are losing their minds.

People that have experienced panic attack symptoms have been reported as having beliefs of not being a part of their world or having a sense of nothing being real.  These sensations are depicted by the person as if their life is a projection of a movie.  This scenario is most often only found in people that suffer from advanced symptoms.

I mention this because the condition is not often spoken about‚ and to reassure those of you who may have experienced this sensation‚ that it is only a side–effect of excessive anxiety and will pass as soon as the body learns to relax.

This article is not meant to be an exhaustive list of symptoms for panic attacks, anxiety or stress.  But it is written to show some of the signs and symptoms that people face that have panic attacks or anxiety issues

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 All right fellow anxiety-sufferers, here is one of the first articles I am writing about changing anxious thinking.  There are many various methods one can use to reduce his or her anxious thoughts including Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and deep breathing exercises.  But, they both boil down to one main point, and that is that they focus on stopping anxious thoughts.  CBT can involve many different methods and is founded on the premise that thoughts lead to feelings, which in turn lead to behaviors.  Deep breathing exercises focus us on catching ourselves when our anxiety is beginning to escalate in either terms of thinking or physical symptomology.

 One additional idea that I would like to add to the field, and I am unaware of any other methods that replicate this technique although I am sure that some exist somewhere, is that for every reason one can find to be anxious, an anxiety-reducing reason can be find.  Further, if we are clever enough to invent these different anxiety-producing thoughts, we are also therefore clever enough to invent anxiety-reducing thoughts.

 I feel that all anxiety-sufferers are like this, myself included.  One example that I would like to use is going to the gym for example.  This used to be fairly anxiety-provoking for me for many different reasons, but now it is just another thing I do.  I would think things like, “My gosh, there will be lots of people there, and I wonder what they are all thinking about me?” or, “I am not sure how to work the machines.  I would rather not go than look like an idiot.”  Well, to counter the first thought, for example, I learned that in reality and by personal observation, that most people do not care one iota about me or what I am doing.  They are all at the gym to exercise, not to laugh at me.  With the weight machines, I could simply ask some of the staff who work there to help me out or someone else who exercises there often.  People start exercising at different times in their lives, so they might not know the proper technique for using the machines, and it is perfectly reasonable that a person would ask how to use it.

 Another thought that I used to struggle with quite extensively was the fear of being anxious and out of control.  It was scary to think about being scared and how silly I may look to others.  But, I learned a good reason to counter this thought, and that was that while I may initially feel some anxiety, eventually it will pass and things will be just fine.  Once I started to tell myself this regularly, I eventually began to learn to believe it, and sure enough, my anxiety reduced. 

 The moral of this story is that we are all intelligent people and know all the anxious tricks that we play on ourselves.  But, those tricks can be countered.  A counselor would be an excellent option to look to for help.  Otherwise, this activity can be largely self-directed.  Simply journal regularly your anxious thoughts, or even voice-record them on your cell phone.  Then, some time when you have time, think about those thoughts and think about more realistic thoughts, and about other ways of interpreting the situation that are anxiety-reducing.  There are many different ways of looking at any particular event; just because we have anxious thoughts about a particular event does not mean that event needs to be examined in an anxiety-producing light.  We must challenge ourselves to look at things in a more optimistic manner.

 Finally, I want to mention that while I have found this technique beneficial for myself, and while CBT does use this to a certain extent, it is only part of a multidisciplinary plan.  For some, challenging the anxious thoughts with more realistic thoughts may be helpful, but I firmly believe that the best way to manage anxiety is by completely changing one’s lifestyle such that it minimizes unnecessary anxiety.  In the article, A Multidisciplinary Approach, I detail the different things that I used to work together at the same time in order to reduce my anxiety to a very manageable level.  I am going to make some additions to that article, but for now, I will keep it short and say that regular exercise, an anxiety-reducing diet, having positive friends who would listen to my problems, attending counseling, challenging my anxious thoughts, and taking a small does of medication helped to reduce my anxiety to the point where I can do everything I need to do to live a happy life.

 Good luck, and please give me feedback on what methods you are using to reduce your anxious thinking!

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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Panic attacks tend to jump out of nowhere without warning. Although experts don’t know for sure what exactly causes panic attacks, they know one thing is certain; it appears to “run in the family.” So chances are, if your mother , father, siblings, or other immediate family members suffer from them, there’s a good chance other family members may suffer from them also!

The common panic attack symptoms are:

An intense feeling of fear
Heart Palpitations
Numbness and/or tingling in limbs
Having difficulty breathing
Sweating
Nausea
Stomach Upset
Pain in the Chest

Most people coping with these panic attack symptoms report they usually go away after approximately 10-20 minutes.

People who suffer from repeated panic attacks coupled with the fact that these attacks severely disrupt their daily routines and lives, may be diagnosed with panic disorder. Panic disorder sufferers intentionally avoid certain situations or places they think may have triggered a previous attack, and they incessantly worry about when the next one will occur.

It’s a good idea to get yourself checked out by a physician if you think you’ve experienced a panic attack so you can rule out any other medical condition you may have. Also, by immediately seeing a physician, you can set yourself on a much quicker path to recovery.

While coping with panic attacks, try exercising daily after getting medical clearance from your doctor, even if it means merely walking fifteen minutes a day.

If you smoke, consider quitting altogether; this is a known trigger for many panic attack sufferers.

Make time to relax yourself. You don’t have to resort to meditation or yoga if you don’t want to. A great way to do this is to close your eyes on your lunch break with a little soft music, and visualizing yourself in a safe, serene place, such as a brook, a distant waterfall, a beautiful landscape, etc.

Educate your loved ones on what is occurring if they don’t already know; what you are going through is very real, and ultimately the best cure will come from within your very own mind!

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Some people call it the ‘pits’ and some people call it the ‘blues’ and some just call it ‘feeling down in the dumps’. But whatever you may call it, being depressed is a terrible feeling.

The most common types of depression are:

Major Depression, which is characterized by a sad mood, sleep disorders, and a decreased or absent appetite. Often when a person is in a major depression, the person feels a complete lack of drive and motivation and the sufferer lacks the desire to do anything in life. Some people are completely disabled by depression, and some even consider suicide.

Dysthymia: This is a less severe type of long term depression that typically does not completely disable the individual. But it prevents the person from feeling motivated and functioning at optimum levels. Sometimes people who are suffering with Dysthymia also suffer from Major Depression, and when this occurs it is called double-depression.

Manic Depression is also called Bipolar Disorder. This type of depression is not as common as Dysthymia or major depression. It involves cycles of a manic state, alternated with a depressed state. This is often a long term recurring disorder. Sometimes the mood swings occur suddenly. But generally speaking, they tend to be gradual.

There are many variations of depression; the types described here are only three of the most common.

Some of the symptoms of depression include:

Sadness; anxiety; pessimism; insomnia and other sleep disorders; feelings of worthlessness; guilt; restlessness; pain; fatigue; weight loss; headaches; and thoughts of suicide.

Sources of Depression:

As previously stated, there are several types of depression: Major Depression; Manic Depression; and Dysthymia being three of the more common forms.

Many types of depression are hereditary. Living in a stressful environment can lead to depression. A traumatic experience such as a serious loss, relationship problems, or financial trouble can also lead to depression.

Women are twice as likely to suffer from depression as men are, but scientists do not know why.

If you suffer from depression, you will want to seek the advice of your physician. He may prescribe medication for you. But keep in mind that every medication has side effects.

Wouldn’t it be phenomenal if you could regulate and eliminate your depression just by having certain thoughts? I know that this sounds too good to be true, but very often, various types of depression are caused by thinking negative thoughts.

Don’t believe me? Then try it out! It’s really quite basic and simple. Just imagine something that you feel is very troubling or sad. Go ahead, think about it right now! Then come back to this article.

Okay, so what happened? If you really focused and visualized the sad situation, you began to feel sad and a little depressed. And the longer you allow yourself to remain in that thought pattern, the sadder you will feel. As you stay in sad thoughts and keep feeling sadder, you lead yourself into a gradually intensifying depression.

The good news is that if you focus on a happy thought, then you will displace that sadness and depression and have happy feelings instead.

Listen closely now, because here are the keys to eliminating your depression: Our persistent thoughts spring forth from the unconscious mind. These are the thoughts that we find ourselves automatically thinking about during the day.

If the persistent thoughts that keep recurring in your mind are about your problems or sad experiences, then you raise your levels of anxiety, stress, and depression.

But here is the ‘Light at the end of the tunnel’: Since hypnosis can be used to alter our unconscious thoughts, NLP and self hypnosis stress management CDs will rapidly alter the way that you think, feel, and behave. The interesting thing is that the exact same techniques that work for stress management also work just as well for eliminating depression!

Now I’m going to tell you exactly how and why it is going to happen. Hypnosis is a natural state of mind. Specifically, it is the Alpha state of consciousness. We go through the Alpha state as we are falling asleep at night. And we go through it again as we wake up in the morning. We also enter the Alpha state when we are daydreaming and imagining.

The unconscious mind is the seat of our emotions, and it is like a computer; the input controls the output! Hypnosis therapy is a wonderful tool for reaching directly into the unconscious mind and reprogramming it to automatically divert you away from negative thoughts, and promote positive thinking. It’s a tool that allows you to bypass the consciousness to create positive expectations, which will in turn generate positive feelings. You can overcome depression by using hypnosis therapy.

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