When To Seek Help For Anxiety

When You Should Start To Worry About Your Anxiety

If anxiety is causing marked distress and making a difference in the way you are living your life, there is a problem.

You should seek treatment if your anxiety is causing you to be significantly uncomfortable for days, weeks or months preventing you from doing things you want to do creating problems with family and friends or interfering with your job performance.

Supporting Someone With Anxiety Or Depression

There are ways that you can help someone with anxiety or depression. It may be helpful to:

• let them know if youve noticed a change in their behaviour
• spend time talking about their experiences and let them know youre there to listen without being judgmental
• help them to get information from a website, library or community health centre
• suggest they go to a doctor or health professional, and help them to make an appointment
• offer to go with them to their appointment and follow up with them afterwards
• encourage them to get enough sleep, to exercise and to eat well
• encourage family and friends to invite them out and keep in touch, but dont pressure them to participate in activities
• contact a doctor or hospital if they become a threat to themselves or others.

It is unhelpful to:

• put pressure on them by telling them to snap out of it or get their act together
• stay away or avoid them
• tell them they just need to stay busy or get out more
• pressure them to party more or wipe out how theyre feeling with drugs and alcohol
• assume the problem will just go away.

If you or someone you know needs support, talk to a doctor or other health professional about getting appropriate treatment.

We All Experience Difficult Emotions From Time To Time So When Should You Seek Help If These Emotions Start To Feel Overwhelming

Everyone has felt outside of their emotional comfort zone at times. Like most people, you have likely faced feelings of anxiety, sadness, fear, anger, or irritability.

Maybe it has been difficult to put a word to the feeling at times. Big test coming up? Cue the stomach butterflies and sweaty palms. Lost your job? Nothing seems fun right now and you have no interest in being around others.

Throughout life, difficult experiences can cause a variety of different emotional states. Most of these are probably not the most enjoyable. What most people consider to be the enjoyable emotional states consist of feelings such as:

• Calm
• Peaceful
• Content

While people strive to feel these things as often as possible, the human brain and body dont always operate according to this plan. Like all animals, humans are designed to survive, and the emotions that people experience assist with survival. These emotions act as signals to alert a person that a source of stress is present. When stress is present, people tend to feel things like anxiety, fear, sadness, nervousness, anger, disinterest, and fatigue.

Once the source of the stress is identified, there are a number of techniques for dealing with and eliminating feelings of depression and anxiety. In many cases, these distressing feelings go away, and the person returns to a more neutral emotional state.

Unfortunately, this does not always happen.

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What Are The Costs Of Living With Unhealthy Anxiety

Affected areas may include:

3. Career and Long-Term Career prospects

4. Financial costs

5. Health

6. Lack Of Sleep

7. And many more.

Statistically, people can wait up to 10 years before they seek HELP & SUPPORT for anxiety.

Sadly, by then their Anxiety is so deeply ingrained, it takes far longer to recover.

To Know If Your Anxiety Is Unmanageable You Have To Know The Symptoms

• Find a therapist to overcome anxiety

Like all emotions, anxiety is healthy, and were all prone to feeling it sometimes. Anxiety can become a debilitating problem, though, when the stress you feel is no longer in proportion to the situation. An upcoming test, job interview, or first date may make you feel anxious, and thats healthy. But if you feel symptoms of anxiety absent any apparent reason, or everyday things make you anxiousleaving your home, for exampleit may be time to see a mental health professional. To know if your anxiety is unmanageable, you have to know the symptoms.

1. Physical Symptoms

The physical symptoms of anxiety may include an upset stomach, excessive sweating, headache, rapid heartbeat, and trouble breathing. If you get a stomachache every time someone invites you to a social function if you sweat through your shirt whenever you leave the house, even in the middle of winter or if you feel like your heart is beating so fast it might burst when talking to a stranger on the phone, you may be unhealthily anxious. If your body regularly reacts to everyday stressors the way a caveman would if a lion chased him, your anxiety is no longer healthy.

2. Cognitive Symptoms

3. Procrastination and Avoidance

4. Overthinking and Constant Worrying

5. Feeling Agitated and Restless

6. Panic Attacks

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How Can I Best Cope With An Anxiety Disorder

There are several steps you can take to cope with anxiety disorder symptoms. These strategies can also make your treatment more effective:

• Explore stress management: Learn ways to manage stress, such as through meditation.
• Join support groups: These groups are available in-person and online. They encourage people with anxiety disorders to share their experiences and coping strategies.
• Get educated: Learn about the specific type of anxiety disorder you have so you feel more in control. Help friends and loved ones understand the disorder as well so they can support you.
• Limit or avoid caffeine: Many people with anxiety disorder find that caffeine can worsen their symptoms.
• Talk to your healthcare provider: Your provider is your partner in your care. If you feel like treatment isnt working or have questions about your medication, contact your provider. Together, you can figure out how to best move forward.

When Should I See A Physician About My Anxiety

If you are suffering from bouts of anxiety that prevent you from functioning, or if you have been having more moments of anxiety than normal that impact your ability to work, sleep, or function it might be time to see a doctor. You and your doctor can talk about what might be causing your anxiety and determine if some form of treatment whether counseling, medication, or further evaluation is needed.

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Bring Your Childs Worry To Life

As you probably know, ignoring anxiety doesnt help. But bringing worry to life and talking about it like a real person can. Create a worry character for your child. In GoZen we created Widdle the Worrier. Widdle personifies anxiety. Widdle lives in the old brain that is responsible for protecting us when were in danger. Of course, sometimes Widdle gets a little out of control and when that happens, we have to talk some sense into Widdle. You can use this same idea with a stuffed animal or even role-playing at home.

Personifying worry or creating a character has multiple benefits. It can help demystify this scary physical response children experience when they worry. It can reactivate the logical brain, and its a tool your children can use on their own at any time.

Who Is At Risk For Anxiety Disorders

A mix of genetic and environmental factors can raise a persons risk for developing anxiety disorders. You may be at higher risk if you have or had:

• Certain personality traits, such as shyness or behavioral inhibition feeling uncomfortable with, and avoiding, unfamiliar people, situations or environments.
• Stressful or traumatic events in early childhood or adulthood.
• Family history of anxiety or other mental health conditions.
• Certain physical conditions, including thyroid problems and heart arrhythmias .

Anxiety disorders occur more often in women. Researchers are still studying why that happens. It may come from womens hormones, especially those that fluctuate throughout the month. The hormone testosterone may play a role, too men have more, and it may ease anxiety. Its also possible that women are less likely to seek treatment, so the anxiety worsens.

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How To Help And Support A Child With Social Anxiety Disorder

If you notice signs and symptoms of social anxiety in your child, you can help them manage their condition by:

• Staying calm and breathing together
• Getting them to put their feelings and circumstances into words
• Asking them to tell you about a time they managed to overcome their fear
• Coaching them about overcoming their fears
• Encouraging them to do something physical
• Being supportive, but not overprotective

Remember that your child learns by watching what you do. If you tend to avoid certain social situations because of anxiety, thats what youre modeling. Check out these 7 tips for helping out an anxious child.

Tips For Men Coping With Anxiety And Depression

There are lots of things you can do to look after your health and wellbeing, so find an approach that best suits you. For example, try to stay active and make plans for the day they dont have to be grand plans, just small things like going for a run or talking to a mate.

Try to include activities or hobbies that you specifically enjoy. At first, you may not enjoy them as much as you did before, but if you keep active and persist, the enjoyment should eventually return.

Its important to look after your body by staying physically active, eating healthily and getting plenty of sleep. Try not to drink alcohol or take other drugs to block out how youre feeling and what is happening. This is not a positive long-term solution and can make the anxiety or depression worse.

The important thing is to find the right options and the right health professionals that suit you.

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Social Anxiety Disorder: Symptoms Signs Causes Consequences

If your child manages to overcome their fears and takes pride in that, keep up the good work.

If, however, your childs anxiety starts to colour your familys daily life, it may be time to seek help, particularly if they:

• Experience emotions, worries, or physical signs and symptoms that are out of proportion
• Avoid certain social situations
• Suffer tremendously because of something specific

Social anxiety disorder is a condition that makes children and young people very anxious or worried in many ordinary situations. Studies indicate that approximately 1 out of 20 young people suffers from social anxiety disorder.

Who Can Diagnose Anxiety Disorders

If your provider finds no signs of physical illness, they may refer you to a psychiatrist or psychologist. These mental health professionals specialize in diagnosing and treating mental illnesses. They may use specially designed interview and assessment tools to figure out if you have an anxiety disorder. Typically, the provider bases a diagnosis on:

• Your reported symptoms, including how intense they are and how long they last.
• Discussion of how the symptoms interfere with your daily life.
• The providers observation of your attitude and behavior.

Providers also consult the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders . The American Psychiatric Association publishes the DSM-5. Its the standard reference manual for diagnosing mental illnesses.

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Water Soluble Vitamins For Anxiety

Water-soluble vitamins are extremely important and can be taken on a regular basis to help support mental health and functioning. While vitamin C and a vitamin B complex can help support brain functioning and regulate mood and improve symptoms of stress and fatigue, speak with your doctor before you consider taking them.

Anxiety Attack Symptoms Include:

• Feeling of losing control or going crazy.
• Heart palpitations or chest pain.
• Feeling like youre going to pass out.
• Trouble breathing or choking sensation.
• Hyperventilation.
• Nausea or stomach cramps.
• Feeling detached or unreal.

Its important to seek help if youre starting to avoid certain situations because youre afraid of having a panic attack. The truth is that panic attacks are highly treatable. In fact, many people are panic free within just 5 to 8 treatment sessions.

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Do I Have An Anxiety Disorder

If you identify with any of the following seven signs and symptoms, and they just wont go away, you may be suffering from an anxiety disorder:

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Once I Start Therapy What Can I Expect

• The relationship between you and your therapist is intended to be caring, respectful, non-judgmental and empathic. The therapist will work with you to explore your problem and find potential solutions.
• Sessions usually occur in the therapists office. However, some skills or interventions may need to be practiced outside the office . So depending on the nature of your difficulties, your therapist may ask to meet you elsewhere .
• The therapist may take notes, and you would be invited to do so as well. Whiteboards and flip charts may also be used to share information.
• A therapist may offer to audiotape sessions for you. This can be a useful tool for you to review the material that has been covered.
• You and your therapist agree on the tasks that you will work on between sessions . This may include activities such as gathering more information, trying out a new behaviour, or keeping a record or log of anxiety-provoking situations.

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What Does A Typical First Session Look Like

During the first session , youll be asked questions about why youre seeking therapy, your personal history, your family, your education and work life, and your current relationships. You may also be asked to complete some questionnaires about your symptoms. This information will help your therapist understand your difficulties and decide which interventions will be most helpful for you.

For anxiety treatment, you may be asked questions such as:

• Can you think of a time recently when you felt very anxious?
• What was going on in that situation? Who were you with? What were you doing?
• What was going through your mind at that time?
• What did you do to try to cope with feeling that way?
• How long have you been feeling this way?
• How is anxiety interfering with your life ?

Ideally, at the end of your assessment session, your therapist will be able to give you feedback about the assessment result, an estimate of how long therapy is likely to last, and an overview of how your therapy will proceed. Your therapist will also likely point you to some additional information and self-help materials to help you better understand and start coping with your difficulties.